Imagery + Symbolism

Blood Imagery: violence, honor

“his brandished steel, which smoked with bloody execution”

• battle is described in gory detail as we are told of Macbeth’s ferocious patriotism and valour

• introduced to Macbeth’s frightening savagery early in the play

Blood Imagery: murder, guilt

“will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood clean from my hand?”

• overwhelming guilt as Macbeth reimagines the blood on his hand turning the green seas red

• all the water in the world will not clean him spiritually or morally after the heinous crime he has committed

• staining blood emphasises that he will never be able to undo his actions, nor forget what he did to Duncan

Blood Imagery: guilty conscience - Macbeth

“with twenty trenched gashes on his head”

“never shake thy gory locks at me”

• graphic detail of Banquo’s murder, prompts Macbeth’s mental breakdown as he is overcome with guilt

• the apparition itself is fueled by his remorse, and the blood imagery further emphasises the horrific murder he has ordered and the toll that is taking on his mind

Blood Imagery: ruthless ambition

“I am in blood stepped in so far that, should I wade no more, returning were as tedious as go o’er”

• image represents that Macbeth feels he is now beyond redemption, and decides to continue down this dark path

• to secure he position, he decides to murder Macduff and his family, as he supposes that he has already committed immoral acts so another murder would be insignificant

Blood Imagery: guilty conscience - Lady Macbeth

“Yet who would have though the old man to have so much blood in him”

• the sleepwalking Lady Macbeth is horrified as she relives the night of Duncan’s murder

• bears the terrible burden of guilt alone, tormented and broken by her memories

“Out, damned spot! Out, I say!”

“What, will these hand ne’er be clean?”

• inability to grapple with guilty conscience is amplified by her isolation, as she is unable to share the mental load of the regicide with Macbeth

• her tumultuous thoughts overwhelm her in her seclusion, exposing her emotional fragility and susceptibility to remorse, shame

• compulsive hand washing depicts a haunted mind, the eternal blood stains on her hands are a physical manifestation of her trauma and guilt

Blood Imagery: arrogance, determination

“my soul is too much charged with blood of thine already”

• memory of the malicious murderous act of slaughtering an innocent family

• does not wish to be the hand that rids Scotland of the entire Macduff family, however he has killed so many at this point in the play he no longer cares about the blood he spills

Clothing Imagery: unworthy of title given

"why do you dress me in borrowed robes?"

• imagery of inappropriate clothing is symbolic of Macbeth taking what is not rightly his

• suggests Macbeth feels awkward, uncomfortable or undeserving of his new title

• explores the idea that one is not worthy of the associated honour of his new title

Clothing Imagery: reluctance to kill Duncan

"I have bought golden opinions from all sorts of people, which would be worn in their newest gloss, not cast aside so soon"

• he wishes to revel in the glory and acclaim he has acquired with his new title

• he does not want to replace his own clothes which he has earned honourably, and replace them with stolen clothes from Duncan

• reflects how he wants to preserve his morality, rather than gaining more power and having to bear the guilt on his conscience

Clothing Imagery: foreshadows Macbeth's tyranny

"Lest our old robes sit easier than our new!"

• Macduff's premonition of Macbeth's unlawful ruling, foreshadows the inevitable brutality of his rule

• he does not have faith in his ability to lead, nor to be an honourable and good king

Clothing Imagery: responsibility of kingship too great

"now does he feel his title hang loose about him like a giant's robe upon a dwarfish thief"

• ill fitting robes reflect that Macbeth is a usurper rather than the lawful king

• the title and responsibility of being king was too great for him to possess, as he lacked the wisdom and nobility