The Theme Of Guilt In Shakespeare's Macbeth

William Shakespeare once said, “Suspicion always haunts the guilty mind.” He is not just talking to people who have committed murder or illegal crimes, but to everyone. Most people have felt guilty before. It is an important emotion for people to feel so we know when our actions are wrong. But when we ignore our feelings of guilt, it can lead to the destruction of our conscience. In his play Macbeth, Shakespeare incorporates his idea of guilt into images for the audience. Blood and water are two symbols in Macbeth that function as keys to unlock the hidden message of the effects of guilt. Blood is used to remind Macbeth and Lady Macbeth of their violent actions, while water represents a way to cleanse their minds of the remorse they feel.

Once the blood is on their hands, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth wonder if they will ever be able to undo their guilty actions. Just like a stain washes out with water, the characters hope for the same thing in order to ease their conscience. Lady Macbeth says, “A little water clears us of this deed” (2.2.86). Water is the only hope these characters have left to free themselves of their remorse. It is a symbol of the characters cleansing their souls of the blood that they have caused. While sleepwalking, Lady Macbeth says, “wash your hands” and begins to wash her own hands because she has “blood” on her hands and in her mind (5.2.65). But as much as she washes, the “filthy witness” does not fully rinse from her hands (2.2.61). Both characters know that they can never clean the stain that Duncan’s blood left on their hands. The action of washing is a psychological practice that doesn’t really undo the characters’ past. They wash there hands only to help themselves feel better. Water is their way of escaping the guilt that haunts their

Once Macbeth kills Duncan, he immediately regrets what he has done. At this time, Lady Macbeth is able to overcome her guilt and tries helping Macbeth overcome his remorse. They both wonder about the blood on their hands and if it is able to be washed off, but Macbeth is more concerned than Lady Macbeth. He asks Lady Macbeth, “Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood clean from my hand?” (2.2.78-79). The image of an immense ocean not being able to wash off the blood on Macbeth’s hand shows the audience just how much guilt the characters are feeling. Macbeth wants to clear his mind and become indifferent to guilt just like Lady