Macbeth quotes Act 1- Act 3

themes of: ambition, heroic, weak, guilty, deception, supernatural, maintaining power + tyranny

Brave, Valour (heroic)

Brave, Valour (heroic)

Brave Macbeth, Like Valour’s minion 1.2 Captains report

• The Epithet ‘Brave Macbeth’ is the first description of Macbeth in the play and so starts him off with a heroic first impression

• simile ‘like valour’s minion’ conveys Macbeth as committed and courageous

• noun ‘minion’ presents Macbeth as an obedient soldier, which is quite ironic as he ends up killing the king

Lion (heroic)

Lion 1.2 Captains report

• symbol/connotations of: bravery, strength and royalty

• dominant characters of their environment

• lions = predators → power against enemies

Smoked (heroic)

(macbeth’s sword) Smoked with bloody execution 1.2 Captains report

• shows off Macbeths skill on the battlefield, could possibly be foreshadowing his future violence/mercilessness

• at the start of the play he is unafraid of blood unlike in Act 2, where he tries desperately to clean his hands from blood. Right now he is merciless and feels no guilt for simple battle murder, but with regicide he feels immense guilt. Shakespeare could be using this contrast in guilt to help show Jacobean society how different and immoral regicide is from simple murder

Milk (weak)

too full o’er the milk of human kindness 1.5 Lady Macbeth reads Macbeth’s letter

• Lady Macbeth uses this metaphor to describe Macbeth as too full of human kindness, this gives us the impression that Macbeth had a solid moral compass at the start of the play, he wouldn’t do something as ill moral as regicide. He currently doesn’t have the motivation to kill Duncan

• ‘milk’ connotes purity and innocence, which is quite strange to describe a masculine man. Perhaps Shakespeare challenges gender stereotypes of Jacobean England to explore men’s weaknesses and how there are different types of strength than just physical

Coward (weak)

Coward 1.7 Lady Macbeth convincing Macbeth

• Lady Macbeth challenges Macbeth’s masculinity, In his domestic relationship with her, Macbeth appears quite submissive towards her

• This presentation of Macbeth greatly contrasts the ‘Brave Macbeth’ from before

• Lady Macbeth questions Macbeth’s strong character previously presented in the beginning to try convince him

Green and Pale (weak)

Green and Pale 1.7 Lady Macbeth convincing Macbeth

• green connotes fear, Lady Macbeth is trying to imply that Macbeth is just too scared to kill Duncan

• pale connotes sickness, Lady Macbeth is trying to imply that Macbeth isn’t brave enough to kill Duncan

?→ cat (weak)

lion → poor cat 1.7

• poor cat shows how submissive Macbeth is to Lady Macbeth

• This really contrasts with him being described as a ‘lion’ from before, cats are domestic lions, this reflects the change in our impression of Macbeth

Stay .. tell me ? (ambition)

Stay… tell me more 1.3 Macbeth & Banquo meets the witches

• imperative verb ‘stay’ displays Macbeth as authoritative but also eager to hear more, he’s almost ordering the witches around, trying to collaborate with them. His fear and weariness is discarded because of his ambition

• ‘tell me more’, shows how he’s intrigued by the witched and the news they bring, he doesn’t appear skeptical but automatically believes them unlike Banquo. Probably because he likes what he’s hearing.

• Shakespeare presents Macbeth’s ambition early on in the play to show how it grows throughout and becomes his downfall

happy prologues (ambition)

as happy prologues to the swelling act of the imperial theme

1.3 Macbeth & Banquo meets the witches

• the use of theatre jargon could be used to show how Macbeth desires to be centre stage, he wants all the power and glory that he thinks comes with being King

• ‘swelling act’ could be seen as mirroring his growing ambition. He’s already imagining himself becoming King in the close future

Stars (ambition)

Stars hide your fires 1.4 Duncan declares Malcolm as next King

• Macbeth telling the stars to stop shining could be foreshadowing his controlling Kingship, he’s trying to disrupt the natural order of things

• verb ‘hide’ displays how Macbeth is becoming more secretive now, if the stars stop shining then the night will be even darker then normal. This allows Macbeth to be sly and act without anyone seeing. He’s hiding from God and starting to roam in the dark abyss

Desires (ambition)

Let not light see my black and deep desires 1.4 Duncan declares Malcolm as next King

• ‘light’ could be referring the God, and that he wants to distance himself from God so he can’t witness his great sins of regicide.

• ‘black’ connotes evil, corruption and connects with witchcraft and the supernatural

• adjective ‘deep’ could be portraying his desires as rooted within him and how he’s capable of such sinful things like regicide but also reflect how far his morality is falling, it’s getting further away from the light of God.

Vaulting (ambition)

Vaulting ambition, o’erleaps itself, fall on th’other 1.7 Macbeth decides not to kill Duncan

• Shakespeare uses this imagery of a horse vaulting to demonstrate the dangers of his ambition. When he goes to far like regicide, he will end up destroying himself.  

• Shakespeare includes Macbeths ambition to present him as a tragic hero with this tragic flaw, and showing how it will end up being his downfall. It also shows the consequences of committing regicide, as King James I was nearly assassinated in the gunpowder plot, Shakespeare is helping demonstrate how sinful it is to kill the king through Macbeth’s downfall.

Neptune’s ocean (guilt)

Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood clean from my hand?

