| What are Macbeth’s characteristics? | AmbitiousBraveMercilessEasily InfluencedGuilty |
| Quotes that show Macbeth’s bravery at the start of the play | “Brave Macbeth-well he deserves that name””Bellona’s bridegroom””Disdaining fortune with his brandish’d steel/which smoked with bloody execution””O valiant cousin! Worthy gentleman!””As sparrows eagles, or hare the lion” |
| Quotes that show Macbeth’s bravery at the end of the play | “Why should I play the Roman fool and die/on my own sword? Whiles I see lives, the gashes/do better upon them””The mind I sway by, and the heart I bear/shall never sag with doubt, nor shake with fear””Lay on, Macduff,/ and damn’d be him that first cries, ‘Hold, enough!’ “”Try the last””Bear-like””Will not yield” |
| Why does Shakespeare have Macbeth display bravery at the end of the play? | To reinforce the idea that Macbeth is a victim of his tragic flaw |
| Why does Shakespeare have Macbeth display bravery at the start of the play? | It makes his downfall more dramatic |
| Is Macbeth brave in the middle of the play? | No- his corruption makes him a coward – he can no longer kill people, and he has to hire murderers to do it for him”I go, and it is done; the bell invites me” – Macbeth is blaming his deeds on others”To be this is nothing;/but to be safely thus””Cabin’d, cribb’d, confined” – alliteration of hard “c” sound vividly depicts his fear and paranoia”Then live, Macduff. What need I fear of thee?/But yet I’ll make assurance double sure,/and take a bond of fate: thou shalt not live” |
| How does Macbeth’s language change in the play? | At the beginning and end it is confident and certainYet in the middle, or if he is feeling uncertain or guilty, he asks lots of questions and uses short, blunt, monosyllabic statements |
| Quotes that show that Macbeth is easily influenced | “Why do I yield to that suggestion,/whose horrid image doth unfix my hair and make my seated heart knock at my ribs””I am settled, and bend up/each corporal agent to this terrible feat”Influenced by the supernatural:”Two truths are told” (in contrast to Banquo: “win us to our harm)”Thou marshall’st me the way that I was going;/And such an instrument I was to use” |
| What happens when the Witches’ prophecies come true? | Macbeth begins to rely more heavily on them:”Bring me no more reports; let them fly all”When they are fulfilled unexpectedly, Macbeth panics:”I look’d towards Birnam, and anon, methought,/the wood began to move” “Liar and slave!” |
| Quotes that show Macbeth’s inner conflict | “My thought, whose murder is yet but fantastical,/shakes so my single state of man that function/is smother’d in surmise””We but teach/bloody instructions, which, being taught, return/to plague th’ inventor: This even-handed justice/commends the ingredients of our poison’d chalice/to our own lips” – makes his actions more shocking”We will proceed no further in this business””Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood/clean from my hand?””Methought I heard a voice cry ‘Sleep no more!/Macbeth does murder sleep'”Thou canst not say I did it: never shake/thy gory locks at me””So brainsickly””Infirm of purpose!””I’ll go no more:/I am afraid to think what I have done;/look on’t again I dare not””But wherefore could I not pronounce Amen?/I had most need of a blessing, and Amen/stuck in my throat” |
| Quotes that show Macbeth’s remorse | “Life’s a walking shadow, a poor player/that struts and frets his hour upon the stage/and then is heard no more””It is a tale, told by an idiot/signifying nothing”World-weary and cynical |
| Quotes that show Macbeth’s ambition | “Stay, you imperfect speakers, tell me more…say from whence/you owe this strange intelligence…speak, I charge you””I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent/only vaulting ambition, which o’erleaps itself/and falls on the other””Stars, hide your fires;/let not light see my black and deep desires””Good sir, why do you start, and seem to fear/things that do sound so fair?””To be thus is nothing,/but to be safely thus-Our fears in Banquo/stick deep””Upon my head they placed a fruitless crown,/and put a barren sceptre in my gripe”-his ambition only gets stronger |
| Quotes that show Macbeth’s hubris | “For mine own good,/all causes shall give way: I am in blood/stepp’d in so far that should I wade no more,/returning were as tedious as to go o’er””The mind I sway by, and the heart I bear,/shall never sag with doubt nor shake with fear” |
| Quotes that represent Macbeth’s paranoia | “To be thus is nothing,/but to be safely thus””O, full of scorpions is my mind, dear wife””It will have blood; they say, blood will have blood””I had else been perfect,/whole as the marble, founded as the rock,…but now I am cabin’d, cribb’d, confined””There the grown serpent lies: the worm that’s fled/hath nature that in time will venom breed” |
