Macbeth: Imagery Helps Us To Understand Its Themes and Characters
For me to answer this essay question I must first find out what
exactly imagery is, to do this I used an Oxford dictionary and this is the
definition;
Imagery n. Images collectively; statuary, carving; mental images
collectively; ornate figurative illustration, esp. as used by author for
particular effect.
An image is a picture that the author places in your head by
graphic descriptions about a subject. This image is designed to help the
reader understand the plot or mood or to simply add life to a story.
Shakespeare uses imagery a lot in his books and this imagery also
symbolises a person or a theme in the story.
In the first line of act one scene two Duncan is asking his Lords
who the bloody man stood before him is. He says that judging by his
wounded state he could tell them of the latest news of the battle. This
opening sentence sets the scene for the whole of the play, a bloody war.
There is more blood when MacBeth and his lady have killed Duncan, the
blood symbolises guilt so Lady MacBeth smears blood onto the guards and
then cleans herself of the blood on her.
"A little water clears us of this deed," meaning that if there is
no blood on them they can not be guilty.
Banqueting, eating and food symbolise a happy and unsuspecting
atmosphere. When you are in a crowd you feel safe and not threatened. If
you are with a lot of people when there is a crime you have a very strong
alibi. When Macbeth was at his banquet he made a toast to Banquo who was
not present, MacBeth knew exactly why Banquo was not present because it
was he who sent out two murderers to kill him; the play is full of such
lies and stories to cover up crimes so much that the criminals can not
handle the guilt.
The whole play is a reflection of chaos and order. The population
are all in an order and set rank but at the top of the hierarchy where the
order matters there is a state of chaos and this is filtered down through
the hierarchy to everyone in the play. The people are fighting for order
to be restored and justice done.
Throughout the book there are a lot of dark and light images. The
witches are always in the dark because the darkness represents a fear full
unknown. It is in the dark where crimes occur because they can go
While fear prevents clear thoughts and distorts truth, it does provide action. People will band together in order to combat fear and their numbers will provide them temporary safety until they dispel they fear as a whole. Fear makes one move upon impulses and ideas. With one simple accusation, one could demand that “You will confess yourself or you will hang...you will hang if you do not open” your mouth (117). Fear does not only originate from witches but being accused of witchcraft as well ,even if one wishes to stay away from th...
In Shakespeare's Macbeth, various types of imagery are used throughout the play. Five of these images are nature, paradoxes, manhood, masks, and light vs. darkness. In Act I, Scene i, Line 1, the description of "Thunder and lightning" represents disturbances in nature. The witches are surrounded by a shroud of thunder and lightning, which might personify them as disturbances. In Act II, Scene i, the dark night creates a perfect scene for the baneful murders.
Bram Stoker and Sheridan Le Fanu’s texts, Dracula (1898) and “Carmilla” (1872), use gothic tropes in similar ways to captivate readers with horror and terror. This essay will illustrate how, in comparison, both texts include gothic tropes: the New Woman, sexuality and setting, in order to provoke emotions and reactions from the readers. To achieve this, this essay will focus on the women that challenge traditional gender roles and stereotypes, and deconstruct each text in regards to the very strong undertones of homosexuality; specifically between Carmilla and Laura, and Dracula and Harker. By discussing the harshness and darkness of the environments described, including ruined castles and isolated landscapes; this essay will also explore the
While Bram Stoker’s Dracula has been described as the “quintessence of evil creatures we meet in our everyday lives” and “the Darkness” in the hearts of men (Herbert, 2004, pp. 62), Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight
Through the use of blood imagery in Macbeth, Shakespeare is able to characterize the character of Macbeth. As Macbeth commits numerous crimes and despicable acts throughout the play, his character transforms from a guilt ridden thane who adores his kind and risks his life to protect him and his country, into a savage, murderous king encouraged by greed and madness.
Within Shakespeare’s Othello there is an analysis into the context of the female. Brabantio’s rhyming couplet “Look to her, Moor, If thou hast eyes to see/ She has deceived her father, and may thee,” demonstrates his domineering and patronising attitude, as the Elizabethan era was a patriarchal society and the role of the female was to be ‘obedient’ to their father or husband. Brabantio also endeavours into placing a seed of doubt in Othello’s mind as a result of his jealousy. Consequentially Brabantio objectifies Desdemona when he states, “Where has thou stow’d my daughter?” exemplifying how he deems her as a possession, which can be stolen like any other. Othello prolongs this objectification through asserting that he “won his daughter” portraying Desdemona as a prize to be won, and a possession to be owned and argued over by husband and father. Desdemona is depicted early on in the play as the “angel” wi...
