lady macbeth quotes Flashcards
“Look like th’innocent flower, but be the serpent under’t” - Lady Macbeth
Give analysis
- flower has relation to the feminine / female qualities
- calling Macbeth a woman
links to how Lady Macbeth says “unsex me here” (asked to be like a man - first part being a simile is a weaker/’FEMININE” form of description (only decribes what it is “Like) while…
the metaphor is much more robust and MASCULINE - intertextual (serpent is a relation to genesis in the bible where the Satan takes the form of a serpent
relation of villainous and evil)
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“Beware Macduff”
“none of woman born shall harm Macbeth”
“Macbeth shall never be vanquished be until great Birnham Wood to high Dunsinane hill shall come agaisnt him”
Give analysis
“None” breaks iambic pentameter and so they deviate just like how they deviate from telling macbeth the truth that macduff was birthed through a cesearean section
the witches always speak the truth - macbeth being naive is shown through as what macbeth belives is that no one of “woman born’ can”harm macbeth but instead what the witches REALLY mean is that no one of natural birth can harm him
Forshadoews macduuf killing macbeth
“vanquished” - very strong verb of the synonym defeat
explores how macbeth will be defeated by an army though th say he won”t be
explores macbeths uncertainty and tension within this scene
“Out damned spot , Out I say! Here’s the smell of blood still”
“Damned” can describe Lady macbeths soul being damned as she planned the regicide of Duncan but also she shifts the blame onto the spot and this reflects how she doesnt want to go to hell because of her guilt
“Out” is repetition and it is echoed later on the play where lady macbeth dies and macbeth says “Out, out brief candle!” this relates to Lady Macbeths suicide as it had been snuffed out like a candle.
“smell of blood still” blood is a motif through the play which can symbolises Lady Macbeths guilt . Furthermore as the one of the senses “smell” is used as way to describe it though she can’t see the blood she can smell it which suggests how it lingers .
“I say “ is her trying to assurt her power as queen . But it can also be viewed that Lady macbeth does it this because her loss of power from her no longer confiding with Macbeth just before he kills Banquo. This shows how Lady Macbeth is still reliant on macbeth just like how a wife to her husband.
‘Come, you spirits… unsex me here… come’
- Lady Macbeth turns to the forces of evil and welcomes the dark spirits who will strip her of her femininity and allow her to commit murder.
- The use of the imperative verb ‘come’ shows that she deliberately turns to the forces of evil and embraces their power.
- The repetition of ‘come’ makes it sound as if she is casting a spell, and therefore her language links her with the witches.
Context: The Jacobean audience were highly superstitious and firmly believed in the power of the supernatural. Lady Macbeth’s decision to turn to the evil spirits would have been deeply disturbing to contemporary audiences.
