Imagery of Blood in William Shakespeare's Play Macbeth In the play Macbeth , William Shakespeare uses blood as a symbol throughout the whole story to show the different emotions and themes within the context of the play. It’s a bit ironic for someone whose name means “the son of life” that he has to take so many lives instead of being a father to the people he was trying to rule. The play refers to blood in three key points to create great imagery in this play, guilt, honor, and family/ancestry are some strong points that this imagery is used. Blood shows many things in this play, such a thing like honor. Malcom the heir to the throne has made his way to England to escape the treacherous acts of the tyrant Macbeth. While there Macduff comes to call on him for an army to take back their mainland. Malcolm suggests his lack of honor for the new King of Scotland in his statement to Macduff, “It weeps, it bleeds, and each new day a gash/ Is added to her wounds.” Then later in this dialogue continues with “More suffer and more sundry ways than ever,/ By him that shall succeed”(4.3.40-49). Here Malcom is explaining how his country is as living as the people that inhabit it. He does not want to be tricked by Macduff and have his country in bits and pieces by the likes of Macbeth. Towards the beginning of the play when Macbeth returns the Sergeant shows his respect for the brave fighter who returned from a valiant battle for his country, in this next passage, the Sergeant says, "Which smoked with bloody execution"(1.2.18), he is referring to Macbeth's braveness in which his sword is covered in the hot blood of the enemy. The worthy heir to the throne Malcolm is graced by Macduff as he holds the head of Macbeth to all the people and sa... ... middle of paper ... ...have no words./My voice is in my sword, thou bloodier villain/Than terms can give thee out!”(5.8.5-9) which leads to the beheading of the tyrant Macbeth. After the death of Macbeth at the hands of Macduff, the symbolic theme of blood swings back to what it was at the beginning of the play. It is the symbol of honor to Malcom this time. The death of Macbeth is an honored feat that Macduff is congratulated for. There are many different ways Shakespeare plays with the imagery of blood. All the ways he uses this type of imagery goes back to how honor ,family, and then to guilt, after this, it returns to the symbolic imagery of honor after the villain that changed the meaning from honor to tyranny is killed. Due to these many changes, it has been proved that the symbol of blood has many different meanings which can be attributed to it throughout the course of this play.
William Shakespeare uses many techniques to liven the intensity, and the excitement in 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.
Shakespeare used the image of blood to portray the central idea of Macbeth, King Duncan’s murder. The crime is foreshadowed in the second scene of the first act. The king shouts, “ What bloody man is that?” (I,ii,1) He is referring to a soldier coming in from battle. The soldier then explains to King Duncan of Macbeth’s heroics in battle. One assumes that Macbeth is bloody just like the soldier. The soldier describes Macbeth in action “Disdaining Fortune, with his brandished steel, / Which smoked with bloody execution.” (I,ii,17-18) This line connects Macbeth with killing, and hints at the future.
In the beginning of this play blood resembles honor, bravery, and maybe even victory. Macbeth's blood saturated sword after the war portrays him as a brave hero because of the enemy he killed. He is known as "Brave Macbeth" to everyone including Duncan, the King. His bravery is rewarded by the title of Thane of Cawdor, with the help of the current one being executed for treason. I feel that the word blood at the beginning of this play earns Macbeth’s respect from not only the characters, but also the audience.
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.
...cance cannot be ignored. The word "blood" simply would not be used in such unlikely places as "bleeding Scotland," for instance, without a specific purpose. Shakespeare may have been trying to show us the fine line between life and death, which can both be signified with the blood image!
“.blood will have blood.” , Macbeth is a well known book written by Shakespeare. In it, a once loyal soldier to the king of Scotland starts to seek a way for him to get the crown for himself. In Macbeth, William Shakespeare uses the imagery of blood to represent the guilt of Lady Macbeth and Macbeth, demonstrating the feeling of guilt has consequences of severe punishments. The imagery of blood shows Lady Macbeth wants to get rid of her guilt.
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.
...(IV iii 117) is “miserable” (IV iii 118) since there is an “untitled tyrant” (IV iii 118), or Macbeth, in its midst who is undeserving of a title. Macbeth, according to Macduff, is “bloody sceptred” (IV ii 118) for his sceptre and sign of his authority as a monarch, unlike those of other rulers, is covered in blood, since he had to murder to ascend the throne. It is only when Ross brings news that Macduff’s family has been murdered (most likely by Macbeth), however, that Malcolm encourages Macduff to slay Macbeth, and Macduff agrees. Macbeth wades in the blood of his victims while Malcolm and Macduff use blood imagery to describe the violence and destruction of Scotland (first evoked by the three witches) under Macbeth’s rule.
It can also symbolize love, anger, hate, violence, devastation, or death. One small taste of blood is all it takes for everything to become chaotic. In William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the symbol of blood is sufficiently used to exhibit the overall theme of power and corruption. The symbol of blood appears to be shown through evil thoughts and death in the beginning of Macbeth.
One common aspect that every single living thing on this Earth has is blood which runs through every living organism. There is no living thing that is a stranger to blood; Its universality allows Shakespeare to use it as an impressive imagery in his literary works. Throughout the play William Shakespeare use blood imagery to indicate the character 's feelings of guilt, and always haunts their consciousness. In the result, characters feel scare, unease and terrify.
William Shakespeare's Repeated Reference to Blood to Establish the Theme of Power of Evil in Macbeth
The blood is a symbol of guilt. Lady Macbeth is overwhelmed by guilt, leading to intensive anxiety and her somnambulistic state. Moreover, Lady Macbeth is seen to do compulsive hand washing. The Gentlewoman explains to the doctor, “It is an accustomed action with her, to seem thus/washing her hands: I have known her continue in/this a quarter of an hour.” (Shakespeare.
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...
Blood symbolizes the guilt that sits like a permanent stain on the consciences of both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, one that hounds them to their graves. The Weather
The imagery of blood like Spurgeon suggests is often linked with the feeling of fear, horror, and pain (Spurgeon 126). Often time’s blood is linked to the feeling of guilt and in this case Lady Macbeth calls upon the spirits asking them to make her strong and stop the feeling of remorse. This is seen when she says: “Of direst cruelty: make thick my blood, stop up the access and passage to remorse” (Shakespeare, I.v.43-44). This quote is important because it demonstrates the use of blood to convey strength and the will to commit evil. This links with the major theme of Macbeth, showing that Lay Macbeth is asking the spirits to poison her soul allowing her ambition to take over herself. To add, in some cases symbolism of blood could be linked to regret and horror like Macbeth after he killed Duncan in his chambers. At this time Macbeth said: “With all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood clean from my hand? No; this my hand will rather the multitudinous seas incarnadine” (II.i.60-64). This quote demonstrates the regret and guilt M...