Macbeth Flashcards
Fair is foul, foul is fair
The Wiches
-Oxymoron, showing their eqivocationg/contradicting nature
-‘fair’ and “foul’- fricative alliteration
-Trochaic tetrameter
For brave Macbeth- well he deserved that name
The Captain
Brave - Mabeth is viewed as corageous and a talented soldier
- He is good and a hero at the start of the play.
Deserves - shows the captains full belives his previous statement.
O valiant cousin, worthy gentleman
Duncan
Valiant - Brave and courageous, praised by Duncan himself
-Courage was considered a vital quality of a man
Cousin - duncan trusts Macbeth and considers him as family
Worthy Gentleman - Same as valiant tbh
A this point, We have not met Macbeth - Increases our expectations of him
Yes, as sparrows,eagles, or the hare, the lion.
Duncan is descbing Macbeth and Banquo as predatory animals, showing their courage, bravery and strength.
Birds are often used as symbolism for people.
Though his bark cannot be lost, yet it shall be tempest-tossed
Trochaic tetrameter, rhyming couplet- curese/spell-like rhytnm
- Shows the Witches are different from other charcters
Tempest-tossed - Alliteration with T
Quote implies that Witches cannot control humans directly, but can influence them (e.g being the catalyst for Macbeth commiting regicide)
Lesser than Macbeth, and the greater. Not so happy, yet much happier. Thou shalt get Kings, though thou be none.
Rhyming Couplets - Supernatrual
Lots on contradicary and equivocating language
Is realted to King James since he was related to a Banquo
-King James was Shakespeares Patron
Foreshadows his Future
Line 1 - Not King, but moraly better
Line 2 - Gets killed, but doesnt see Scotalnd fall
Stay, you imperfect speakers. tell me more.
Use of imperatives (stay, tell)
-Macbeth trying to control the supernatrual
Is (as Banquo says) “rapt withal” by the Wiches and their prohercies.
This is the start of his downfall as he gets lured by the prophercies and the prospect of becoming King
Imperfect - Shows how weird and unusual they are
This supernatrual soliciting cannot be ill, cannot be good.
Macbeth committing regicide is a “supernatural soliciting”.
“supernatural” - shows that Macbeth is aware that his actions are against nature
The alliteration of “supernatural soliciting” sounds alluring, and highlights Macbeth’s thirst for the crown.
Whose horrid image doth unfix my hair And make my seated heart knock at my ribs,
‘horrid image doth unfix my hair’ and ‘my seated heart knock at my ribs’, emphasises Macbeths horror of his own thoughts.
“my seated heart knock at my ribs” -personification
- Fear
If chance will have me King,why chance may crown me without my stir.
Macbeth places his previous thoughts aside and hopes to be crowned King without interference
chance - he doesnt want to affect fate , repetion
- Jacobeans belived in fate and destiny and that your life was already planned out and you cannot do anything
-Divine right of Kings
He was a gentleman on whom I built an absolute trust
“absolute trust”- Duncan is very trusting of people and its his weakness
-foreshaows Macbeths betrayal
Stars, hide your fires, let not light see my black and deep desires
Rhyiming, perhaps influenced by the witches
“black, deep, desires” alliteration of the d, shows his awareness that he is doing something bad
Macbeth calls on darkness (evil) to hide his sins from “heaven/good”
my dearest partner of greatness
dearest-term of endaerment, shows that they have a bond
Partner- L Macbeth sees them as equals, which breaks the rules of Jacobean era
Greatness - Refrences their powerful ambition and foreshadows their achivement ( killing Duncan)
Yet I do fear thy nature, it is too full o’th’milk of human kindness
L Macbeth thinks that Macbeth is too innocent and kind to commit such a sin and attacks his manliness
Milk- symbolizes innocence and purity, is used to raise babies
L Macbeth views kindness as a weakness, which is ironic
-Jacobean women were meant to be ……
The raven himself is hoarse That croaks the fatal entrance of Duncan
Under my battlements.
Raven - symbolizes death and bad omens, foreshadowing Duncan’s death
Fatal - further shows that Duncan is set to die
My battlements - implies that he is going to die in the castle, L Macbeth ‘turf’
Come, you spirits
That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here,
And fill me from the crown to the toe top-full
Of direst cruelty
Imperative verbs - shows her controlling nature and how she demands Satan, showing that she might be realeted to supernatrul
unsex - Asks to remove her sex, a weakness and sees her femminity as her main obstacle = limited by her femmeniity
Stop up the passage to remorse
Shows that L Macbeth does have a conscience and “womanly” traits, but views them as a weakness
And take my milk for gall you murd’ring ministers
Exchnages milk for poision = innocence purity - evil
Alliteration of M - adds pressure
look like th’innocnet flower but be the serpent under’t
Apperance VS reality
-flower nice and plesant, how Macbeth should treat his guests
-serpent more evil and sinister, his true thoughts
Classical illusion - garden of Eden
his virtues will plead like angels, trumpet- tounged against the deep damnation of his taking- off
Alliteration of the T and D
Relates Duncan to heaveny things - angels
Great Chain of being - angels fly down to plead for Duncan
Damnation - refrence to heaven nstuff
I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition which o’erleaps itseld and falls on th’other
Macbeth realises he has no other reason to kill Duncan than his ambition for the crown.
