Macbeth Quotes

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“For brave Macbeth, [...]/ Disdaining Fortune with his brandished steel,/ Like Valour’s minion, carved out his passage” -Captain/ Act 1, Scene 2

• Macbeth; Fate vs. Free Will

• “Fortune” is the Roman goddess of luck and fortune, so by “disdaining” her, Macbeth highlights his strong will to cleave his destiny, portraying him as powerful and potentially super-human

• This juxtaposes with the idea that he is “Valour’s minion”, suggesting that he mindlessly follows the call of battle (Nerio being the personification of valour), and is limited to his bloodlust as he “carved out his passage”, portraying Macbeth as careless of his opponents, objectifying them as a wall that he must hack his way through

  • juxtaposition could be intentional to explore the Jacobean ideas of predeterminism- was Macbeth in control of his fate or was it determined regardless

• The reference to two Roman goddesses (Fortuna and Nerio) could elude to the imminence of supernatural forces influencing Macbeth, eliminating his free will and tying him to predestination

“All hail Macbeth, hail to thee, Thane of Glamis./ All hail Macbeth, hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor./ All hail Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter.”- the Witches/ Act 1, Scene 3

• Macbeth; Fate vs. Free Will

• Each line represents a different tense- past, present and the future

• “Thane of Glamis” is already true, so it reinforces the certainty of the latter lines of the prophecy

• “Thane of Cawdor” is Macbeth’s newer title, representing his present and that his fate is sealed

• The witches use adulatory language to inflate his ego and push him towards the title of kingship

“To be king stands not within the prospect of belief/ No more than to be Cawdor”- Macbeth/ Act 1, Scene 3

• Macbeth; Ambition; Kingship

• Macbeth claims to have not yet considered the possibility of being king as he abides by the Divine Right of Kings, as well as portraying him as humble and self-aware of his limits OR he is concealing his true intentions and heretical thoughts of becoming king

• Having fought the rebel Cawdor, Macbeth should be aware that Cawdor’s title would be given to something, so perhaps he is blinded by himself and his desire to become king

“Whose horrid image doth unfix my hair/ And make my seated heart knock at my ribs/ Against the use of nature/ [...] whose murder yet is but fantastical.” - Macbeth/ Act 1, Scene 3

• Macbeth; Ambition; Guilt

• Macbeth fears whether regicide will be his fate or choice, as well as whether he is subject to free will or predeterminism

• “Against the use of nature” shows that contravening the Diving Rights of Kings is unnatural and unsettles him

• The image of murder, although a fantasy, is so powerful it sends him into inner turmoil

• The auditory verb “knock” could suggest that Macbeth’s heart is in turmoil trying to escape his “ribs”, which often have connotations of being a cage for the heart

  • Macbeth’s heart wishes to escape his mental decline, yet is kept hostage by his corporeal form

  • the “knock” could foreshadow the later knocking after Duncan’s murder, symbolising Macbeth’s growing, unsmothered guilt

“If chance will have me king, why chance may crown me/ Without my stir.” -Macbeth/ Act 1, Scene 3

• Macbeth; Fate vs. Free Will; Ambition

• The personification of the noun “chance” emphasises Macbeth’s belief in the work of higher beings and that he would rather be destined to be king than act of his own will to take the crown

• The change of the modal verbs from “will” to “may” suggests that Macbeth is wary of kingship, for even if he is destined to be king, he hopes to avoid any effort from his behalf to become king

“Stars, hide your fires/ Let not light see my black and deep desires.” - Macbeth/ Act 1, Scene 4

• Macbeth; Appearance vs. Reality; Good vs. Evil; Dark/light imagery

• AABB rhyme scheme is reminiscent of the witches, giving a strong rhythm and presenting Macbeth as authoritative and ambitious

• The adjective “black” suggests authority yet despotic nature, and “deep” suggests these traits are primal and innate

• “Light” could suggest literal brightness or nobility, therefore the juxtaposition between “light” and “black” highlights Macbeth’s wishes to conceal his plans from being found out

• The repetition of plosive sounds resonates with Macbeth’s unapologetic authority and ambition

