Macbeth Flashcards
Quotes about Macbeth?
“Macbeth does murder sleep.” — Act 2, Scene 2
(Reflecting Macbeth’s loss of peace after committing murder.)
“I am in blood stepped in so far that, should I wade no more, returning were as tedious as go o’er.” — Act 3, Scene 4
(Macbeth acknowledges the point of no return in his bloody deeds.)
“Thou shalt get kings, though thou be none. So all hail, Macbeth and Banquo!” — Act 1, Scene 3
(The witches’ prophecy about Macbeth and Banquo.)
“To be thus is nothing; but to be safely thus.” — Act 3, Scene 1
(Macbeth expresses his fear about holding onto the throne.)
“I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition.” — Act 1, Scene 7
(Macbeth admits his ambition drives him to murder.)
“If it were done when ‘tis done, then ‘twere well it were done quickly.” — Act 1, Scene 7
(Macbeth contemplates the swift murder of King Duncan.)
“Is this a dagger which I see before me, the handle toward my hand?” — Act 2, Scene 1
(Macbeth sees a vision of a dagger guiding him to Duncan’s chamber.)
“We have scorched the snake, not killed it.” — Act 3, Scene 2
(Macbeth reflects that killing Duncan didn’t end his troubles.)
“Be bloody, bold, and resolute; laugh to scorn the power of man, for none of woman born shall harm Macbeth.” — Act 4, Scene 1
(The apparition’s prophecy gives Macbeth false confidence.)
“Out, out brief candle! Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage.” — Act 5, Scene 5
(Macbeth laments the futility of life after learning of his wife’s death.)
“I will not be afraid of death and bane, till Birnam Forest come to Dunsinane.” — Act 5, Scene 3
(Macbeth is confident that no one can defeat him, based on the witches’ prophecy.)
“Macbeth shall never vanquished be until Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane Hill shall come against him.” — Act 4, Scene 1
(The witches’ prophecy about Macbeth’s seeming invincibility.)
“What’s done is done.” — Act 3, Scene 2
(Macbeth reassures Lady Macbeth about their actions, though he’s still troubled.)
“It will have blood, they say: blood will have blood.” — Act 3, Scene 4
(Macbeth acknowledges the endless cycle of revenge and violence.)
“Look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent under’t.” — Act 1, Scene 5
(Macbeth is advised to deceive others with a false appearance.)
“Thane of Cawdor! If good, why do I yield to that suggestion whose horrid image doth unfix my hair?” — Act 1, Scene 3
(Macbeth wrestles with his ambition and the temptation to murder Duncan.)
“Now o’er the one halfworld nature seems dead, and wicked dreams abuse the curtain’d sleep.” — Act 2, Scene 1
(Macbeth reflects on the unnatural state of the world after deciding to murder Duncan.)
“I dare do all that may become a man; Who dares do more is none.” — Act 1, Scene 7
(Macbeth struggles with his conscience and the decision to murder Duncan.)
“I am a man again.” — Act 5, Scene 3
(Macbeth’s brief realization that he is no longer the confident ruler he once was.)
“Thou canst not say I did it: never shake thy gory locks at me.” — Act 3, Scene 4
(Macbeth reacts to the vision of Banquo’s ghost, showing his growing madness.)
Quotes about Lady Macbeth?
“Out, damned spot! out, I say!” — Act 5, Scene 1
(Lady Macbeth, overwhelmed by guilt, imagines bloodstains she cannot remove.)
“Come, you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, and fill me from the crown to the toe topful of direst cruelty!” — Act 1, Scene 5
(Lady Macbeth calls on supernatural forces to rid her of feminine weakness and make her cruel.)
“Look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent under’t.” — Act 1, Scene 5
(Lady Macbeth advises Macbeth to appear innocent while hiding his true murderous intentions.)
“What’s done is done.” — Act 3, Scene 2
(Lady Macbeth reassures Macbeth that they cannot change the past and must focus on the future.)
“My hands are of your color; but I shame to wear a heart so white.” — Act 2, Scene 2
(Lady Macbeth mocks Macbeth’s guilt and fears, suggesting he is too weak to follow through on his actions.)
