Appearance vs Reality/Lady Macbeth Flashcards
“the crown to the toe”
“breasts”,
“blood”
“milk”
“Gall”
The use of anatomy, such as “the crown to the toe” and “breasts”, makes her speech feel very invasive and uncomfortable, as well as illustrating how Lady Macbeth is trying to mutate into something else. Furthermore, the reference to “blood” and “milk” shows how her soul and mind will also be affected. Because of the theory of the four humours in medieval medicine, a person’s bodily fluids (such as Lady Macbeth’s “blood”) would have determined their true nature. By asking the spirits to tamper with her insides, Lady Macbeth is asking for a complete makeover. Alternatively, the combination of “blood” and “gall” could be an allusion to Jesus’ crucifixion. Jesus’ side was pierced to prove he was dead, and blood came gushing out; before he died, the Roman soldiers offered him a wine laced with gall, or poison. Lady Macbeth is welcoming these substances, suggesting she is on the side of the Roman soldiers.
“eye”, “hand”, “tongue”, “look”, “welcome”
This quote is an explicit nod to the theme of appearance vs. reality, as Lady Macbeth instructs her husband on how to fool everyone around them. Shakespeare shows how she intends to exploit the differences between appearance and reality, as well as exploit how gullible our senses are, to achieve her goal. Once again, Shakespeare uses anatomical imagery, such as “eye”, “hand”, and “tongue”, as well as a semantic field of sight, “look” and “eye”, in Lady Macbeth’s descriptions of emotion. She tells Macbeth to make sure that any “welcome” or kindness he shows others is purely surface level. This suggests that their public personas are superficial and hollow, with no genuine meaning behind them. The body parts she lists implies that emotion can be replicated and imitated, as if it is a physical product rather than an abstract feeling. The theme of sight conveys how our senses can be tricked: we are taken in by appearances and performances.
“to beguile the time, / Look like the time”
The parallel structure in “to beguile the time, / Look like the time” emphasises the idea of mirroring. Lady Macbeth tells Macbeth that the best way to trick people is by reflecting back at them what they want to see. Again, their identities are surface level, with no substance behind the reflective glass. The verb “beguile” conveys menace and manipulation. Also, it connotes enchantment and witchcraft, continuing to present Lady Macbeth as an enchantress.
“To beguile the time, / Look like the time, bear welcome in your eye, / Your hand, your tongue,” (1.5)
“Sleek o’er your rugged looks, be bright and jovial / Among your guests tonight,” (3.2)
“Look like th’innocent flower, / But be the serpent under’t,” (1.5)
The audience can see Lady Macbeth is
aware of the importance of outward appearance and how it can be manipulated when she teaches Macbeth how he should act. She tells him, “To beguile the time, / Look like the time, bear welcome in your eye, / Your hand, your tongue,” (1.5). Her use of physical features, such as “eye”, and “hand” emphasise the importance of outward appearance. The verb “look”, shows how he doesn’t have to be “like the time”, only imitate it. A similar idea is expressed later when she instructs him to “Sleek o’er your rugged looks, be bright and jovial / Among your guests tonight,” (3.2) She finishes, “Look like th’innocent flower, / But be the serpent under’t,” (1.5). Again she is stressing the important difference between looking like something and
being something else. The juxtaposition of “flower”, which connotes femininity,
with “serpent”, which connotes masculinity and trickery, shows how there can be a dangerous divide between a person’s outward appearance and inward nature. “Serpent” is an allusion to the Biblical story of Adam and Eve, where it is a symbol of the devil.
“Come, thick night, / And pall thee in the dunnest smoke of hell, / That my keen knife see not the wound it makes, / Nor heaven peep through the blanket of the dark,” (1.5).
Shakespeare shows how appearances can be used for acts of self-denial as well as deception, keeping the conscience clear even though a crime has been committed. After asking the spirits to take away her inner femininity, Lady Macbeth says, “Come, thick night, / And pall thee in the dunnest smoke of hell, / That my keen knife see not the wound it makes, / Nor heaven peep through the blanket of the dark,” (1.5). This shows how she wants to use appearances to her advantage by blinding others to her actions. The personification in “my keen knife see not the wound it makes” implies there is a level of self-deception to her plan, where her “knife” appears to be a symbol for herself. The semantic field of darkness, furthermore, implies our reliance on what we can see makes us ignorant and gullible. Shakespeare could be criticising his society’s focus on obvious, black and white truths. Ultimately, though, her deceit is met with fitting consequences, as she is caught between reality and imagination. Her hallucinations are symbolic of her losing control of herself, which is ironic as she has tried so hard within the play to control everyone else. By the end she cannot control her mind and is ultimately destroyed by it.
