G Shala's Online Journal

In the play Macbeth, Shakespeare shows how Macbeth’s mind is deteriorating throughout the play, he uses lots of different techniques to show us this. Some of the techniques he uses are figurative, language, structure and dramatic devices.

In act 2 scene 1 Macbeth says a soliloquy about a dagger that he sees, but this dagger is imaginary and he put this in because he wanted to show us the readers that Macbeth’s state of mind is deteriorating. He also wanted to show us how Macbeth has been thinking about killing, king Duncan and is guiding him to kill Duncan.

Shakespeare has presented Macbeth’s deteriorating state of mind by using language features. In act 5 scene 5 Macbeth says a soliloquy and uses many language features. One of the language devices he uses is alliteration. He says ‘And all our yesterdays have lighted fools the way to dusty death’ he used alliteration when he said dusty death. this means that all his yesterdays have made a path for idiots that led to their death. He uses alliteration because he wants to emphasize that it’s not just death it’s dusty death. So he wanted people to see the word dusty. He also used alliteration here ‘Creeps in this petty pace from day to day, To the last syllable of recorded time’.

Another way Shakespeare shows Macbeth’s deteriorating state of mind is by using metaphors. An example of this is in act 3 scene 4 when he says ‘There the grown serpent lies. The worm that’s fled Hath nature that in time will venom breed;No teeth for th’ present. Get thee gone. We’ll hear ourselves again.’ Here he said there the older serpent lies referring to Banquo and calling him a snake and he said the worm or immature snake that fled calling Fleance the worm that fled. He says this because Macbeth hired some murderers to go and kill Banquo and his son Fleance because the next person to the throne would be Fleance. He believed that even though Fleance has no power now he will in the future and he was right because Fleance fled to England and created an alliance with Malcolm and the English forces. The murderers could only kill Banquo as Fleance fled and was told to avenge his father. He also used a metaphor in act 3 scene 2 he said ‘O, full of scorpions is my mind, dear wife!Thou know’st that Banquo and his Fleance lives.’ He said that he feels his mind is full of scorpions you know that Banquo and Fleance are still alive. He said this because he is trying to say his mind is restless and hurts because he can’t concentrate on anything but Banquo and his son still being alive.

Shakespeare has presented Macbeth’s deteriorating state of mind by using language features.  In act 5 scene 5 Macbeth says a soliloquy and uses many language features. One of the language devices he uses is alliteration. He says ‘And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death’ he used alliteration when he said dusty death. this means that all his yesterdays have made a path for idiots that led to their death. He uses alliteration because

What is Shakespeare trying to communicate about life in this passage spoken by the character Macbeth?

In this passage Shakespeare is talking about life through the words of Macbeth.

Shakespeare is telling us what Macbeth is feeling and his point of view because his wife just died and he is about to be killed. he said “it is a tale told by an idiot full of sound and fury signifying nothing” this means that life is just a test and in the end it signifies nothing. I believe he said this because his wife has just died and he is feeling sorrow. He said “life’s but a walking shadow a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage” this means that life is like a poor actor playing a small part that just wants to stay on stage for longer and make money for their family

Macbeth is a equivocator when he says this quote ‘I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only Vaulting ambition which o’erleaps itself and falls on th’other’. He was saying the only thing pushing me is ambition which makes people rush ahead of themselves in the direction chaos.he says this in act 1 scene 7

Act 2 scene 2

“Didst thou not hear a noise?”

in this quote Macbeth says didn’t you hear that this shows that he is loosing his mind and hearing random things.

“There’s one did laugh in ’s sleep, and one cried, “Murder!””

here he is telling us what he heard and he says he heard someone laugh in there sleep and someone cry murder.

“Methought I heard a voice cry, “Sleep no more!
Macbeth does murder sleep”—the innocent sleep,”

“Still it cried, “Sleep no more!” to all the house;
“Glamis hath murder’d sleep, and therefore Cawdor
Shall sleep no more—Macbeth shall sleep no more.””

the voices say that he murders someone in their sleep which is what happens in the later scenes.it also says that he shall become Cawdor which is what also happens.

these quotes show that Macbeth was loosing his mind and was becoming progressively worse.

“Argh! I feel like my mind is full of scorpions, my dear wife.”

This quote shows how Macbeths state of mind has changed since he killed king Duncan. If his mind is full of scorpions and scorpions are dangerous and poisonous then his thoughts are dangerous and poisonous. This means that his state of mind has changed for the worst and he has become very dangerous.

“Prithee, see there! Behold! Look! Lo! How say you?
Why, what care I? If thou canst nod, speak too.
If charnel houses and our graves must send
Those that we bury back, our monuments
Shall be the maws of kites.”

this quote shows that Macbeth has gone crazy and is speaking to banquos ghost. He says if you can  I’d then why can’t you speak and goes on about the dead coming out of their graves.

Metaphysics the part of philosophy that is worrying with the basic causes and nature of things.

Paradox is a seemingly weird or unusual statement or theory which when looked into may be true.

The witches said “foul is fair and far is foul” and this statement is a paradox.

Pathetic fallacy is when when the mood in a piece of the play is interpreted by the weather and nature.

Dramatic irony is a when the audience know something that the actors don’t.

For example in act 1 scene 4 of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, macbeth speaks in an aside (to the audience) telling us that he is going to have dispense with the kings son Malcolm in order to become king himself.

The Difference between prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells is that eukaryotic cells have a nucleus whereas prokaryotic cells don’t.