“A little water clears us of this deed.” — Act 2, Scene 2
(Lady Macbeth believes washing the blood from their hands will absolve them of their guilt.)
“Give me the daggers: the sleeping and the dead are but as pictures: ’tis the eye of childhood that fears a painted devil.” — Act 2, Scene 2
(Lady Macbeth takes charge, mocking Macbeth’s fear of the murder he just committed.)
“Things without all remedy should be without regard: what’s done is done.” — Act 3, Scene 2
(Lady Macbeth advises Macbeth not to dwell on the murder and focus on securing their power.)
“Be innocent of the knowledge, dearest chuck, till thou applaud the deed.” — Act 3, Scene 2
(Lady Macbeth encourages Macbeth to hide his thoughts from her until they can celebrate their power.)
“You lack the season of all natures, sleep.” — Act 3, Scene 4
(Lady Macbeth tries to calm Macbeth during his banquet hallucinations, urging him to act normal.)
“Out, out brief candle! Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage.” — Act 5, Scene 5
(Lady Macbeth reflects on the futility of life as she descends into madness.)
“The sleeping and the dead are but as pictures: ’tis the eye of childhood that fears a painted devil.” — Act 2, Scene 2
(Lady Macbeth dismisses the fear of murder, telling Macbeth to be bold.)
“Naught’s had, all’s spent, where our desire is got without content.” — Act 3, Scene 2
(Lady Macbeth expresses the emptiness of their achievements, realizing that power hasn’t brought them happiness.)
“I have given suck, and know how tender ’tis to love the babe that milks me: I would, while it was smiling in my face, have pluck’d my nipple from his boneless gums, and dashed the brains out, had I so sworn as you have done to this.” — Act 1, Scene 7
(Lady Macbeth convinces Macbeth to commit murder, expressing her willingness to do anything to achieve her goal.)
“Your face, my thane, is as a book where men may read strange matters.” — Act 1, Scene 5
(Lady Macbeth warns Macbeth to hide his emotions and not reveal his true feelings.)
“Come to my woman’s breasts, and take my milk for gall, you murderous villains!” — Act 1, Scene 5
(Lady Macbeth invokes dark forces to rid her of any softness and make her capable of murder.)
“I dare do all that may become a man; Who dares do more is none.” — Act 1, Scene 7
(Lady Macbeth challenges Macbeth to be bold and assertive in following through on his ambition.)
“When you durst do it, then you were a man; and to be more than what you were, you would be so much more the man.” — Act 1, Scene 7
(Lady Macbeth taunts Macbeth’s masculinity, urging him to prove his manhood by committing the murder.)
“The raven himself is hoarse that croaks the fatal entrance of Duncan under my battlements.” — Act 1, Scene 5
(Lady Macbeth foresees Duncan’s death and feels the raven symbolizes the coming tragedy.)
“All the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand.” — Act 5, Scene 1
(Lady Macbeth is consumed by guilt, unable to rid herself of the metaphorical blood on her hands.)
Quotes about the Witches?
The Three Witches (Act 1, Scene 1)
“When shall we three meet again
In thunder, lightning, or in rain?”
This is the witches’ first line in the play, setting the eerie and supernatural tone.
The Witches’ Prophecy (Act 1, Scene 3)
“All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis!
All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor!
All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!”
The witches greet Macbeth with prophecies that set the course for his actions throughout the play.
The Witches’ Chant (Act 4, Scene 1)
“Double, double toil and trouble;
Fire burn and cauldron bubble.”
This chant is one of the most famous in the play, evoking the witches’ powers and malevolent influence.
Hecate’s Speech
(Act 3, Scene 5)
“How did you dare
To trade and traffic with Macbeth
In riddles and affairs of death;
And I, the mistress of your charms,
The close contriver of all harms,
Was never called to bear my part,
Or show the glory of our art?”
Hecate, the goddess of witchcraft, expresses her anger at the witches for meddling with Macbeth without involving her.
The Witches’ Final Vision (Act 4, Scene 1)
“By the pricking of my thumbs,
Something wicked this way comes.”
This line foreshadows Macbeth’s arrival, marking him as a “wicked” figure under the witches’ influence.
Quotes about guilt as a theme