MacbethL Imagery & nbsp; & nbsp; One of the most important tools in literature is imagery. It is not just in there to fill up paper; rather, there is at least one dramatic purpose. for each image and there are many different types of imagery. This essay seeks to prove that in the play Macbeth the author William Shakespeare uses darkness. imagery for three dramatic purposes. Those three purposes are, to create. atmosphere, to arouse the emotions of the audience and to contribute to the major theme of the play. & nbsp; The darkness imagery in Macbeth contributes to its ominous atmosphere. In At the very beginning of the play, the three witches are talking and the first witch says "When shall we three meet again?
As one knows, some unwanted pregnancies could often be harmful and distressing for a woman. Women should have the right over their body to choose to sustain the fetus or not. In the past decades, women did not have their freedom of abortion in many countries of the world. There have always been controversies going on about abortion. Each individual has dissimilar views on the legality of abortion. Some people are against abortion for personal religious purposes and beliefs. For those who don’t believe in abortion, it is because they see it as killing a fetus, which is a human being. Others support abortion because they believe in women’s rights. Laws of abortion vary in each country, and abortion is not legal all over the world. It is illegal under any conditions but only permitted to save woman’s life if in countries such as Brazil, Nigeria, United Arab Emirates, and Ireland. However, abortion is legal without any restrictions in countries like Canada, Albania, and Italy. It the past decades Abortion was considered as criminal act in Canada. “If an abortion was carried out without such approval, the woman was liable for imprisonment for 2 years, an...
Shakespeare uses the symbol of blood in MacBeth to represent treason, guilt, murder and death. These ideas are constant throughout the book. There are many examples of blood representing these three ideas in the book.
Use of Blood Imagery in Macbeth William Shakespeare uses many techniques to liven up the intensity, and the excitement, of his plays. In the play of MacBeth, Shakespeare uses blood imagery to add a sense of fear, guilt, shame, insanity, and anger to the atmosphere. The use of blood imagery allows the audience to vision in their minds the crime scene where Duncan was murdered, as well as the scene where Lady MacBeth tries to cope with the consequences of her actions. The talk and sight of blood has a great impact on the strength and depth of the use of blood imagery. MacBeth’s soliloquy in Act 2 scene 1 gives the reader a description of how Duncan will be murdered.
First Lady Macbeth calls on night and darkness to assist her scheme against Duncan. Secondly, Macbeth returns after killing Duncan, his speech is full of dark imagery. Lastly, Banquo gets suspicious about Macbeth, then he hires people to kill Banquo. As Macbeth plans the murder of Banquo he uses imagery to express the evil scheme.
Conclusively, while Bram Stokers novel Dracula is seen as a gothic and horror story, I argue that it is a novel that seeks to address female sexuality directly. Seen through numerous passages, Stoker confronts and battles the views between sexuality during the Victorian era though his genius of characterization of characters present within the novel. As it seems highly intentional to me, I respect the way in which he criticizes and critiques upon female sexuality by bringing into light new ideas regarding female desires. When contrasting his text upon today’s culture, the differences to how one perceived the vampire has changed significantly.
Macbeth, one of the greatest tragedies written by William Shakespeare, tells a story about uncontrollable ambition, which destroys Macbeth and his wife. Interpreting the play using the mythological approach, Lady Macbeth exhibits a profound image as the terrible mother, more so than the “weird sisters.” Her evil intention foreshadows the awful fate and destiny of her family. The force that drives Lady Macbeth is her insatiable thirst for power.
Through every choice in life, there is a decision that must follow. Abortion is a woman’s individual choice; therefore, must be a legal part in todays society. Individual rights have an outstanding role in the controversial topic, on whether abortion should become legal in the United States . The individual rights for abortion show rights of life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness. As well, women should be able to have the choice to choose to have an abortion for several important reasons. The right to make these decisions should lie in the hands of the “mother” to make decisions concerning their own to make decisions concerning their own bodies. In addition, women should be given the choice to have an abortion if they are too young and unable to take care their child financially or emotionally. Additionally, the right to have an abortion is if the pregnancy negatively affects the woman's or the baby's health. Without abortions as a choice for the “mother” to resort to while she is going through hardship on deciding whether to keep the baby or not, the endless possibilities could negatively influence the mother to put her and the baby in a dangerous positions.
Imagination is the faculty of producing ideal creations consistent with reality. In the book “Macbeth, by William Shakespeare” the main character Macbeth, has been seeing some very strange things lately and they could be real or just a figment of his imagination. It is a very debatable topic, I believe some of the supernatural beings he saw were real and some other things may have been a hallucination. The witches and Hecate are real, but the dagger and the apparitions that Macbeth saw were all in his head.