| Quotes that show Macbeth’s tyrannical, despotic rule | “By the clock, ‘Tis day/and get dark night strangles the travelling lamp””I am in blood/stepp’d in so far that, should I wade no more,/returning were as tedious as to go o’er””I think our country sinks beneath the yoke:/it weeps, it bleeds, and each day a new gash/is added to her wounds” (Malcolm)”Give to our tables meat, sleep to our nights,/free from our feasts and banquets bloody knives” (Lord)”To dew the sovereign flower and drown the weeds” (Lennox)”Give to the edge o’ the sword/his wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls/that trace him in his line””She should have died hereafter””The devil himself could not pronounce a title/more hateful to mine ear””Your wife and babes/savagely slaughtered” |
| Descriptions of Macbeth at the start | “Noble” “brave” “valiant” “worthy” |
| Descriptions of Macbeth at the end | “Abhorrèd tyrant”, “usurper”, “monster”, “dead butcher”, “hell-hound” |
| Analyse: “As cannons over-charged with double cracks” | Vocabulary such as “cannon” and “charged” gives the audience a sense of Macbeth’s explosive, violent power, as if he himself is a powerful weapon who is highly capable of killingThe alliteration of the strong “c” sound mimics the dynamic movements of Macbeth through the battlefield and create an undaunted toneThe use of over and double highlights Macbeth is far more value than a typical soldier – he stands above the rest |
| Analyse: “too full o’ the milk of human kindness” | The suggestion that Macbeth is “too full” implies he is not only good natured, but he is “too” full – it will stop him achieving the crownThe image of “milk” has associations with a comforting and soothing nature – not the qualities Lady Macbeth thinks are required to become king. In Shakespearean context, it should be women who are gentle and kind, not menThe phrase “human” suggests that Lady Macbeth is willing to be inhuman to achieve the crown |
| Analyse: “is this a dagger which I see before me,/the handle toward my hand?” | The question is representative of Macbeth’s state of mind – he is full of uncertainty and doubtThe fact that is it is a “dagger” before him suggests his mind has been corrupted by violence – the handle of the dagger is pointing towards his hand, almost inviting him to use itAnd a patriarchal society, male leaders should not have doubt – they are meant to be powerful, certain and strong. Macbeth has become a weaker warrior since the warfare on the battlefields in act one |
| Analyse: “But wherefore could I not pronounce Amen?/I had most need of a blessing, and Amen/stuck in my throat” | The question is representative of Macbeth’s state of mind – he is full of uncertainty and doubt. His hesitancy contrasts greatly with the active behaviour of Lady Macbeth.His repetition of “Amen” brings religion to the audiences attention – the fact it has “stuck in [his] throat” implies that Macbeth has acted so evilly that religion has turned against him – evil cannot coexist with religion – particularly poignant to a Jacobean audience |
| Analyse: “A falcon, towering in her pride of place,/was by a mousing owl hawk’d at and kill’d” | The Falcon symbolises Duncan, and the mousing owl symbolises Macbeth – the natural order of things has become subverted – hierarchy was vital to the country stability, and the divine right of kings meant that hierarchy could not be challenged |
| Analyse: “whole as the marble, founded as the rock… But now I am cabin’d, cribb’d, confined” | The word “whole” suggests that he was the complete soldier and the associations with “marble” and “rock” are of strong, unbreakable, natural substances – all the things Macbeth used to be, a traditionally strong male The associations with rocks also remind us that he is cold and callousThe tricolon of “cabin’d, cribb’d, confined” suggests a feeling of claustrophobia and restriction, as if Macbeth has nowhere to hide and is now vulnerable |
| Analyse: “There the grown serpent lies: the worm, that’s fled,/hath nature that in time will venom breed” | “Worm” suggests something that is small and helpless, yet it will grow into a “serpent” and threaten Macbeth – foreshadows the growing of violence”Will” seems inevitable and definite – evil is unstoppableIronic – Macbeth can’t see that he himself is the “serpent” |
| Analyse: “Prithee, see there! Behold! Look! Lo! How say you?/why – what care I?” | Macbeth’s sentences have become stuttering, fractured and broken – he is now speaking in doggerel, using monosyllabic words that suggest his inner conflictHis exclamations and questioning suggest his confusion and fear |
