Collin Gosner
Santoro
English 12 (7)
3 May 2018
A Guilty Mind Macbeth is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, that tells the life of Macbeth, and his ultimate fall in his seek for power. A guilty state of mind usually means that a prohibited act was intentional, knowingly, or willfully done. The effects of guilt are devastating, they tear you apart until you either confess or feel guilty of your actions. The guilt and tortures of Macbeth's conscience manifest into himself immediately after he murders King Duncan of Scotland, the origin of his evil acts and where it all unravels. Macbeth suffers from hallucinations, restlessness, and the inability to stay sane. All the effects factor in the cause of his demise, losing the trust in his kingdom, and his own life.
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The image of blood is vivid in the play to symbolize guilt as it is blood which stains both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth's hands following the murder of Duncan. Macbeth connects his hands, and recognizes the evil deed of which he is guilty of. While he frantically tries to clean his hands of blood, he realizes that he cannot ever wipe the guilt of the act from his conscience, "Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood clean from my hand?”(II.ii.61-62). Another great detail of imagery that is effectively used throughout the play to develop the theme of a guilty conscience is the recurring image of
In Macbeth by William Shakespeare, Macbeth hears a prophecy which makes him believe murdering the king is the only way to fulfil said prophecy, shortly after another prophecy causes him to think he is invincible, this inevitably leads to many bad choices that lead to his death. Shakespeare uses symbols such as a dagger, blood, and hallucinations to show that guilt can haunt a person forever when one abandons their morals.(TH) Shakespeare first shows this with the use of a dagger. Before actually going through with the murder of King Duncan, Macbeth sees, “...A dagger of the mind, a false creation...” (Shakespeare 2.1.38), because he already feels guilty for abandoning his morals and plotting to murder Duncan, who he used to be loyal to.(TS) Although Macbeth has killed many people in battle, this would be the first time he murders someone that is innocent, which is why he feels such overwhelming guilt.
Guilt is a very potent emotion that an individual always feels in relation to others and has its genesis in the wrong done by some person to others. The two prominent works of literature that are Macbeth and The Kite Runner, though contrived centuries apart, revolve around an unremitting feeling of guilt felt by the central characters that are Macbeth and Amir, and the ordeal they had to go through owing to the psychological and practical consequences of that guilt. In the Shakespearian tragedy Macbeth, though, manages to murder the Scottish king Duncan to actualize the prophecy of the three witches, yet the guilt emanating from such nefarious acts and intentions continues to foreshadow Macbeth’s life throughout the plot. The very moment Macbeth approaches Lady Macbeth with hands dipped in the blood of Duncan, his deep seated guilt oozes forth as he says, “Methought I heard a voice cry ‘Sleep no more;/Macbeth does murder sleep (2.2.45-46)”. Thereby, from this moment onwards, Macbeth is shown to be strongly stung by an unrelenting and continually nagging sense of guilt that makes him engage in strange and suspicion generating acts and manners.
What is guilt and what major impact does it have in the play Macbeth by William
Everyone deals with guilt at least one time throughout their life, and several authors use guilt to help build up suspense in their story. Guilt in Macbeth not only affects his mental state of mind, but it also destroys him physically, along with a few other characters such as Lady Macbeth. The characters are affected by guilt so much, that it actually leads to their death essentially, just because they were not able to handle the consequences for the events that occurred. Despite being destroyed by guilt, they were still forced to carry on with their lives and they did have to try to hide it, even though Macbeth was not doing so well with that. His hallucinations were giving him up and eventually everyone knew the he had murdered Duncan so he could become the next king.
Shakespeare employs the powerful symbol of blood to augment the tragic nature of Macbeth, while dually adding dramatic effect to the play. Blood’s recurring symbolism throughout the play constantly reminds the audience of the Macbeth’s irreconcilable guilt. Blood’s symbolism in the murder of Duncan transforms an act of treachery into a ghastly betrayal. The symbolic appearance of blood throughout the intermediate parts of the play maintains the depth of the Macbeth’s unforgiveable guilt. The use of blood as a symbol in the conclusion of the play asserts the perpetuity of the Macbeth’s guilt. Shakespeare’s inclusion of blood as a major symbol in Macbeth creates a compelling tragedy in which the audience is able to comprehend the magnitude of the Macbeth’s irreconcilable guilt.
However, Macbeth still faces massive grief and moral conflict. After the murder of Duncan Macbeth states, “Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood /Clean from my hand? No, this my hand will rather/The multitudinous seas incarnadine, /Making the green one red,” (II.ii.60-63). One can interpret that the Duncan’s blood symbolizes Macbeth’s guilt. Macbeth claims that even Neptune’s ocean can not cleanse him of his crimes and he will bare this burden till death. In this time Macbeth’s wife claims that her hands are just as stained but he is subjected to weakness and in his heart. Macbeth faces the consequences heavily on soul and is realizing the great compromise he made on his morals all for the throne. Macbeth has become morally conflicted between becoming over ambitious to secure his throne and being able to live with his murderous
In Shakespeare’s Macbeth the theme of guilt and conscience is one of the most prominent in the play. It gives life to the play and gives depth to the characters, it makes Macbeth a much more realistic character because we are shown that he is not perfect and still responds to temptation. The results of committing evil acts have such a powerful effect on the human mind, that it is eventually destroyed by it. Macbeth’s destroyed mind is evident when he states, “O full of scorpions is my mind dear wife!”. Macbeth and his wife, like all of us must live with our own actions; unfortunately his choices make this impossible and light the way to a tragic and dusty death for the Macbeths.
