Sleep and Rest In Macbeth

In William Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’ sleep is a very significant aspect of the play which is portrayed by many references to it and occurrences that result in sleep deprivation. To emphasize the importance of resting Shakespeare uses varied poetic language and sleep distortions. Sleep comes as a significant theme of the play when Macbeth, persuaded by Lady Macbeth kills King Duncan while he is asleep at their house. Consequently, Macbeth suffers from devastating nightmares and delusions which are the reasons for his constant paranoia and anxiety that lead to numerous murders.

Shakespeare’s choice of language shows that he values ability to sleep, which in my opinion is influenced by his own experience. He thinks of it as a “balm of hurt minds” which I understand as a relaxing and comforting activity. Furthermore, the line “great nature’s second course” refers to the time we spend sleeping and signifies the fact that the rest is a vital human need in order for our minds and bodies to work well. This choice of vocabulary makes the audience realize how important the sleep is in a play and clearly portrays that Macbeth’s anxiety is a consequence of sleep deprivation and his overwhelming ambition.

The first important sleep reference is the witches’ revenge on the Sailor’s wife. The scene establishes the link between darkness, sleep and supernatural. The witches plot to avenge the wife’s insult. Their abilities are limited as indicated by words “Though his bark cannot be lost, yet it shell be tempest-tossed” therefore the way they curse the sailor is quite unusual as they control the elements and weather to punish him for the unpleasantness of his wife. According to the witches, the effects of sleep deprivation will follow by anxiety ...

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...te and destiny in the production.

Dramatic significance is very important aspect of the play. Shakespeare’s beliefs and values are presented in this play along with the morals. The understanding of sleep in ‘Macbeth’ is deep and shows the importance of it in life. Nowadays, sleep isn’t looked on as particularly exciting activity in our lives; however the studies proved that getting enough sleep is essential in order for our bodies to function and mind to stay alert and rested. To summarise the events from ‘Macbeth’ I think the quotation by E. Joseph Cossman works really well “The best bridge between despair and hope is a good night’s sleep.” - which is definitely the solution for Macbeth’s troubles, be the cure for his constant paranoia and megalomania and hopefully would contribute to changing the final outcome and result in a happy ending.

Works Cited

macbeth