| Analyse: “Then live, Macduff. What need I fear of thee?/But yet I’ll make assurance double sure,/and take a bond of fate: thou shalt not live” | Macbeths nervousness and fragility is evident here – rather than the brave warrior from the beginning of the play, he is now desperate to be “sure” and needs “assurance”It also shows the conflict in his mind – he starts by suggesting that Macduff can “live”, but follows this with a question, and then a complete contradiction saying “that shalt not live”We see Macbeth’s lack of actual power as he needs to “take a bond of fate”, relying on fate to assist him |
| Analyse: “Your wife and babes/savagely slaughtered” | The juxtaposition of “wife and babes”, images of innocent, love and care, being “savagely slaughtered” (the word savage suggesting an almost inhuman and bestial behaviour) indicates to the audience the level of violence and evil that Macbeth now engages inThe sibilance of “savagely slaughtered” creates a sense of evil, and adds a swiftness to the sentence, a clear development from the hesitancy he showed before he killed Duncan |
| Analyse: “The mind I sway by, and the heart I bear,/shall never sag with doubt nor shake with fear” | In previous acts, Macbeth was riddled with “doubt” and “fear” – now the word “never” is positioned before it, showing has finally regained control of his own behaviourHe is again in full control, as shown by the reference to both “mind”, suggesting his thoughts, and “heart”, emphasising his emotions”Sag” and “shake” both suggest weak body movements, something Macbeth explicitly rejects |
| Analyse: “Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player/that struts and frets his hour upon the stage/and then is heard no more: it is a tale,/ told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,/ signifying nothing. | The metaphor of a “shadow” suggests life is empty and has no meaning – it also has associations with following someone else’s plan, suggesting that it was Macbeths fight to kill DuncanThe use of the dynamic verb “walking” implies that life is a journey, but not an energetic one – walking is not the powerful, physical action seen in earlier acts, nor the dynamic action expected of a kingThe sentence structure focuses on the word “but”, meaning only or just.Macbeth is arguing that life is worthless – it is only a shadowThe image of Macbeth as a “poor player” contrast the previous image of him as a powerful canon act one. Here, the alliteration adds to the pitiful nature of his character. It also suggests that he has been “played” by fateThe verbs “struts” and “frets” suggests weak, indecisive actions – they suggest a lack of control and power, and that his inner conflict has all been for nothing The fact that we only have an “hour upon the stage” emphasises how fleeting and insignificant each person is, foreshadowing his death that is to comeWords such as “petty” and “idiot” create an angry tone and suggest his annoyance at his epiphany, agnorisis”Signifying nothing” A moment of agnorisis – Macbeth realises that it has all been for nothing |
| Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow soliloquy | Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,/Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,/To the last syllable of recorded time,/And all our yesterdays have lighted fools/The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!/ Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player/That struts and frets his hour upon the stage/And then is heard no more: it is a tale/Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury/Signifying nothing” |
| Dagger soliloquy | Is this a dagger which I see before me,The handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee.I have thee not, and yet I see thee still.Art thou not, fatal vision, sensible To feeling as to sight? or art thou but A dagger of the mind, a false creation,Proceeding from the heat-oppressed brain? I see thee yet, in form as palpableAs this which now I draw. Thou marshall’st me the way that I was going;And such an instrument I was to use.Mine eyes are made the fools o’ the other senses,Or else worth all the rest; I see thee still,And on thy blade and dudgeon gouts of blood, Which was not so before. There’s no such thing: It is the bloody business which informsThus to mine eyes. Now o’er the one halfworldNature seems dead, and wicked dreams abuseThe curtain’d sleep; witchcraft celebratesPale Hecate’s offerings, and wither’d murder,Alarum’d by his sentinel, the wolf,Whose howl’s his watch, thus with his stealthy pace.With Tarquin’s ravishing strides, towards his designMoves like a ghost. Thou sure and firm-set earth,Hear not my steps, which way they walk, for fearThy very stones prate of my whereabout,And take the present horror from the time,Which now suits with it. Whiles I threat, he lives: Words to the heat of deeds too cold breath gives.A bell ringsI go, and it is done; the bell invites me. Hear it not, Duncan; for it is a knell That summons thee to heaven or to hell. |
WJEC Eduqas GCSE (9-1) English Literature | Macbeth | Character: Macbeth
November 28, 2019