Guilt is a consuming force capable of corrupting even the most just. Its effects lasting through the centuries, turning the steel minded to weakened shadows of men. More than anything else guilt changes people; it takes hold of thoughts, challenges sanity and erases morals. It triggers an internal battle between right and wrong, a force proven to be unstoppable, a thirst proven to be unquenchable. There is no better example of this than in Shakespeare’s Macbeth. Macbeth, written in 1606, displays all characteristics of a tragedy plagued with guilt. Civil unrest was prominent in England due to James the first being crowned both King Scotland and England in 1603. Macbeth was written in order to try and gain control of the people of England and give their true devotion to King James.
Thought-out history mass numbers of novels utilize the theme of guilt in order with the purpose of making a story more intriguing. This essay compares the guilt used in the novel Great Expectations by Charles Dickens and the novel Macbeth by William Shakespeare. The theme of guilt is apparent and a major part of Great Expectations and Macbeth but, the way the author applies these themes are vastly divergent. In Macbeth, Macbeth suffers more from guilt compared to Pip, since in Macbeth, Macbeth suffers hallucinations, and ultimately the death of Lady Macbeth. In great expectation, Pip's dues are paid and dos do not suffer any real consequence from the effects of guilt.
In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, Macbeth’s visions and hallucinations play a significant role and contribute to the development of his character. In the play Macbeth, a man is driven to murder his king and his companions after receiving a fairly ambiguous prophecy told by three witches. Although the witches triggered the series of events that later aid Macbeth’s descent into complete insanity, Macbeth is portrayed from the very beginning as a fierce and violent soldier. As the play goes on, several internal conflicts inside of Macbeth become clear. After he performs several bloody tasks, the madness inside of Macbeth is unmistakably visible to everyone around him. As a result of this insanity, he sees visions and hallucinations. Each time Macbeth hallucinates, he plunges further into insanity that is essentially caused by misguided ambition, dread and guilt. Macbeth has three key hallucinations that play a considerably important role in the development of his character: a dagger, the ghost of Banquo, and four apparitions while visiting the prophesying witches.
The image of blood plays an important role throughout Macbeth. Blood represents the murders that Macbeth had committed, the guilt that went along with the murders and the pain that it brought on him during his downfall. The soldier describes the violence and bloodshed, in the war between Scotland and Norway, "Except they meant to bathe in reeking wounds." (I. ii. 43) foreshadows the violent nature of the play filled with murder, guilt and pain. Blood in the murder of King Duncan also plays a major role because it represents Macbeth's guilt as well as his shame for slaying King Duncan. Macbeth observes his blood stained hands and remarks "As they had seen me with these hangman's hands." (II. ii. 28) This reveals his guilt and shame because he is comparing his hands to those of an executioner's. After the murder, Macbeth refuses to return back to the bed chamber of Kind Duncan to smear the blood on the sleeping guards, because he is afraid that the blood will incriminate him further. Lady Macbeth smearing the blood onto the guards represents them trying to rub their guilt off onto the guard. "I'll gild the faces of the grooms withal, for it must seem their guilt" (II. ii. 73) but this proves to be ineffective because Macbeth ends up murdering t...
(2.2.20) after he has killed Duncan. This shows the guilt that Macbeth is already feeling. Macbeth is not the only one who suffers from guilt though, Lady Macbeth is becoming more and more guilty as time goes on. She becomes so guilty that she begins walking and talking in her sleep, Gentlewoman- “Since his majesty went into the field, I have seen her
Shakespeare intricately incorporates the theme of guilt and ambition into every action in which Macbeth takes throughout the play, Macbeth, to further express the effects guilt can play on one’s mental state. With the use of symbolism and apostrophe, Shakespeare is able to depict the mental torment one undergoes when prided with ambition yet deprived by guilt while ultimately showcasing the transcendence of conflicting thoughts one is subjected to. The witches predict that Macbeth will become Thane of Cawdor and King of Scotland while Banquo’s child will become king: “All hail, Macbeth! hail to thee, thane of Glamis! All hail, Macbeth, hail to thee, thane of Cawdor!
In his famous play “Macbeth,” William Shakespeare deals with many important themes about his man should and shouldn't lead his life. One such theme deals with moral guilt - whether a man is morally guilty of all the actions in his life, or is a man innocent if some because he is a victim of outside foreces that push him into doing the things he dies. For example one of the reasons that it was Lady Macbeth that forced Macbeth into killing the king was when she called him a coward. Lady Macbeth said “As thou art in desire? Wouldst thou have that/ Which thou esteem’st the ornament of life/And live a coward in thine own esteem,/ Letting “I dare not” wait upon “I would,”/Like the poor cat i’ th’ adage?
The guilt of the murder immediately affects Macbeth more than he would have ever thought. Right away, Macbeth questions if “all great Neptune’s ocean [will] wash this blood… Clean from my hand”. Macbeth’s unshakable guilt is shown in his belief that the blood on his hands will never wash away – not even from the