In William Shakespeare’s tragedy Macbeth, literary symbols or motifs such as blood play a significant role. Throughout the play, blood feeds off of a strong case of corrupt ambition and symbolizes guilt, blame and destruction. No matter how strong or thick one’s blood is, actions prove to be permanent and have serious side effects such as a haunting guilt marked by Macbeth’s crimson blood. Shortly after discovering that Macbeth is in line to be King, he and his wife Lady Macbeth devise a plan to murder and remove the incumbent King Duncan from his throne to open up the position. However, as soon as Macbeth commits the fatal murder, he is exasperated by his actions evidently as he yelps, “Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood clean from my hand? No, this my hand with rather the multitudinous seas incarnadine making the green one red” (II, ii, 78-81). The sight of Macbeth’s blood at the crime scene would be the ultimate proof against his innocence. His guilty conscience convinces him that his blood is so tainted that it cannot be removed and will instead stain. Indeed, Macbeth’s blood symbolizes the omnipotence of his guilt and his inability to fill his mind with thoughts other than those of the murder. …show more content…
Duncan’s assassination sparks suspicions toward Macbeth, especially in his good friend Banquo. Macbeth takes notice of Banquo’s sentiments and blames Malcolm and Donalbain, sons of Duncan, “We hear our bloody cousins are bestowed in England and in Ireland, not confessing their cruel parricide, filling their hearers with strange invention” (III, i, 33-36). Using the word “bloody” as a label emphasizes Macbeth’s intention to plead innocent and blame Malcolm and Donalbain. Evidently, blood is a symbol of blame; it is a stamp of personal identity that determines one’s guilt or
The image of blood plays an important role throughout the play. Blood represents the murders Macbeth and Lady Macbeth committed along with the guilt and pain they’ve felt afterwards. When Macbeth murdered King Duncan, he was fearful of getting caught. “Will Neptune’s ocean wash this blood Clean from my hand?” (2.2.59-60) Later, Macbeth refuses to go back to the crime scene to smear the blood on the sleeping guards because he was afraid of being accused.
The strong imagery of blood in this scene demonstrates his inability to remove the blood from his hands. Guilt will always remain disturbing Macbeth as the image of the crime will always remain in his consciousness, causing him to experience greater fear. The permanent change in colour from green to red in seas, shows that the guilt with Macbeth is everlasting and that there is not enough water in the sea to cleanse his hands. However, the blood on Macbeth’s hands will stain the ocean red. The crimes Macbeth has committed stained his hands in a way that they cannot be washed clean.
After Macbeth murders Duncan, Duncan’s blood is all over Macbeth. This makes Macbeth uncomfortable and he starts to compare the blood covering him
A motif is a narrative element that holds symbolic value while repeating throughout literary works. Macbeth, the main character in the play, believes that he can unfairly further himself in the kingdom of Scotland without remaining his honest self. The blood on Macbeth’s hands encapsulates the guilt he is bearing after plotting against King Duncan and craving his crown. Shakespeare utilized the image of blood to depict the paramount idea of Macbeth, the murder of King Duncan. The crime is foreshadowed in the second scene of the first act.
Here’s the smell of the blood still. All the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand.” (V.i.l 25, 33-34). The blood symbolizes the guilt that Lady Macbeth has after being involved in the murder of Duncan. The Macbeths believe that cleaning their hands with water would make the sin of the murder not be in connection with them.
Shakespeare uses the recurring symbol of blood to emphasize the effect of death and violence on the human psyche. The connotation that Macbeth associates with blood switches from a primary motivator to a guilty reminder. Prior to Duncan’s murder, Macbeth witnessed a floating dagger covered with blood (II.i.33). Macbeth had experienced violence and Blood is also used as a reminder of the guilt and trauma from the murder of King Duncan, the guards and Banquo. Macbeth refers to his hallucination of the ghost of Banquo: “It will have blood, they say.
Why does one shed blood, what motivates the theft of life? In the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare, the Macbeth’s thirst for power causes them to commit unspeakable atrocities, each atrocity committed deteriorates their sole until they are “in blood Stepped in so far that, should [They] wade no more, Returning were as tedious as go o'er”(3.four.125). Shakespeare uses the blood image to display inhumane acts that one would not expect from the originally innocent, thus revealing the true emotion of the character. Shakespeare uses the image of blood to reveal the consuming feeling of ambition present in the hearts of the Macbeths, alas such dark hearts lead the once brave Macbeth and his Wife down the path of cowardice and treason. As
This passage clearly exemplifies how blood can be deceiving being seen in a heroic light only later to be a dark burden on the Macbeth’s. Lastly, Shakespeare shows the reader how blood deceives lady Macbeth by being able to be cleaned off easily at first but then weighing her down with the guilt and responsibility of her actions. Lady Macbeth later realizes bloodshed’s misleading nature and eventually goes insane trying to cleanse her soul saying, “Out damned spot, out, I say! One.
In Shakespeare’s play Macbeth the symbol of blood is often represented. The symbol of blood changes throughout the play. The imagery of blood is used in two different ways, good and evil. There are several examples of this throughout the play. The symbol of blood is very important in Macbeth.
When washing his hands, he even wonders if Neptune’s oceans will clear Duncan’s blood off of his hands as he realizes the murder will stick with him forever. Moreover, Lady Macbeth has a similar realization of what an impact Duncan's
As Macbeth sees the phantom of a dagger before him he says, “on thy blade and dudgeon gouts of blood, which was not so before”(II, i, 46-47). Macbeth, merely, thinking of killing Duncan sees a dagger with large drops of blood on and around it. Before he had no intention of killing Duncan, but now that he has, he can already foresee the guilt to come with the image of the blood stained dagger. Instead heeding the warning the dagger foreshadows, Macbeth instead takes the blood smeared knife as a determination.
Blood is something most people see as gruesome and disturbing, and not something ordinary people enjoy to be in the presence of. In the play Macbeth, the playwright William Shakespeare uses the motif of blood to expose a character's thoughts and personality. Blood is an important motif constantly shown throughout the play. Macbeth, the main character, thinks he can advance to the throne without any consequences. Blood exemplifies the guilt he is now stuck with, and due to Macbeth's excessive ambition, and overwhelming guilt, he is now faced with the consequences.
In this play, blood can symbolize a lot of things, but the main thing that blood symbolizes is guilt. Death and/or killing can happen very fast or in an instant, but blood can remain for even longer. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth had lots of worries and feelings of guilt throughout the play after the murder of characters, but they start to believe what if they can’t remove the blood or guilt from their hands. In the play, Lady Macbeth states “Out, damned spot! Out, I say!—One, two.
No, this my hand will rather The multitudinous seas incarnadine making the green one red.” (Act II, scene iii, line 78) In this line Macbeth is saying after killing Duncan that there is so much blood on his hands that if he tried to wash them in the ocean the ocean would turn red which represents him never being able to wash his guilt away from killing Duncan. Lady Macbeth shows her guilt but not until its to late. In act 4 of the play the Doctor watches Lady Macbeth as sleep walks to the bathroom and tries to wash the blood from her hands.
16-19). The use of blood displays Macbeth as a hero and characterizes him as loyal and courageous. The blood also represents the ambition he had to bring success for the king, which further supports his loyal characteristics. Unfortunately, things soon begin to change after Macbeth learns his fate in becoming king. “‘Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood / Clean from my hand?