He personifies his ambition - his ambition is his best quality and is above all others, solving most of his problems
We will proceed no further in this buisness
Macbeth tries to take control of the convo, following traditional gender roles
I dare do all that may become a man
Alliteration of D - emphasises him trying to prove
Fights back against L Macbeth, trying to prove his masculinity
When you durst do it, then you were a man
L Macbeth questions Macbeth’s manliness and thinks only killing Duncan will prove that he is a worthy man
I have given suck and how tender ‘tis to love the babe that milks me: i would, while it was smiling in my face , have plucked my nipple from his boneless gums and dashed the brains out, had i sworm as you have done this.
Vivid violent imagery
- shows her nature
Shows Macbeth how storng her ambition and will is, proving that she keeps promises and is more manly than him
False face must hide what the false heart doth know
Fricative alliteration
Apperance VS Reality
Metaphor
Paradox - face is used to express emotions
Is this a dagger before me,
Dagger - symbolises violence and Macbeth’s choice
- Final catalyst for Macbeth to commit regicide
Hallucionation - Macbeth is now taken over by the evil/ supernatrual
Rhetorical question
Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood
Clean from my hand? No, this my hand will rather
The multitudinous seas incarnadine,
Making the green one red.
Macbeth will be burdened by this murder forever and that there is no way to erase it.
-Soul will be pernamently sent to hell
Metaphor and Hyperbole
-shows his guilt
My hand are of your color, but I shame to wear a heart so white.
L Macbeth feels no guilt and belittles Macbeth , saying that they are the same, but Macbeth feels bad and guilty
A little water clears us of this deed
‘little’ L MAcbeth thinks that commiting regicide and the guilt after is not a big deal, and can be easily washed away.
Opposite of her in A5
his silver skin laced with golden blood and his gashed stabs looked like a breach in nature
silver skin - alliteration/ sibilance
golden blood - like ichor the blood of gods, showing his divinity
breach in nature - alludes to divine right of kings and how earth will be in disaray and chaos becaus ethe king was killed
I fear thou played’st most foully for’t
Fricative alliteration - adds tension
Banquo belives that Macbeth did not earn the throne/crown
- he witnessed Macbeth being enraptured by the wiches prophercies of him becoming King
Our fears in Banquo stick deep, and in his royalty of nature
Is paranoid of his own friends and loosing the crown
Royalty - Banquo is predicted to have heirs that will be Kings + King James had an anscestor called Banquo
what’s done, is done
Tells Macbeth tjat the actions are inrevessible and that he has to live with it
L Macbeth seems to not be that concerned - unlike her in Act 5
We have scorched the snake, not killed it
Macbeth feels that his crown is at risk.
Shows that Macbeth is separating from l Macbeth, doing thing himself
Macbeth wants to secure his future by killing anyone who threatens his rule.
O, full of scorpions in my mind, dear wife!
Upset , makes he audience sympatise
scorpions - poisous and dangerous, like the witches
dear wife - uses an endearing term , uses wife as he takes control of himself and masculinity
never shake thy gory locks at me!
Imperative verbs - tries to use his kingly authorities to try control a ghost - abseloutelly paranoid
gory - describes banquos violent passing
Has imagery and stuff
Something wicked this way comes
Witches use ‘wicked’ to describe Macbeth - they sense him and his evil aura
Very chilling, so different to him at the start of the play - transform
Our fears make us traitors
L Macduff thinks that Macduff left in fear, using dramatic irony
Fear can cause people to betray their own principles and values
Out, damned spot! out I say!
L Macbeth uses her previous attitude, commanding and stuff
The spot symbolises her unremovable guilt that now she cannot leave
Repetion of out, showing he r urgency and whatever the hell
Here’s the smell of the blood still; all the perfumes of arabia will not sweeten this little hand. O,O,O
Repetition of O - emphasizes her regret
Little hand - makes her seem innocent, childish
Whats done cannot be undone
Change of words (un)
-show increase in guilt and despair
- Sounds like she now regrets commiting regicide
She would have died herafter, there would have been time for such a word
Ambiguous and vauge response, showing his confusion
-too early to die
-should have died later?
Very emotionless
Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
Very rhytmic, repetion, rule of 3
sounds tried and weighed down, thinks life is meaningless
Out, out, brief candle!
-Macbeth A5 S5
Mirrors Lady Macbeth, foreshadows his fall and death, like a candle
At least we we’ll die with harness on our back
Uses royal we
-insecure af
He still wants to die like a soldier, showing his stubborness and pride
makes the audiene sympatize with him
Why should I play the roman fool and die on mine own sword?
Shows his past brave warrior
Does not want to die in a cowardly way
Thinks suicide that is cowardly and should die in war. Unlike L Macbeth
He’s worth more sorrow,
And that I’ll spend for him.
He’s worth more grief than that, and I’ll mourn for him.
He’s worth no more.
They say he parted well and paid his score.
And so, God be with him! Here comes newer comfort.
Of this dead butcher and his fiend-like queen
for none of woman born /
Shall harm Macbeth
your wife and babes /
Savagely slaughter’d
‘like a giant’s robe / Upon a
dwarfish thief’
Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn and cauldron bubble.
A deed without a name.
Euphenism for murder,
How he cant even mention the crime
Knows that this is wrong
Blood must have blood
Cycle of violence
Blood symbolises the guilt and violence
Very simple and monosylablic
What, all my pretty chickens and their dam at one fell swoop?
