Macbeth and Renaissance Literature Review

Vocabulary flashcards covering major quotes, literary terms, political philosophies, and dramatic structure elements from Macbeth and Renaissance background texts.

Mercifulness (Machiavellian Principle)

A quality that Machiavelli warns is dangerous when exercised at the wrong time, as evidenced by historic conflicts in Romagna and Pistoia.

King James I

The British monarch for whom William Shakespeare wrote The Tragedy of Macbeth.

“Fair is foul and foul is fair”

A paradoxical quote introduced by the Witches establishing the central theme that appearances often present a false image disguising foul reality.

“Look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent under it”

A biblical allusion spoken by Lady Macbeth advising her husband to disguise his regicidal intentions behind a facade of innocence.

The Old Thane of Cawdor

A traitorous noble about whom King Duncan remarks that there is no art to find the mind's construction in the face, having placed absolute trust in him.

“Unsex me here”

Lady Macbeth’s plea to dark spirits to strip away her feminine sensitivity and fill her from crown to toe with direst cruelty.

“Milk of human kindness”

Lady Macbeth's metaphor expressing her concern that Macbeth’s nature is too gentle and compassionate to take the quickest path to the throne.

Double Trust

Macbeth's hesitation to kill Duncan based on his obligations as both the king's kinsman/subject and his host, who should shut the door against murderers rather than bear the knife.

The Prince of Cumberland

The title bestowed upon Malcolm by King Duncan, acting as an obstacle that Macbeth realizes he must either step over or fall down before.

“Instruments of darkness”

Banquo’s term for the Witches, warning that demonic forces tell honest trifles to win human trust only to betray them in deepest consequence.

“Fruitless crown” and “barren scepter”

Metaphors describing Macbeth’s childless kingship, which fuels his motive to murder Banquo and attempt to assassinate Fleance.

Great Neptune’s Ocean

A mythological allusion Macbeth uses to convey his overwhelming guilt, questioning whether an entire ocean could wash Duncan's blood from his hands.

“Daggers in men’s smiles”

Donalbain’s metaphor warning that false affection hides murderous betrayal, prompting Duncan’s sons to flee Scotland.

Banquo's Ghost

A spectral hallucination shaking gory locks at Macbeth, representing a psychological manifestation of his guilt.

“A little water clears us of this deed”

Lady Macbeth's dismissive rationalization immediately after Duncan's assassination, erroneously believing water easily erases their guilt.

“Life’s but a walking shadow” (Extended Metaphor/Conceit)

Macbeth’s reflection comparing life to a poor actor who frets his brief hour upon a stage, concluding that existence is an idiot's tale signifying nothing.

“Security is mortals’ chiefest enemy”

A proclamation made by Hecate stating that overconfidence will draw Macbeth into false certainty and ensure his ultimate destruction.

Artificial Sprites

Apparitions crafted by Hecate's magic from a vaporous moon drop to deceive Macbeth with ambiguous illusions.

Elizabethan Chain of Being

The cosmic hierarchy where royalty (such as Prince Malcolm) is ranked higher than common nobles, subjects, and supernatural witches.

Literary Foil (Banquo to Macbeth)

A character contrast highlighting moral divergence; Banquo relies on reason and mistrusts the supernatural, whereas Macbeth surrenders to ambition.

Inciting Event (Macbeth)

The point on Freytag’s Pyramid where the Witches deliver the prophecy: “All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter.”

Climax (Macbeth)

The dramatic turning point on Freytag's Pyramid when Macduff dispels Macbeth's charm by declaring he was untimely ripped from his mother's womb.

Catastrophe / Dénouement (Macbeth)

The resolution on Freytag's Pyramid wherein Malcolm restores order, calls home exiles, and marks the fall of the butcher and his fiendlike queen.