“But here, upon this bank and shoal of time/ We’d jump the life to come.” - Macbeth/ Act 1, Scene 7

• Macbeth; Religious Imagery

• Macbeth is indifferent towards the afterlife, reflecting his moral decay, as well as signifying his rejection of spiritual consequence, which he believes will be absolved by the crown and the power it holds

“We still have judgement here, that we but teach/ Bloody instructions, which being taught, return/ To plague th’inventor.” - Macbeth/ Act 1, Scene 7

• Macbeth; Order vs. Chaos; Good vs. Evil

• Macbeth fears earthly judgement more than divine, perhaps highlighting his materialistic views

• He believes that kingship will only offer him spiritual protection instead of safety on earth, suggesting that he expects retribution to be in the form of his own murder (foreshadowing paranoia)

• The extended metaphor of “instructions” and “th’inventor” could allude to Daedalus’ creation, the Labyrinth, which became his prison

  • Regicide and becoming king will ultimately become Macbeth’s poison

“Vaulting ambition, which o’er-leaps itself/ And falls on th’other” - Macbeth/ Act 1, Scene 7

• Macbeth; Ambition

• The personification of “ambition” suggests that Macbeth is not in control of his decisions, rather the being of ambition is

• Warning to himself that ambition is all too ready to push him into murdering Duncan and that he must keep in check

• “Th’other” maintains an idea of uncertainty due to the entering of Lady Macbeth, so Shakespeare may have left the threat hanging of what may should ambition push someone too far

• “Th’other” could be interpreted as the afterlife, and Macbeth is dooming himself to death

“Is this a dagger which I see before me/ [...] I have thee not, and yet I see thee still./ Art thou not, fatal vision, sensible […] ?”- Macbeth/ Act 2, Scene 1

• Macbeth; Appearance vs. Reality; Fate vs. Free Will

• Macbeth is aware that the dagger is a hallucination, therefore providing evidence that he consciously decides to commit regicide

• “before me” is a feminine ending, connoting Macbeth’s vulnerability and lack of control over himself, perhaps suggesting that he is susceptible to manipulation from either fate, the witches or even Lady Macbeth

• “fatal vision” could be perceived as ominous and proleptic, suggesting that Macbeth is somewhat conscious that the dagger will end in death, however, Shakespeare leaves whose death up to interpretation

“Listening to their fear, I could not say ‘Amen’ [...] I had most need of blessing, and ‘Amen’/ Stuck in my throat” - Macbeth/ Act 2, Scene 2

• Macbeth; Guilt; Religious Imagery

• Macbeth feels the absence of God after murdering Duncan, as though he has been forsaken after such a sinful act

  • One Christian belief about the afterlife is that punishment is experienced through the absence of God because otherwise, He is everywhere

  • Macbeth is beginning to experience a form of Hell where God is absent

“‘Glamis hath murdered sleep, and therefore Cawdor/ Shall sleep no more. Macbeth shall sleep no more.’” - Macbeth/ Act 2, Scene 2

• Macbeth; Sleep

• The discarding of Macbeth’s name, instead referring him to his titles suggests that he is now no longer anything more than his roles in society, as well as suggesting that he will not be able to see beyond his power

  • Macbeth will lose everything before his power, including sleep, leaving him a husk of his ambition

• There is a sense of echoing, reminiscent of the witches, however excludes the promise of kingship, creating a sense of ambiguity and betrayal

“No, this my hand will rather/ The multitudinous seas incarnadine/ Making the green, one red.” - Macbeth/ Act 2, Scene 2

• Macbeth; Guilt; Blood (red); Water; Religious imagery

• Macbeth believes that his sin is so great, it would contaminate even the sea

• Reminiscent of the crucifixion, when Pontius Pilate absolves his guilt by washing his hands before executing Jesus to show his aversion

• “Incardinine” refers to a fleshy red

• “One red” could suggest that nothing could dilute the weight of Duncan’s murder, and Macbeth’s guilt and the blood would permanently stain the seas, as emphasised by the comma after “green”

