Macbeth

Sleep Motifs in Macbeth

(“O, full of scorpions is my mind” is one of the most powerful passages ever written by William Shakespeare (Shakespeare 3.2.37). Shakespeare, here, uses the motif and imagery of sleep in Macbeth. In this play, the motif of ‘sleep’ can be noticed everywhere in the play, making it a significant part of the play. It was first introduced by the witches’ curse on the sailor, which foreshadows the insomnia experienced by characters later in the play:

I will drain him dry as hay;

Sleep shall neither night nor day

Hang upon his pent-house lid.

He shall live a man forbid (Shakespeare 1.3.19-22).)

(Traditionally, the motif itself symbolized calm and peace of mind; if a person is unable to sleep, they usually have a troubled and tortured psychological state. This idea is adapted by Shakespeare to demonstrate and associate the unrest suffered by many important characters in Macbeth.) (For instance, Banquo cannot sleep due to the prophecy of the witches; Lady Macbeth sleepwalks because she is ridden with guilt; Macbeth, who was the probably the greatest example developed by the renowned playwright, has a variety of reasons as the play moves on to why he cannot sleeps.)

(Banquo is a character presented by Shakespeare with the motif of sleep. His head was full of distressed feelings that it impacts his quality of sleep.)(On the night of the murder of King Duncan, although Banquo feels weary and drowsy, he cannot seem to sleep:

A heavy summon lies like lead upon me,

And yet I would not sleep. Merciful powers,

Restrain in me the cursed thoughts that nature

Gives way to in repose! (Shakespeare 2.1.8-11)

In these lines, Banquo show that he is having nightmares and was greatly troubled but he did not mention what...

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...t the play. He had many reasons as to why he could not sleep, but the one that affects him the most was his guilt toward murdering Duncan.)

(In this play, there are many main characters that are unable to sleep because of their uneasy mental state: Banquo is dreaming of the witches’ prophecy; Lady Macbeth is sleepwalking due to her overwhelming guilt; Macbeth is not able to sleep because of several issues he had faced.) (In the world of Macbeth, the motif of sleep was mostly associated with guilt and fear. As the characters experience these things, they were usually restless to show the extent of their guilt and fear.) (Sleeping, as we know, is one of the most basic and natural thing human beings have to do in order to survive. Only with applying this concept to Macbeth, can we fully understand the horror of inability to sleep suffered by characters in the play.)