More handpicked essays just for you.
health and personal consequences of sleep deprivation essay
symbolism in macbeth
imagery and symbolism in macbeth
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Sleep, as a bodily function, regulates how the body heals itself and how people process events in their lives. Disruption of sleep can cause mild symptoms such as dizziness to a slight loss of fine motor skills to full on hallucinations. It is in William Shakespeare’s Macbeth that sleep plays very different roles in order to influence the plot; in this Scottish play, sleep, in its absence, is a way to express thoughts about troublesome events, a way of showing that a man has gone made, and a way to reveal truths about characters.
Initially, the two characters who heard the witches’ prophecies, Banquo and Macbeth, show a certain amount of angst over what they had just heard. Banquo says, “A heavy summons lies like lead upon me,/And yet would not sleep: merciful powers,/Restrain in me the cursed thoughts that nature/ Gives way to repose!” In this quote, Banquo is expressing his inability to sleep due to his troubled thoughts, thoughts caused by the witches’ prophecy. In fact, this is the first time a character believes that Macbeth is malevolent in his intent which is later reinforced...
Guilt surrounds Macbeth for the second time when he sends out the murderers to kill Banquo, his old friend. Macbeth had no other choice but to get rid of Banquo. Banquo had witnessed the three witches and the prophecies. One prophecy was that his son would become king one day "To make them kings, the seeds of Banquo kings"(Act3 scene1 line70). In order for Macbeth to be safe is to kill Banquo. Banquo may assume what had happened and tell the people of Scotland. "For Banquo’s issue have I filed my mind; for them the gracious Duncan have I murdered; Put rancors in the vessel of my peace only for them, and mine eternal jewel".
Macbeth is plagued with paranoia and a thirst for power. Macbeth fears that Banquo has discovered his unclean hands and he will turn him in. “Our fears in Banquo stick deep, and in his royalty of nature reigns that which would be feared. ‘Tis he much dares…” (III, 3, 53-56) Macbeth knows that he could wipe out Banquo on his own, however he knows there would be obvious consequences for him. “And though I could with barefaced power sweep him from my sit and bid my will avouch it, yet I must not, for certain friends that are both his and mine…” (III, 1, 134-137) In order for Macbeth to wipe out Banquo without suspicion, he schemes to have other men take care of the matter by convincing them that Banquo is at the heart of their problems. “Know that it was he, in times past, which held you so under fortune, which you thought had been our innocent self.” (III, 1, 84-86) Macbeth’s desire for power is his downfall.
After murdering Banquo, Macbeth begins to fear other powerful men around him, such as Macduff. The witches provide Macbeth with Apparitions that tell him his fate for the future as king. The second Apparition, a bloody child tells Macbeth that no individual born from a woman can harm Macbeth. Macbeth then replies “Then live Macduff; what need I fear thee? But yet I’ll make assurance double sure and take a bond of fate. Thou shalt not live, that I may tell pale-hearted fear it lies, and sleep in spite of thunder” (4,1,93-97). Even though Macbeth gains the knowledge that no individual born from a woman can harm him, he acts cowardly to protect himself. Macbeth turns to murder instead of facing the powerful Macduff himself. As Machiavelli said men act cowardly, and Macbeth demonstrates just that by murdering anyone who seems to pose even a slight threat towards him as king. Macbeth believes murdering Macduff will allow him to “sleep in spite of thunder.” Macbeth uses this metaphor of sleep by saying the people who sleep are innocent and the ones who don’t sleep are guilty. Macbeth believes if Banquo is dead, he can sleep as an innocent person. Macbeth presents a cowardly character who believes murder is the “right” way of handling his problems. As a result of Macbeth murdering more and more people out of fear, his people will think of him as a cowardly king. Macbeth wants his people to think he is a strong king, but by killing good people out of fear, individuals will have their idea of Macbeth’s character alter into being a
Banquo and Macbeth meet three witches after defending Scotland against a rebellion. These witches represent evil and they are messengers of the devil. They are one of the factors that affect Macbeth and cause him to enter into a life of evil. They had fought nobly and were very excited. They could not believe their eyes and ask if they had "eaten from the insane root" and were having hallucinations. The witches prophesize that Macbeth, Thane of Fife will soon earn the title, Thane of Cawdor and after that become king of Scotland. Macbeth is "wrapt" in thought about this. At first he wonders if this oracle has any merit. But the true thought of it makes him wonder and starts his early thoughts of conspiracy. He expresses these thoughts to his wife, Lady Macbeth, in a letter.
Next we see this theme again when Macbeth says "Me thought I heard a voice cry "Sleep no more, Macbeth does murder sleep," the innocent sleep"(II.ii.64-66). Here again we see Macbeth is starting to hear voices and he is starting to go a little crazy. Here is where things really start to head downhill, and they go down fast. Because of Macbeth’s ambition for king he has killed the current king. Now he thinks he is hearing voices that keep him from getting his sleep. And as we will later see, Macbeth will eventually die due to his over eager ambition to become the new king. The event of killing the king will set into play a whole chain of events that will soon show the downfall of Macbeth from his short lived thrown.
Macbeth is describing sleep as a wonderful thing. It gives you energy and nourishes you like food from a feast.
No discussion of evil in Shakespeare’s play Macbeth would be satisfactory without considering its’ most famous symbols of evil: the coven of witches whose interactions with Macbeth play such a vital role in his thinking about his own life. Banquo and Macbeth recognize them as something supernatural, part of the landscape but not fully human inhabitants of it. They have malicious intentions and prophetic powers. And yet they are not active agents in the sense that they do nothing other than talk and offer visions and potions. The witches have no power to compel. If we are to explore the significance of these witches we must do so by treating them as vital poetic symbols in the play, essential manifestations of the moral atmosphere of Macbeth's world.