“My dearest partner of greatness”- Macbeth/ Act 1, Scene 5

• Lady Macbeth; Masculinity and Femininity

• Macbeth in his letter to Lady Macbeth

• Contravenes with the Jacobian expectations of the husband being superior to his wife, signifying Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s equal roles in their relationship

“Come you spirits/ That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here” - Lady Macbeth/ Act 1, Scene 5

• Lady Macbeth; Masculinity and Femininity; Good vs. Evil; Religious imagery; Supernatural imagery

• The imperative verb “come” suggests that MAdy Macbeth believes she holds power over “spitits” providing a supernatural quality to her, as well as signifying her overbearing nature to command authority

• “Unsex me here” suggests that Lady Macbeth wants to reject the nurturing aspects of her being

  • associates femininity with weakness, therefore to shape herself as more ‘capable’ she wants to lose what makes her female

“Come to my women's breasts/ And take my milk for gall, you murdering ministers”- Lady Macbeth/ Act 1, Scene 5

• Lady Macbeth; Masculinity and Femininity; Milk (white)

• Lady Macbeth wants to replace her nurturing self for the violence of manhood

• “gall” has connotations of impudence, which aligns with masculine ideals (violence is equated to manliness)

  • “gall” could refer to the gallbladder which secretes yellow bile (one of the four humours), which symbolises aggression

• This could be interpreted as Lady Macbeth offering her milk as sustenance for the spirits to poison her mind, suggesting an association with the supernatural

• The alliteration of the ‘m’ sound creates a strong rhythm, suggesting Lady Macbeth’s authoritative nature

“How tender ‘tis to love the babe that milks me/ I would [...]/ Have plucked the nipple from his boneless gums/ And dashed the brains out” - Lady Macbeth/ Act 1, Scene 7

• Lady Macbeth; Masculinity and Femininity; Supernatural imagery

• Lady Macbeth lacks the maternal instincts expected of all women during the Jacobian era in an urge to prove herself as strong-willed, a quality she does not associate with womanhood

• The vacillation between maternal and violent imagery highlights Lady Macbeth’s duplicitous nature, her image as a loyal housewife being an act

• Infanticide was commonly associated with witches, who supposedly kidnapped newborns to sacrifice to the Devil

  • Lady Macbeth’s indifference to killing her child could be associated with the witches

“‘Tis the eye of childhood/ That fears a painted devil.” - Lady Macbeth/ Act 2, Scene 2

• Lady Macbeth; Supernatural imagery

• Lady Macbeth dismisses her husband as a mother might to a child, showing the power dynamic of their relationship, where Lady Macbeth can exercise authority freely

• The diabolical noun “devil” connotes the idea of haunting and curses, perhaps suggesting that the blood of Duncan will linger and become the Macbeths’ downfall (foreshadowing Lady Macbeth’s mental decline)

“My hands are of your colour, but I shame/ To wear a heart so white” - Lady Macbeth/ Act 2, Scene 2

• Lady Macbeth; Blood (red)

• “White” has connotations of cowardice, which may have been Shakespeare’s original intention, however the colour also signifies purity and cleanliness

  • Lady Macbeth refuses to regret or fear her actions in an attempt to portray herself as stronger, and ergo better than Macbeth

  • Eventually, the blood covering her hands (a symbol of guilt) will corrupt her ‘clean’ heart, causing it to darken under the weight of her actions

“The instruments of darkness tell us truths/ Win us with honest trifles, to betray’s/ In deepest consequence.” - Banquo/ Act 1, Scene 3

• Banquo; Good vs. Evil; Dark/light imagery; Supernatural imagery

• The extended metaphor of losing and winning, likened to a game, could suggest that “the instruments of darkness” encompass a nihilistic outlook

• The use of dark imagery connotes the idea that such “intruments” are despotic and concealed

• The utilitarian noun “instruments” suggests that the witches are tools for a higher being, limited to petty truths and equivocation to damn others

“There’s husbandry in heaven/ Their candles are all out”- Banquo/ Act 2, Scene 1

• Banquo; Light/dark imagery; Religious imagery

• Reminiscent of “stars hide your fires”

