Macbeth - Lady Macbeth Flashcards
What techniques are used in this quote and what do they suggest, “Come you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here”,? (Lady Macbeth, Act 1 Scene 5)
“Come you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here.” (Lady Macbeth, Act 1 Scene 5) :
Spirits = imperative verb - relates to her power and command
Metaphor = reveals her desire to be free from the restraints of her gender so that she can have the power and strength to murder Duncan
What techniques are used in this quote, and what do they suggest, “Look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent under it”,? (Lady Macbeth, Act 1 Scene 5)
“Look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent under it.” (Lady Macbeth, Act 1 Scene 5) :
Simile + Juxtaposition : She wants Macbeth to conceal his intentions, which presents her as being deceitful and manipulative
Allusion to Adam and Eve : She uses the idea of Original Sin in which a Jacobean audience will recognise
What are the consequences of Lady Macbeth rejecting her femininity and going against the natural order in the play?
The consequences of Lady Macbeth rejecting her femininity and going against the natural order is seen through her eventual death, and that her guilt is emergent from her subconscious as she sleepwalks
What technique is used in this quote, and what does this imply? “Tis the eye of the devil, that fears a painted devil” (Lady Macbeth, Act 2 Scene 2)
“Tis the eye of the devil, that fears the painted devil” (Lady Macbeth, Act 2 Scene 2) :
Metaphor: represents her desire to finish the ‘deed’ - she chastises Macbeth and it is clear to the audience that her power and control are strong in their relationship
What technique is used in this quote, and what does this imply? “Out damned spot, out I say!” (Lady Macbeth, Act 5 Scene 1)
“Out damned spot, out i say!” (Lady Macbeth, Act 5 Scene 1)
Irony - ironic that she has become fixated on blood as in Act 2 Scene 2 she says ‘a little water clears us of this deed’
Repetition and exclamatives - shows a loss of control and her downfall from the start of the play (a loss of power)
