Macbeth's Ability To Sleep Analysis

In Act 2, Scene 2, he declares, "Methought I heard a voice cry 'Sleep no more! Macbeth does murder sleep'" (2.2.33-34). This haunting line demonstrates the profound impact of guilt on Macbeth's psyche. His troubled mind generates hallucinations and delusions as a manifestation of his tormented conscience. These psychological experiences are not indicative of schizophrenia but rather the consequences of his moral decay and the weight of his heinous

Macbeth’s conscience tells him again to resist temptation to gain the crown and not kill Duncan because he is a man Macbeth should defend and protect. Even after this nudge towards moral correctness, Macbeth kills Duncan. He begins to feel intense guilt about his decision, and lives in fear of

5-7). In this instance, Macbeth shows that he can feel guilt, and he exhibits this by demonstrating that he does not desire to end the life of a man whose family was already victimized at his hands. Guilt is the one thing throughout the entire play that stops Macbeth dead in his tracks and causes him to take a moment to consider his present and future courses of action. Although Macbeth was lead to commit murder by the witches’ manipulative predictions of the future, he is the one who ultimately makes the choices that prove that he is in control of his actions, even when his actions cause him to be filled with

Macbeth first thinks that it is a bad idea to kill to get what he wants, then he soon realizes that it is the only way to get his dreams to happen. “And with thy bloody and invisible hand, cancel and tear to pieces that great bond which keeps me pale.” (3.2.47-49) He is too upset to think anything through to that he is killing his best friend that he is thinking about how it has come down to this. It is a good thing to do to get what he wants because it will always work and that’s the thing that has always worked out for him, also get him what he wants quickly.

In Macbeth, Shakespeare uses the motif of sleep, a natural process, to demonstrate how the unchecked ambition for unnatural objects cause a loss of innocence. This is evident in Lady Macbeth's confession of her sinful acts and Macbeth's state of mind after Duncan's death. The motif of sleep occurs in the form of sleep talking when Lady Macbeth relives the moments when she plotted the death of Duncan and Lady MacDuff in order to acquire the throne. After Lady Macbeth gets a note from Macbeth that describes the witch's prophecies, she plots Duncan's murder and tries to muster the courage to execute her plan.

After he murders King Duncan, Macbeth says that he heard a voice say “Macbeth shall sleep no more (II.ii.57).” Macbeth’s biggest flaw was his inability to prevent his greed from directing his life. His greed and thirst for power not only drive him to kill a king who just gave him an honorable title, but they also cause him to hallucinate. His greed is taking its psychological and mental toll on him. Macbeth’s greed has gotten the better of him so much that he remains in the state that he is permanently.

When Macbeth hears a voice cry “sleep no more”(Mac.2.2.33), it was the beginning of many of his illusions. He suffered from guilt after killing King Duncan and wasn’t able to sleep. Macbeth goes on to have more illusions throughout the story such as when he saw the bloody ghost of Banquo. Macbeth was the only one that could see Banquo, making him think that “the table’s full”(Mac.3.4.46) when they went to sit down for dinner. Macbeth continues to see the ghost of Banquo throughout dinner causing him to have sudden and unexplained outbursts.

Post traumatic stress disorder more commonly known as PTSD. According to the http://www.ptsd.va.gov/public/PTSD-overview/basics/what-is-ptsd.asp PTSD is a disorder that tends to occur when someone doesn’t recover from a traumatic event such as war, rape, abuse. Along with the disorder a series of symptoms come such as agitation, irritability, hostility, hypervigilance, self-destructive behavior, or social isolation, as well as other symptoms. Throughout the play we see a string of characters that present with possibility of having PTSD no more than our main character Macbeth. Macbeth weakened through war and an abusive wife caused him to suffer from PTSD.

Lady macbeth has gone crazy just like her husband. She can not become at peace. She can not sleep because Macbeth has taken sleep away. As lady macbeth sleep walks she has dreams of the murders that have occurred. Her guilt is dormant and expressed through these dreams.

The word “sleep” is used throughout Macbeth with various connotations. One of the ways to interpret Shakespeare's use of “sleep,” is as a symbol of innocence. This symbolism is used repeatedly in concerns to Duncan and his murder. When Lady Macbeth is unable to kill Duncan, she explains, “Had he not resembled / My father as he slept, I had done’t”

Clearly, sleep is a major motif in Macbeth, by William Shakespeare. The word sleep alone is used over thirty times, with similar words pertaining to sleep such as rest and dream being used another twenty times. Throughout the short story of Macbeth, Shakespeare writes about sleep literally almost as often as figuratively, using sleep as a symbol of the king, comfort and well-being, all good things considering the gruesome events throughout the book. Macbeth’s direct involvement with the King’s murder left him losing sleep and feeling a false sense of security that would eventually lead to his own

Sleep is one of the purest forms of altered consciousness however, traumatic experiences can impede one’s unconscious thoughts. Macbeth returns after killing Duncan and the guards, grief stricken and afraid. He tells his wife that sleep itself has been murdered and that nobody is immune his treachery (5.1.44). Macbeth’s crime is intensified by the act of murder being done at night and to sleeping rather than awake guards. The moment of guilt that Macbeth felt for his actions represents the hidden innocence behind the crimes.

Macbeth’s mind has become so “familiar with slaughterous thoughts” that he “forgot the taste of fears” (5.5.9,14). Macbeth’s greed made his mind so dark that he can no longer fear the real world. This shows that Macbeth’s paranoia and hallucinations are so awful, that the real world does not seem threatening. Even with enemies wanting to kill him, Macbeth becomes more frightened by his own mind. When Macbeth’s wife dies, he does not even feel remorse because he can no longer feel human emotions.

(Shakespeare 1.3.52-55). Macbeth is influenced by his greed for power to use ruthless actions, in this case to kill Duncan to receive the crown he thinks he needs to earn that power. Overwhelmed by his greed, he is already thinking about the “murder” as he

Macbeths guilty conscience makes him unable to play the ‘true’ role of a villain of the play. Macbeth begins to see ‘false creations’ before murdering Duncan; the image of a floating dagger taunts Macbeth’s senses. Macbeth is devoured in his anxiety he starts to hallucinate the crime before going through with it. Macbeth is unable to dispose thoughts of his guilt and doubt, which prevents him from being stuck at the point where it is too late to turn back, yet the fear of his nature prevents him from turning completely into a ruthless coldblooded