Macbeth quotes TOP10 Flashcards
“Stars hide your ____ ; let not light see my ____ and ____ desires” Act 1, Scene 4 , Macbeth
EXTRA:
“but signs of _____, like ____, shall shine on all ____”
“Stars hide your fires ; let not light see my dark and deep desires” Act 1, Scene 4
Theme : Ambition, Appearance vs Reality
‘Stars’ + ‘fires’ - religious imagery - hide desires from God
‘light’ + ‘dark’ juxtapose - conflicted between ambition and morality
‘deep desires’ - corrupt by overpowering ambition -thoughts + soon actions
Apposes Divine Right of Kings (regicide) - CONTEXT
Perverts Duncan’s earlier comparison of nobility to stars (“but signs of nobleness, like stars, shall shine on all deservers”). He modifies the laudatory language which Duncan uses, and with direct address, commands the stars to darkness. The audience sees his ambitions grow
“Is this a ____ which I see before me, The ____ toward my hand? Come, let me ____ ____.” Act 2, Scene 1 , Macbeth
“Is this a dagger which I see before me, The handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee.” Act 2, Scene 1
Theme : Supernatural
rhetorical question - confusion/anxiety - still indecisive - questioning his sanity (contrast later state when believing he is seeing Banquo)
‘dagger’ signifies bloody deed - violent ambition is tempting him
“Oh, full of ____ is my mind, dear ____!” Act 3, Scene 2 , Macbeth
“Oh, full of scorpions is my mind, dear wife!” Act 3, Scene 2
Theme : Violence, Supernatural
‘Scorpions’ seen as malign - treachery and poison - mentally unsettled + agitated - maybe even madness
metaphor - how malicious Macbeth has become - craving more violence
“____ will have ____” Act 3, Scene 4 , Macbeth
“Blood will have blood” Act 3, Scene 4
Theme : Violence
Loop of violence and death, each creating framework for the next
bloodshed in violence seeks more blood in revenge - trapped in the inevitability of his violence
repetition of ‘blood’ in a single line suggests an overflow of blood that drips rhythmically to the ground
OR Banquo’s blood crying out for revenge
“I have no ____ To prick the sides of my _____, but only _____ _____, which o’erleaps itself And _____ on the other.” Act 1, Scene 7 , Macbeth
“I have no spur To prick the sides of my intent, but only Vaulting ambition, which o’erleaps itself And falls on the other.” Act 1, Scene 7
Theme : Ambition
A spur is a metaphorical term for a motive, used in horse-riding which is used as a stepping stool and to direct the horse- Shakespeare uses this to mirror Macbeth’s usurpation to the throne through regicide with a journey of horse-riding- His “I have no spur” questions his motives of ambition, whether it is the right path or not. He completely disregards religion (intentional to appease King James as a cautionary tale of the ramifications of paganism) and relies on the malevolent supernatural to commit his heinous deeds.
“Yet do I fear ____ ____; It is to full o’ th’ ____ of human ____” Act 1, Scene 5 , Lady Macbeth
“Yet do I fear thy nature; It is to full o’ th’ milk of human kindness” Act 1, Scene 5
Theme : Gender
Macbeth is not a murderer by nature which shows that he does not have to confine to the ideas of a two-dimensional villain commonly presented at the time. Macbeth’s character and his fall to ambition would have greatly fascinated Shakespeare’s Jacobean audience.
verb ‘fear’ - Lady Macbeth sees Macbeth’s kind nature as a weakness.
She questions his masculinity through the noun ‘milk’ - nurturing nature of a mother + symbol of femininity - purity and gentleness. Through Lady Macbeth’s attitudes towards Macbeth, Shakespeare is criticising the relation of masculinity to cruelty. This concept was very prevalent in Jacobean society and Shakespeare was claiming that there were deeper sides to men that wen unappreciated.
Macbeth is ‘too full’ suggests that Lady Macbeth has more masculine qualities than Macbeth
“Come, you ____ That tend on ____ thoughts, ____ me here, And fill me from the ____ to the toe ____-____ Of ____ cruelty.” Act 1, Scene 5 , Lady Macbeth
“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.” Act 1, Scene 5
Theme : Ambition, Gender
Superlative “direst” emphasizes the extent of how far into the darkness she is willing to go and the depth of her evilness
“crown to the toe” shows that she wants to be filled with evil- shows passion and strong desire
the use of the plosive “t” + iambic pentameter - Lady Macbeth can feel the “cruelty” manifesting inside of her and her lusting for power.
belief that ambition can only be fulfilled by a masculine role.
Whilst Lady Macbeth appears willing to act upon her ambition - her call upon the supernatural suggests that she is not cruel by nature. foreshadows her inability to cope with guilt later on.
“Out ____ spot! Out I say!” Act 5, Scene 1 , Lady Macbeth
( “A little ____ clears us of this ____.” Act 2, Scene 2 )
“Out damned spot! Out I say!” Act 5, Scene 1
Theme : Supernatural
Emblematic of the scar the murder has created on her mind - shows guilt cannot shift - madness often perceived as being possessed by demons - demons/witches had “spots” on their body to identify them as evil.
Bloodstain is a symbol of her guilt of her violent past - contrasts ruthless nature (more than Macbeth), has now succumb to her looming guilt - unable to cope.
Contrasts “A little water clears us of this deed.” Act 2, Scene 2
“Look like the ______ _____, But be the ______ under’t” Act 1, Scene 5 , Lady Macbeth
“Look like the innocent flower, But be the serpent under’t” Act 1, Scene 5 , Lady Macbeth
Theme : Appearance vs Reality, Gender
‘innocent flower’ - goodness yet vulnerability of honest human behaviour. The direct juxtaposition of ‘but the serpent under’t” may be a biblical reference to the story of Adam and Eve, who had brought original sin to the world yet also destroyed the natural order of the world by disobeying God. The word ‘under’t’ may imply that evil is beneath all our behaviour
Simile - noble facade Lady Macbeth wants Macbeth to display.
The noun “flower” is associated with femininity and suggests Lady Macbeth is appealing for her husband to appear more feminine as she becomes more masculine.
The imperative “look” suggests the appearance is unauthentic.
The imperative “be’’ highlights Lady Macbeth’s power over Macbeth and depicts how important it is to Lady Macbeth that Macbeth embodies the evil needed to achieve their desires. Macbeth’s submission to these bold commands connotes a humanistic view and how he feels that his wife is his equal.
her an authorative appearance, juxtaposing the qualities of a typical Jacobean women - lady Macbeth is like a devil twisting Macbeth
“Fair is ____, and foul is ____” Act 1, Scene 1 , The Weird Sisters
“Fair is foul, and foul is fair” Act 1, Scene 1
Theme : Supernatural, Appearance vs Reality
paradoxical chiasmus with the grammatical reversal possibly foreshadowing Macbeths downfall from a hero to a tyrant.
The equivocation also reveals how a noble appearance could be deceptive, as ‘fair’ could represent Macbeth’s morals at the start of the play, as he fights rebels on behalf of the king. However, at the end of play with his numerous murderous attempts, it is evident his morals become ‘foul’. Thus, Shakespeare explores the reality behind ambition, and how a noble ambition could in reality be corrupt.
