Loyalty & Betrayal Flashcards
Loyalty to king and country - L&B
1.2 Macbeth & Banquo fighting and risking their lives, expecting nothing in reutrn for the wellbeing of Scotland. “Doubly redoubled strikes upon the foe”
“brave” “valiant” “worthy”
4.3 Macduff’s loyalty to the rightful heir Malcom - not deterred by his lies “Black Macbeth will seem pure as snow” - his alleigance to his country and to doing whats best is bigger than his desire to have a morally right heir - no ulterior motives
Thoughts of betrayal - L&B
1.3 “horrible imaginings” of killing D to become king. “Whose murder yet is but fantastical”. Thoughts expressed in an aside, showing he harbours shame and guilt already. Nobody mentioned murder, yet he is thinking of it - brings his true loyalties the whole time into account, the witches gave him the smallest influence and he went far with it.
1.7 Having second thoughts, fears the reprecussions - shows he is not a morally bankrupt character and still holds loyalty to his country - but is torn between loyalty to his wife and his kind. Euphamisms for regicide “it” “th’assasination” - cannot murder a “meek” (pure, innocent) and good person -> in his mind it is not only about Duncan being god’s chosen servant. “I have no spur” to continue with the betrayal
Acts of betrayal - L&B
2.2 “When?” “Now.” - short sentences imply urgency between LM and M, nervousness. Paranoid “one cried ‘Murder!’” - M is imagining this, showing it is disrupting his peace and normal frame of mind. Will always feel guilty “Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood clean from my hand?” - blood as a motif for guilt, the guilt will not wear away after time, no matter how much effort he puts in to removing it - Neptune is a god
Betrayal of family - L&B
4.2 MD - his family thought he was loyal to them, but he held the country in higher regard - sacrifice? Loyalty to an extreme. “was my father a traitor, mother?” - innocence “ay, that he was”
“one that swears and lies” - MD swore to stay loyal but left, leaving them to be killed without any hope of protection or fighting back. Innocents killed due to MD not being truthful, even if it was for the greater good.
“he has killed me, mother”
But leads to restoration of justice in 5.9 and 5.8 as M is defeated and Mal is rightful heir “Hail, king of scotland”