In Shakespeare's original Macbeth, Banquo was portrayed as an intelligent individual capable of making rational decisions. After meeting the three witches and asking about his future, he was able to understand after a few days of thinking that the prophecies given were potentially very dangerous. Both, Macbeth and himself should actually be worrying and not trying to achieve these prophecies. Even though Banquo was being tempted by the witches' insight, these temptations only appeared in his dreams, "I dreamt last night of the three Weird Sisters" (Shakespeare 51), while Macbeth says that he "thinks not of them" (Shakespeare 51) even though it is apparent he is focused on becoming King. Once Banquo realizes that these witches were correct in their prophecy toward Macbeth, he began to pl...
Here, Macbeth realizes that if something is not done to Banquo, his sons will become Kings. Macbeth can not have this. He had already worried that his soul will go to hell for what he had done. His fear become evident in this scene also, "But to be safely thus: our fears in Banquo Stick deep;" [Act III, S I, L 53-54] Macbeth has Banquo murdered,
The good characters in Macbeth are less interesting than the evil ones. Everybody has an 'evil seed' planted in them. Only the really evil person acts on them and commits something morally wrong. Like Macbeth. When Macbeth first received the prophecies, he actually considered them. " Two truths are told,...but what is not" (line 137-152, Pg 27-29). We see him arguing with himself and feeling disgusted that he even thought that. That was interesting because we get the feeling that something out of the ordinary is coming up and our anticipation gets into the story straightaway. At the end, we didn't expect that a murderer like Macbeth would have a dramatic and poetic imagination "To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,...And then is heard no more: it is a tale" (line 21-28, Pg 233), or that he would, even in defeat, display conscience and bravery. "I will not yield to kiss the ground before young Malcolm's feet,...And damn'd be him that first cries 'Hold, enough!'" (line 32-39, Pg 249). We are surprised, and astonished because we see Macbeth in a different light and for that reason, he is interesting. While Banquo (the good character) on the other hand, was sceptical and quickly dismissed the idea of the prophecies, saying it was just their imagination. " Were such thing here as we do speak about? ...That takes the reason prisoner?" (line 86-89, Pg 27). That response was so predictable. There was no excitement at all.
When I thought about the role that the word "night" would play in the tragic play "Macbeth," I found that there were a variety of possibilities. Immediately, I thought of the nighttime as a period of rest and revitalization. I expected that this would allow characters to recover from the day's many demands. Secondly, I connected the night to the unknown. In the night's cloak of darkness, many more things could go undiscovered than in the revealing light of day. Next, I thought that the night would mean vulnerability. As the evening closes in, everyone begins to wind down, not expecting any real action until the breaking of the dawn. In addition, while one is sleeping, they are susceptible to almost anything. The most logical time to make an attack would definitely be after nightfall. Lastly and perhaps most importantly, is night's correlation with evilness. As children, we were all afraid of nasty monsters that lurked in the darkness of night. The night has long been believed to host supernatural beings and occurrences. As I read the play and came upon the word "night," I was surprised to discover that all four aspects of my hypothesis were correct. First, in act I, we see the first usage, night as a period for rest and revitalization. In scene iii, lines 19-23, the First Witch says,
In the play Macbeth fear was a major motivating factor in character’s actions. Macbeth was fearful of being caught and having to pay for the wrongs he had done – this led to the murders that followed he killed King Duncan. Macbeth's actions were also partially driven by fear of the witches' last prophecy, about the line of kings spawning from Banquo. He was afraid this would come true attempted to prevent it from happening. Lady Macbeth was also plagued by fear as made apparent by the constant washing of her hands while sleepwalking and her speech during her troublesome sleep. Her fulfillment by the direst cruelty and pure evil has worn off, leaving her somewhat of a basket case, ridden by fear and guilt as a result of her actions.
...gicality and eagerness which leads his arrogant action to result in his demise. Banquo is much more wary about the prophecies given to both Macbeth and Banquo that appear to be really good for both of them. Macbeth is motivated by the gratifying appearance of the prophecies to act upon the possibility of the prophecies coming true. This gives him a false sense of security because he is tempted with the fact that these prophecies could quite possibly be the truth. This is want ultimately gives Macbeth the motivation to execute his arrogant actions. He is under the impression that his actions could in no way fail because the supernatural tells him he will get the power he seeks.
Remember the last time you had a dream that seemed so vivid, you revisited it to ponder over what it means? In both real life and fiction, dreams are often a cause of people learning something new or even a change of mind. By digging deeper and analyzing dreams, one will gain more knowledge about him or herself and the world. Shakespeare utilizes this concept of dreams and visions in his famous plays, especially Macbeth, the story of the downfall of a man named Macbeth, and his wife, Lady Macbeth. Summarizing their bad decisions and the devaluation of their mental states only scratches the surface when describing this noble, yet heartless and unfortunate, classic work of literature. The story teaches the reader about the effects of competitive
Macbeth is one of Shakespeare's problem plays which have puzzled the critics all over the years. It is compact and full of significant scenes, and it has two important characters, Macbeth and his wife. It is a clear study of human nature, which I personally think Shakespeare had mastered. The final act opens with the sleepwalking scene and this scene is of great significance because it reveals the true nature of lady Macbeth. Lady Macbeth is one of the enigmatic characters. Once she is a woman made out of steel and suddenly she collapses; she returns to be a gentle wife. The sleepwalking scene also shows lady Macbeth as a complementary character to her husband.