In Shakespeare’s play Macbeth guilt strongly affects Macbeth and Lady Macbeth as it is shown through the emotions, the murder and the suicide. The changes of Macbeth’s emotions demonstrates how guilt develop within him. Through Macbeth aggressiveness he demonstrates the cause of his guilt. Macbeth, no longer acts like his past self, and violently kills Duncan. This betrayal that he demonstrates,
In The Tragedy of Macbeth, guilt plays an immense role in the lives of Macbeth and his Queen; guilt is the single attribute that pushes them to the edge and tests their sanity. William Shakespeare uses vivid imagery to accentuate the guilt that Macbeth and his Queen
The recurrent “unclean hands” motif establishes the torturous and debilitating feeling of guilt that stains ones soul and conscience after having committed an evil act. These feelings of guilt plague Macbeth throughout the story and slowly drive him mad following his horrifyingly immoral murder of King Duncan. Shortly after completing the heinous act, Macbeth shouts, “Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood/ Clean from my hand?” (Macbeth 2.2.78-9) while removing Duncan’s blood from his hands. Although Macbeth succeeds in ridding himself of the actual evidence, he fails to remove the permanent mark left on his conscience that haunts him until his death. Lady Macbeth also portrays the “unclean hands” motif through her actions when she suddenly beings sleepwalking and gesturing with her hands as if she is washing them.
Why does this sturdy soldier become a mean killer and, worse, a hirer of thugs to do his killing for him even when he himself acknowledges that his actions are sure to bring retribution upon him? Why does Lady Macbeth feel it is in her duty as a ‘loving’ wife to drive them both into evil ways? And why do so many good men allow this vicious couple to gain total power and ruin the state of Scotland? Some aspects of the Macbeth story have become horribly familiar in our world today. Several modern rulers (from everyday fathers to leaders of the country) have begun as ‘brave soldiers’ and ended as crazy destroyers because of their poor choices and the consequences.
The guards already look guilty with the bloody daggers. Macbeth kills them out of hurt. Duncan’s two sons leave right away, they don’t want to be murdered next. Act III: Banquo is becoming a problem for Macbeth. He suspects Macbeth of the murder of Duncan.
Shakespeare’s Hamlet has and intricate plot formed by the characters and themes throughout it. One major idea is Hamlet’s changing sanity, which fluctuates through the play as a performance and as a true madness. The other main theme which develops the play is the act of vengeance, with the delay and doubt that accompanies it. These themes, along with dramatic devices and the characters in the plot, add to the textual integrity of the play. There is a duality to the character of Hamlet, as his madness changes from a performance to true insanity throughout the play.
He is a merciless king who kills all in his path to the throne of Scotland; this ambition leads to unnecessary violence towards others. At the beginning of the play, Macbeth is a courageous, battle proven hero. During the opening scenes of the play, the audience has no idea that such a change of character could happen. Macbeth is convinced into his first murder, being King Duncan, by his wife, Lady Macbeth. The devil, or the evil spirits, take up many disguises, one of which is through Lady Macbeth.
This means that Macduff will go after Macbeth for revenge after Macbeth killed his family. His sword represents his anger, and “bloodier villain” represents a dead man walking, Macbeth. He is the bloody villain that Macduff refers to in the quote. Blood represents life when Macduff was born. He was ripped out of his mothers womb.
Macbeth now kills without thinking or lifting a hair on his arm. This is clear in Act 4 scene 2 when Macbeth sends for the murder of Lady Macduff and her son. This marks the moment of Macbeth’s utter madness, he no longer is killing for political gain or to get rid of an enemy, but simply out of the desire to do harm and evil. However, Lady Macbeth’s guilt drives her to utter madness in a different direction. She now sleepwalks and always has a delusional belief that she has blood on her hands.
Observing the juxtaposition in these two scenes with Polanski’s Macbeth with the influence of the witches, Lady Macbeth, and Macbeth’s role of ambition and his weaknesses. In Shakespeare, Macbeth is interpreted as being intrusive with evil as he and Lady Macbeth both make deliberate choices to do evil deeds. As a victim of fate Macbeth is deemed to some extent not accountable for his actions, but as a victim of his own actions, Shakespeare makes him subjective to the consequences by his own behaviour. Firstly, In Shakespeare’s version of Macbeth is delineated as a victim of his own actions, with his overpowering ambition and tendency to self-doubt. This is identified in Act Two, Scene Two where Macbeth converses with Lady Macbeth about the death of Duncan.