The darkness Macbeth and Lady Macbeth created has not only impacted themselves but also the world and people around them. Banquo knows something terrible has happened due to the sky being dark and holding none of heavens stars. He soon after turns to his son and says, “Hold, take my sword. There's husbandry in heaven;/ Their candles are all out. Take thee that too./ A heavy summons 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!” (II.i.5-11). Macbeth and Lady Macbeth have cast this darkness throughout the world, and people are starting to pick up on it, such as Banquo. Also, since Banquo was with Macbeth when the three witches told their prophecies that turned Macbeth evil, he knows that this darkness has to be because of a wrongdoing done by Macbeth. …show more content…
Drunk from the night's events, the Porter soon imagines himself as the gatekeeper to hell, saying, “Here’s a knocking indeed!
If a man were/ porter of hell-gate, he should have old turning the/ key./…knock! Who’s there, in th’/ other devil’s name?/…knock!/ Never at quiet! What are you? But this place is/ too cold for hell. I’ll devil-porter it no further: I had/ thought to have let in/ some of all professions that go/ the primrose/ way to the everlasting bonfire” (II.iii.1-19). This scene holds tons of dramatic irony. The porter knows nothing about the death of King Duncan that has just happened. Because of all the sins committed within Macbeth's castle, it soon becomes the gateway to hell, making the porters drunken thoughts an actual reality. Ross and an old man have been exchanging accounts of recent unnatural happenings. Ross is telling the old man of “…th’clock ’tis day,/ And yet dark night strangles the traveling lamp./ Is ’t night’s predominance or the day’s shame/ That darkness does the face of earth entomb/ When ling should kiss it?”
(II.iv.8-12). Macbeth and Lady Macbeth have caused not only the appearance of unnatural darkness but they have also caused disorder in the universe. They have disrupted the chain of being with the darkness that has consumed them, which in its process has impacted the lives of many, such as Ross and the old man. When Macduff is trying to persuade Malcolm to come help him fight and kill Macbeth, he says, ”Not in the legions/ Of horrid hell can come a devil more damn’d/ In evils to top Macbeth” (IV.iii.67-69). This quote displays how everyone views Macbeth after the things he has done. There was no possible way that Macbeth could conceal all the sins he had committed forever. Macbeth has crossed over into the dark side, and by doing so he has inevitably created a fight between the evil, himself, and the good, Macduff’s and Malcolm’s army. In conclusion, darkness has no toll on who are what it will effect.
Which also foreshadows the death of Banquo. It is primarily because of this that most likely derived Macbeth into evil and further brought out his inner darkness.
Lady Macbeth also asks the night to come upon her and hide her by the darkest smoke of hell. She doesn’t want to be seen as she and Macbeth commit their terrible deeds. She wants the night to hide her thoughts and actions about killing Duncan while she is reading Macbeth’s letter. She says “Come, thick night, and pall thee in the dunnest smoke of hell, that my keen knife see not the wound it makes, not heaven peep through the blanket of the dark, to cry ‘Hold, hold’!” (Act I, scene v, ll.50-54).
Correspondingly, Macbeth spun in and out of control throughout the play. Macbeth says, “stars, hide your fires; let not light see my black desires” (1.4): this reveals that Macbeth is taking over the situation by following through with the murder of Duncan. It also reveals that he is somewhat reluctant to carry out this dark deed. “Banquo, thy soul’s flight, if it find heaven, must find it out tonight” (3.2). Macbeth begins to spiral down once he misplaces his morals and he decides to have Banquo
Use of Night and Darkness in Macbeth Shakespeare is known for his descriptively rich plays. He also ways does an excellent job of describing both the characters as well as the setting. One specific area of the play MacBeth is the use of night and darkness to show evil or happening that are not right. Examples of this are the many appearances of the witches, the murders that occur, and the conflicts that MacBeth faces with his mental health. The following three paragraphs will further discuss these topics.
William Shakespeare's Macbeth is an ominous tale that illustrates the danger in violating the Great Chain of Being, the hierarchy of things in God's ordered universe. The Chain ranked all of creation and human society as well. It ranked kings above nobles and nobles above the poor. When Macbeth murdered King Duncan and assumed the throne, the Chain was violated and chaos resulted. The atmosphere of the play symbolized this resulting turmoil. Specifically, light and darkness were used to exemplify the unnatural chaos and ominous tone of the work. The role of light and the role of darkness relates to the chaos resulting from the violation of the Great Chain of Being.
The natural order of the world is disrupted; this is made obvious from the start of the play. Even though they generally speak in riddle, the three witches are significant characters because of their foresight and knowledge of future atmosphere.
