Macbeth Quotations Flashcards
“Where shall we three…
“Where shall we three meet again? In thunder, lightning, or in rain?” - Witch 1, 1.1
- The witches speak in trochaic tetrameter, making them seem separate and unnatural compared to other humans, as well as more threatening, since they start on an emphasised syllable.
- The fact that this is phrased as a question builds suspense.
- These witches would have caused a lot of fear at the time, for people thought they were real.
- The rhyming couplets used throughout this scene somewhat mimics the conjuring of a spell, which reinforces the supernatural atmosphere.
- The pathetic fallacy of the only available weather being ‘thunder’, ‘lightning’ or ‘rain’ foreshadows not just the dark events that are about to occur, but the sheer inevitability of them.
“Fair is foul…
“Fair is foul and foul is fair. Hover through the fog and filthy air.” - The Witches, 1.1
- This is a paradox, since ‘fair is foul’ appears to be entirely oxymoronic. The idea of a paradox is an answer which contradicts itself – this creates an atmosphere of mystery and distrust, and introduces one of the key themes of the play, appearance versus reality.
“For brave…
“For brave Macbeth – well he deserves that name” - Captain, 1.2
- Compare this to how before long Macbeth is referred to as a ‘tyrant’.
“Brandished steel…
“Brandished steel which smoked with bloody execution […] like valour’s minion carved out his passage.” - Captain, 1.2
- The fact that Macbeth is described as a ‘minion’ describes him as if he were a servant of justice and bravery. This puts him out of a position of power: he is doing his duty, serving the king.
- It is unlikely that the sword actually ‘smoked’, so this figurative language gives slight supernatural connotations already.
“Which ne’er shook…
“Which ne’er shook hands nor bade farewell to him till he unseamed him from the nave to the chops.” - Captain, 1.2
- Paired with the previous quotation, words like ‘execution’, ‘carved’ and ‘unseamed’ all have denotations of skilful workers, people in detailed professions that require fine motor control, like sewing or carving. This demonstrates the unmatched precision with which he destroys his enemies, presenting him as an idealistic warrior at that time in history: a ‘minion’ of justice, with high skill and bravery.
- Shakespeare uses the motif of hands in Macbeth as a symbol of actions and consequence. Here, Macbeth chooses to not ‘shake hands’ (if not metaphorically), to not recognise the traitor he is fighting as worthy of respect. This demonstrates how at the start of the play, Macbeth seems to condemn traitorousness strongly.
“So foul…
“So foul and fair a day I have not seen” - Macbeth, 1.3
- The witches are already controlling Macbeth and putting words into his mouth, demonstrating the influence they have on him already – the prophecy is already unrolling.
“Good sir, why do you start…
“Good sir, why do you start, and seem to fear things that do sound so fair?” - Banquo, 1.3
- Fair is foul – appearance vs reality.
“Why do you dress me…
“Why do you dress me in borrowed robes?” - Macbeth, 1.3
- Compare with ‘giant’s robes’. Macbeth does not yet recognise he is worthy of this title.
“The instruments of…
“The instruments of darkness tell us truths; win us with honest trifles, to betray’s in deepest consequence.” - Banquo, 1.3
- Shows Banquo’s wisdom – link to King James being allegedly descended from Banquo.
“Look how our partner’s…
Banquo: “Look how our partner’s rapt.”
Macbeth: “If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me, without my stir.”
- 1.3
- ‘Rapt’ means ‘spellbound’, indicating how entranced Macbeth is by the prophecy – he already looks so.
- But Macbeth decides here he will not act upon the prophecy.
“Whose horrid image…
“Whose murder is…
“Whose horrid image doth unfix my hair, and make my seated heart knock at my ribs, against the use of nature.”
“Whose murder is yet fantastical” - Macbeth, 1.3
“There’s no art to find…
“There’s no art to find the mind’s construction in the face. He was a gentleman on whom I built an absolute trust.” - Duncan, 1.4
- This foreshadow’s Macbeth’s betrayal of Duncan, linking to the idea that appearance is different from reality. We notice that Macbeth also seems a brave, well-trusted gentleman, but he now also has a motive to betray Duncan.