  • the absence of light (“candles” symbolise stars) is similar to Macbeth’s plea to keep his actions concealed, leaving the night devoid of both light and nobility as he performs such a sacrilegious act

• The repetition of the ‘h’ sound is akin to whispering, which could signify Banquo’s secrecy or fear of what is afoot

• The use of religious imagery through “husbandry in heaven” suggests celestial turmoil at Macbeth’s sinful plans

“His virtues will plead like angels, trumpet-tongued, against/ The deep damnation of his taking off” - Macbeth/ Act 1, Scene 7

• King Duncan; Good vs. Evil; Religious imagery

• The use of religious imagery and a simile signifies that Macbeth associates Duncan with heaven, portraying the ill-fated king as a man of pure intention

• The alliteration of “trumpet-tongued” reflects the strength of Duncan’s “virtues”, encompassing the loudness and clarity of an announcement

  • could foreshadow Macbeth’s crime coming to light

“Fair is foul, and foul is fair. Hover through the fog and filthy air.” -the Witches/ Act 1, Scene 1 

• Witches; Appearance vs. Reality; Order vs. Chaos

• The witches communicate in trochaic tetrameter which creates a sing-song, chanting feel, as though what they are disguising is merely a game

• The use of interchangeable syntax suggests a nihilistic feature to the witches as they do not care about the income

• The “filthy air” will cloud moral perception, resulting in “fair is foul, and foul is fair”

“You should be women/ And yet your beards forbid me to interpret/ That you are so.” -Banquo/ Act 1, Scene 3

• Witches; Masculinity and Femininity

• The modal verb “should” suggests that Banquo initially registers the witches as women

• “beards” are typically associated with masculinity, which contradicts with the witches’ otherwise feminine outwardly appearance

  • The witches use beards to make perhaps themselves heard amongst a patriarchy with a history of dismissing the words of a woman

  • Shakespeare may be looking to criticise gender roles, such as those demonstrated during the witch trials, where women were mainly accused of witchcraft

“Look like the innocent flower/ But be the serpent under’t” - Lady Macbeth/ Act 1, Scene 5

• Lady Macbeth; Appearance vs. Reality; Religious imagery

• Biblical connotations of Satan disguising himself as a snake and misguiding Adam and Eve

  • Lady Macbeth is presented as a mirror of Eve, both having been subjected to temptation

• Reference to a coin released to commemorate the failure of the gunpowder plot (‘he who concealed himself is detected’)

  • could foreshadow that the murder of Duncan will be revealed in due time

“Yet do I fear thy nature/ It is too full o’th’ milk of human kindness […] Art not without ambition, but without/ The illness should attend it.”- Lady Macbeth/ Act 1, Scene 5

• Lady Macbeth; Ambition; Masculinity and Femininity; Milk (white)

• Lady Macbeth believes that Macbeth lacks the wickedness necessary to accomplish his goals

  • “milk of human kindness” clouds his judgement, despite being something that may be associated with a woman

• Shakespeare reveals Lady Macbeth’s ambitious nature, as well as her aversion to being associated with femininity, which she considers nothing short of a curse

“Which thou esteem’st the ornament of life” - Lady Macbeth/ Act 1, Scene 7

• Kingship; Religious imagery

• Religious imagery associated with the crown signifies it is an object encompassing otherworldly power

  • could be a play on words, that it truly is an “ornament of life” as many, including Duncan, have lost their life for it

  • reference to the Great Chain of Beings, where one of kinship’s spoils is great power, even in the divine world

• Lady Macbeth’s use of rhetoric forces Macbeth to discard his morals as the offer of kingship becomes steadily more enticing

“The raven […] That croaks the fatal entrance of Duncan/ Under my battlements”- Lady Macbeth/ Act 1, Scene 5

• Lady Macbeth; Religious imagery

• The “raven” is symbolic of death, evil and prophecy, therefore suggesting a cruel death to come

• The ominous adjectival phrase “fatal” suggests a proleptic quality to Lady Macbeth, as well as the fact that she is intent on murdering Duncan under her roof

• The possessive pronoun “my” suggests that Lady Macbeth has built a monarchy for herself, despite Jacobian gender stereotypes