Throughout Macbeth there are many examples of light verses dark imagery. The lightness represents peace and the darkness represents disastrous events or death. In the beginning of the play, the character Macbeth was a friendly guy that could only hurt who deserved it. He starts out with a sense of innocence and only killed traitors of the king. But, later she becomes desirous and in order to take King Duncan’s place he murders him. This was the turning point for him and he became a killing machine. Lady Macbeth started as a character of darkness; she yearned for power and did not want to express any emotion. Later on she became guilty and started sleep walking and she committed suicide. In the beginning of the play all of the murderers were committed with a sense of darkness. However, this changes once three murderers kill Banquo in presence of lightness.
If a picture tells a thousand words, than imagine the importance of an image upon a play such as Macbeth. In any literary work, it is extremely important that the author can effectively manipulate a reader's feelings towards a character. In Macbeth, that feat is accomplished magnificently by Shakespeare. Through his skillful use of imagery, Shakespeare shows us a deeper look into the true character of Macbeth. Though imagery is widespread throughout Macbeth, it is most dominant in clothing imagery, light and darkness imagery, and blood imagery. Through these images,
In the Shakespearean play “Macbeth”, the tragic hero, Macbeth is a noblemen and a brave and loyal soldier who serves his country proudly. Under the influence of his wife and the witches, Macbeth becomes greedy kills King Duncan therefore breaking the Great Chain of Being. The Great Chain of Being breaking upsets God and as a result, chaos ensues in the kingdom as well as a series of unnatural events taking place in the world. The morning after Duncan’s death, Macbeth’s kingdom is filled with chaos. Midst all the disorder Lady Macbeth faints as she screams “help me hence, ho!” (II, iii, 120). Following Duncan’s death, Inverness is consumed by disorder, everyone is confused, shocked and unsure. However, despite the disarray, Lady Macbeth fainting
This theme is further verified by King Duncan's statement "There's no art/ To find the mind's construction in the face..." (Act 1, Scene 4, Lines 11-12) Although Macbeth has the semblance of the amicable and dutiful host, ("fair") he is secretly plotting Duncan's death ("foul"). Furthermore, Lady Macbeth's orchestration of the murder exemplifies the twisted atmosphere in Inverness. Both a woman and a host, she should be the model of grace and femininity. She is described, however, as a "fiendlike queen" (Act 5, Scene 6, Line 69) and exhibits a cold, calculating mentality. In addition, the very porter of Inverness likens the place to the dwelling of the devil Beelzebub. This implies that despite its "pleasant seat," (Act 1, Scene 6, Line 1) Inverness is a sinister and evil place. It is also interesting to note that Macbeth is unable to say a prayer to bless himself after murdering Duncan. It is strange and "foul" that he should think of religion after committing such an unholy act. The very sanction of sleep and repose is also attacked in Macbeth. What is normally considered a refreshing and necessary human activity is "murdered" by Macbeth after he commits his heinous crime. Neither Macbeth nor his wife is able to sleep after killing Duncan. Macbeth's lack of sleep makes him a brutal killer; Lady Macbeth begins to sleepwalk and inadvertently reveals the source of her distress through her nightly babble.
Stars hide your fires! Let not light see my black and deep desires.” (I, v, 49 – 52). The words ‘black and deep desires’ relate to Macbeth’s evil desire and the vaulting ambition shown to be present in him. This first sign of Macbeth’s evil nature is shown in this scene as he slowly begins to open up and show the real man he is.
The play "Macbeth" by Shakespeare is jam-packed with malfeasance and darkness. All actions taken by Macbeth, his wife, Lady Macbeth, the witches and Hecate have immoral intentions and/or evil outcomes. An example of such is Lady Macbeth’s dark intentions to quicken Macbeth’s crowning, fuelled Macbeth’s "vaulting ambition[s]" (Act 1 scene 7 line 27) to murder anyone or anything that stood in his path of a long reign.
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,
There are many symbols used in Macbeth that help us to better understand the play. In the following paragraphs I will explain them in depth. There are four symbols that I will discuss below, they are light and darkness it represents the good and bad things that take place throughout the play. The second symbolism is blood. The blood represents murder and guilt like the blood on the dagger and the blood on Lady Macbeth's hand. The weather represents the different tragedies that take place and another symbolism is the dead children.
In Macbeth there are many examples of light verses dark imagery. In Macbeth light is represents peace. Darkness represents horrible events or death. In the beginning of the play Macbeth started out as a friendly guy that would not kill someone who does not deserve it. He started out in light by killing the traitors to the king. Later on in the play he becomes greedy and kills King Duncan to take his place. Once he kills Duncan he turns into this killing machine. Lady Macbeth started out the play on in the dark side, she wanted to have no feeling for anything that she did, and she just wanted power. Later on she became guilty and started sleep walking; she became insane and committed suicide. In the beginning of the play all of the murders were committed in darkness. This changes once the three murders kill Banquo, he is killed in torch light.