“Stars, hide…
“Stars, hide your fires, let not light see my black and deep desires.” - 1.4
- Here, Macbeth does not only acknowledge his own ambition, but recognises the evil of it, describing it as ‘black’, a colour which has connotations of evil and wicked, as well as commanding the stars to ‘hide [their] fires’ which has religious imagery of the heavens, which are asked to not see his desires, signifying not just the evil of his upcoming actions, but the sin behind what he knows he’s going to commit.
“My dearest…
“My dearest partner of greatness” - Macbeth’s letter, 1.5
- Here, Lady Macbeth is called a ‘partner’ by Macbeth, which implies an equal relationship, which is not typical of relationships at the time. Therefore, Macbeth sees Lady Macbeth as his equal. Furthermore, the fact she is his partner of ‘greatness’ shows her involvement in Macbeth’s ambition.
“Yet I do fear…
“Yet I do fear thy nature: it is too full o’the milk of human-kindess” - L. Macbeth, 1.5
- This contrasts profoundly with our current image of Macbeth; the heroic warrior, ‘brave Macbeth’, ‘unseaming’ his victims with ‘bloody execution’ is now described by his wife as too ‘kind’. This is ironic as really, his wife should know him best, so this patronising criticism makes Macbeth seem a lot weaker than what his initial image made him out to be, and simultaneously makes Lady Macbeth seem more powerful in contrast.
“I may pour…
“I may pour my spirits in thine ear” - L. Macbeth
- This could be an allusion to Hamlet, a play Shakespeare wrote recently before Macbeth, when poison was poured into the ear of the king, killing him. This is ironic, as not only is Macbeth about to kill the king himself, it is in fact Lady Macbeth who is pouring the poisonous spirits, and furthermore, into Macbeth’s ear. This could foreshadow how Lady Macbeth’s manipulation of Macbeth will be what leads him to his downfall.
“Under my battlements…
“Under my battlements, […] unsex me here, […] fill me from the crown to the toe top-full of direst cruelty” - L. Macbeth, 1.5
- ‘Crown’ has a double-meaning. Could Lady Macbeth be picturing herself in a crown?
- The possessive pronoun ‘my’ indicates possession of the castle to Lady Macbeth, subverting the idea at the time that women were not allowed to own property.
- The excessive use of imperatives in this soliloquy demonstrate a commanding power about Lady Macbeth that contrasts with the image she made us to see of Macbeth.
“That my keen knife…
“That my keen knife see not the wound it makes” - L. Macbeth, 1.5
“Look like the…
“Look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent under’t” - L. Macbeth, 1.5
“I have […] only vaulting…
“I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition, which o’erleaps itself and falls on th’ other.” - Macbeth, 1.7
“When you durst…
“When you durst do it, then you were a man” - L. Macbeth, 1.7
- The fact that the entire second clause takes the subjunctive, we don’t already learn that L. Macbeth will see Macbeth as not a man is he does not kill Duncan, but suggests he is in fact yet not a man, and can only become so by following through with murder.
- Lady Macbeth emasculates him as a form of manipulation. This would have been particularly effective at the time, since the warrior culture of medieval Scotland meant that to be a true ‘man’ you would have to be fearless and not afraid of violence.
“Mock the time…
“Mock the time to fairest show: false face must hide what the false heart doth know.” - Macbeth, 1.7
- Macbeth has clearly fallen victim to the manipulation, and we can infer from here that he has decided now what he is going to do. He is following Lady Macbeth’s advice of ‘look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent under’t’
- ‘Mock the time’ means mess with the natural order. The fact Macbeth is ‘mock[ing]’ the natural order shows his indifference to the sin he is going to commit.
“Who’s there…
Banquo: “Who’s there?” Macbeth: “A friend”
“Fatal vision…
“Fatal vision […] art thou but a dagger of the mind, a false creation?” - Macbeth, 2.1
“Nature seems dead…
“Nature seems dead, […] witchcraft celebrates” - Macbeth, 2.1
“The bell invites me…
“The bell invites me. Hear it not, Duncan, for it is a knell that summons thee to heaven or to hell” - Macbeth, 2.1
- The fact that Macbeth has to be ‘invited’ further takes away his sense of involvement of the decisions of this act. With the hallucination, we see witchcraft leading him, and the bell was rung by L. Macbeth, signifying her control over his actions – it is almost as if she’s using him like a puppet.
- It is ironic that Macbeth says Duncan may go to heaven or hell, since he was a divine and respected leader. Macbeth is the one about to commit regicide, one of the greatest sins.
