Macbeth Flashcards
for brave macbeth
for brave macbeth well he deserves thy name- highly respected and admired
will all great neptune’s…
will all great neptune’s ocean wash this blood from thy hand- blood symbolises guilt, his guilt also overcomes ambition
look like the innocent flower
look like the innocent flower but be the serpent underneath it- lady macbeth’s ambition towards the murder of the king and is encouraging him
Fair is foul
Fair is foul and foul is fair- introduces duality, juxtaposition between fair and foul, shows how they both link in the play.The witches chant creates a mystery and foreshadows deception. Talking is trochaic tetrameter. The chiasmus and alliteration of ‘f’ adds a spell-like quality thus building a supernatural atmosphere
Is this a dagger
Is this a dagger i see before me- Opening line of his soliloquy introduces his debate whether he should kill Duncan, overcome by power and greed, shows he’s unstable mentally and is taken over by guilt and growing insanity for killing Duncan. The dagger indicates the impending murder
Stars hide your fires
Stars hide your fires, let not light see my black and deep desires- “black” references hidden desires, foreshadows his death, ambitions are “deep” and “desires”
Blood…
Blood will have blood- Violence breeds violence, shows Macbeth is inevitably trapped in this cyclical cycle and hints the only way out is death
Thou marsh…
Thou marshals’t me the way that i was going- leading Macbeth the same way he was initially gonna go
My dearest…
My dearest partner of greatness. This is the letter Macbeth sent to Lady Macbeth and it implies that if he’s going be great, he will need someone to help him in his journey. Links back to “deep desires” and shows his ambition to become great was fuelled since the start
Double double toil….
Double double toil and trouble; fire burn and cauldron bubble- Said by the witches, foreshadowing more trouble that’s going to happen. Method- Assonance. The witches represent pure evil.
Come you…. Lady Macbeth quote
Come you spirits, unsex me here
In her famous soliloquy she calls upon the supernatural to make her crueler and proceed with her deceitful plants to murder Duncan. “unsex me here” implies to get rid of her soft feminine facade and obtain a more ruthless nature. The imperative verb “Here” highlights her desperation as she is urgent to do this.
She’s weak but is searching for power.
Lady Macbeth- Yet who would have
Yet who would have thought the old man to have so much blood in him?
A rare hint of compassion from Lady Macbeth, converts here guilt and regret for their actions which subtly shows how her views have changed
Lady Macbeth- What’s to…
What’s to be done?
In contrast to her earlier scenes she dominated and drove the conversation with complex speeches however in this scene she has reduced to short sentences which demonstrates how she is losing control of him and he no longer confides in her.
Lady Macbeth- Whats done
Whats done cannot be undone- Her present is overwhelmed by her past. This quote opposes her initial statement “what’s done is done” which conveys a subtle change in her view of the situation so there is guilt still tormenting her which inevitably drives her to insanity, and finally, suicide.
Lady Macbeth- my hands are of your colour, yet i shame to wear a heart so white
She’s calling Macbeth a coward when she realise he didn’t but the dagger in the right place and refuses to go back to the place of the crime. She’s infuriated.
