macbeth key quotes (supernatural)

Question 1

act 1(M)- “Stars hide your fires; let not light see my dark and deep desires “

act 1(LB)-“Come, thick night and pall thee in the dunnest smoke of hell […] nor Heaven peep through”

Answer 1

Macbeth and LB is asking for thier evil desires to be hidden from God.

Religious symbolism of stars, heaven and light suggests both characters are aware of the significance and consequences (hell) of committing regicide.

Both characters use imperative verbs ( hide,come ) to command the natural world ( stars,night ). This could be seen as blasphemous and an attempt to disrupt the Great chain of being or Gods plan

Question 2

act 1(Witches)- “fair is foul and foul is fair”

Answer 2

At the beginning of the play, Shakespeare introduces the supernatural setting and the “weird sisters” as a malevolent force

Shakespeare establishes the disruption of the natural order and the corruption of nature through the use of paradoxical language and parallelism

Use of rhyming language conveys the impression of evil spellcasting, adding to the supernatural atmosphere

Question 3

Act 2(M)- “A dagger of the mind”

Answer 3

Shakespeare reveals the danger of the supernatural elements in the play through the corrupt transformation of the protagonist:

Shakespeare’s use of the metaphorical language shows Macbeth’s awareness of the malevolent effect of the vision

The vision acts as a catalyst for his murderous actions

Question 4

Act 4(Wi)- “By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes”

Answer 4

The witches’ observation about Macbeth’s wickedness signposts his descent into evil for the audience

The rhyming couplets and the use of trochaic tetrameter for the witches’ speech suggests thier supernatural difference.

The use of assonance and superstitious references in this couplet also reinforces their supernatural wickedness