2.2 Macbeth meets Lady Macbeth after killing Duncan

• ‘all great Neptune’s ocean’, Shakespeare uses the ocean to help portray the extent of Macbeth’s guilt, he’s never going to recover from this

• Water is used in christianity to cleanse people from sin, but Macbeth is unable to cleanse himself because of the magnitude of his crime, he’s beyond salvation. Shakespeare does this to show that Macbeth has no hope of redemption.

• The reference of ‘Neptune’ roman god of the sea, instead of God could be showing how Macbeth is now leaning towards paganism and witchcraft

Murder sleep (guilt)

Macbeth does murder sleep, the innocent sleep 2.2 Macbeth meets Lady Macbeth after killing Duncan

• This could be viewed as Macbeth murdering the sleeping Duncan or it may be that he’s murdered/lost his own sense of peace. After this incident he’s never going to be at ease or peaceful. This serves as part of his punishment for committing regicide.

Sleep (guilt)

Macbeth shall sleep no more 2.2 Macbeth meets Lady Macbeth after killing Duncan

• Macbeth’s mind is too overwhelmed with guilt and fear that he’s never going to be able to sleep. He is now in constant turmoil

• It could possibly be that he’s now going to be more involved in the night and dark

‘Amen’ (guilt)

‘Amen’ Stuck in my throat 2.2 Macbeth meets Lady Macbeth after killing Duncan

• Macbeth repeatedly trying to say ‘Amen’ reflects his desperation in seeking forgiveness from God, but now that he can’t, his connection from God seems to have disappeared

• Macbeth is now damned to hell and rejected by God after going against God and the Divine Right of Kings

innocent flower (deception)

Look like the innocent flower but be the serpent under it 1.5 Lady Macbeth suggests they kill Duncan

• simile ‘like the innocent flower’ presents Macbeth as deceptive, as he conceals his true nature and becomes growingly duplicitous

• the imagery of a flower and serpent could reflect the commemorative medal James I had made after the gunpowder plot which also includes flowers and a serpent. Shakespeare could do this to reflect the duplicitous nature of the people attempting to assassinate King James I

false (deception)

false face must hide what the false heart must know 1.7 Lady Macbeth convinces Macbeth to kill Duncan

• ‘false’ and ‘hide’ shows how Macbeth is now duplicitous and becoming deceiving, like the devil. Macbeth plans to disrupt the great chain of being just because of his desire to be King, only for personal gain

• Unlike Macbeth at the start of the play - who was fighting against a traitor for his country, he is now going against his country by committing treason in order to gain more power

vizards (deception)

make our faces vizards to our hearts, disguising what they are 3.2 Macbeth fears threats

• vizards are black masks, with this they are hiding/concealing peoples faces and intentions. With this quote Macbeth is showing his growing deception

• “Disguising what they are” could be implying that his heart is no longer good but now full of darkness and corruption

fruitless (maintaining power)

“Fruitless crown” “barren sceptre” 3.1 Macbeth fears Banquo

• “Fruitless” is the opposite of fruitful, which is associated with God and how he asked people to reproduce. This could reflect how his crown feels less because he can’t pass it down to his lineage

• “barren” reflects Macbeth’s hollow feelings, even after becoming King he still feels unfulfilled, he’s still hungry for more power. He now desires eternal power

fate (maintaining power)

come fate into the list 3.1 Macbeth fears Banquo

• this quote highly contrasts to 1.3 “without my stir”, where Macbeth decides not to challenge fate, while now he’s deciding to go against natural order and God’s will

• Macbeth is now becoming controlling of nature, just like 1.4 “stars hide your fires”. This is an insight to Macbeth’s controlling kingship

wicked dreams (supernatural)

wicked dreams abuse the curtained sleep 2.1 Macbeth goes to kill Duncan

• “wicked dreams” is an oxymoron and emphasises the unusual nature of Macbeth disobeying natural order

• the adjective “curtained” could be used to display Duncan as unaware and innocent and help signify how horrible this murder is.

• verb “abuse” show how Macbeth is now abusing his strength and no longer using it for the good of his country, but now uses it for selfish reasons that will harm others

scorpions (supernatural)

full of scorpions is my mind 3.2 Macbeth fears of threats

• “scorpions” connote poison, deadly and pain

• this metaphor greatly contrasts with when he was “full o’er the milk of human kindness” (1.5). Macbeth has now lost his purity and been tainted and corrupted by the supernatural

• the imagery of his mind being full could portray how his mind is now plagued with malevolence and thoughts of murder

• this imagery of corruption could help present Macbeth’s paranoia as infinite, small stings

• Contrast between milk → scorpions enhances the idea of the natural order being ruined from regicide

night (supernatural)

come, seeling night 3.2 Macbeth fears of threats

• similar to “Come thick night” - Lady Macbeth 1.5

• Macbeth is now embracing the powers of the supernatural and darkness. He is completely separate from light and goodness

• He’s ready to inflict more violence and murder

black agents (supernatural)

night’s black agents 3.2 Macbeth fears of threats

• contrasts to “valour’s minion” 1.2, instead of siding with the country and others he is no aligning himself with the supernatural

in blood (tyranny)

I am in blood stepp’d in so far, that, should I wade no more 3.4 Banquo’s Ghost appears at the banquet

• Imagery of river of blood could symbolise Macbeth’s commitment to blood shed

• Blood is no longer a symbol of guilt that Macbeth fears “wash this blood clean from my hand” (2.2) He no longer want’s to be cleansed but embraces it

• He feels he’s gone too far in to sin that he’s beyond salvation