Many more beliefs about witchcraft are revealed in the rest of the scene, in Lady Macbeth’s soliloquies. . In her first soliloquy she says ‘that I may pour my spirits in thine ear’ which shows the belief that witches were able to influence people’s thoughts. Parts of her second soliloquy in the scene seem to be an incantation or spell. Her words ‘come you spirits, who tend on mortal thoughts’ show that witches could conjure up spirits to do their bidding, ‘come to my woman’s breasts’ is a reference to the Jacobean’s idea that witches were usually women, and also shows the belief that witches suckled their familiars, and ‘Come thick night, And pall thee in the dunnest smoke of hell’ shows that witches were believed to be able to control the weather. All these are also confirmed in the rest of the play – in the first scene, when the first witch says ‘In thunder, lightening or in rain’ the belief about controlling the weather is revealed, and many other beliefs about witches are illustrated in the rest of the play. These all helped to keep the attention and interest of a Jacobean audience, as they were relevant issues.
The way in which all the beliefs about witches are presented in Act 1 Scene 5 would have suggested to a Jacobean audience that Lady Macbeth herself was or could be a witch. Almost of them are shown in her soliloquies, which seem to be incantations or spells, such as a witch would use. They are revealed as what she is planning to use, or what she is asking for. All this, and the control that she seems to have over Macbeth, would have suggested to a Jacobean audience that she was a witch. This is also supported in the rest of the play, for example in Act 5 Scene 1, her words ‘Out damned spot!’ would insinuate to a Jacobean audience that the spot could be a mark where Satan had sucked her blood, another of their beliefs about witches. There is also evidence to suggest that Macbeth could be possessed. Twice in the play, before Act 1 Scene 5, he is referred to as rapt – ‘Look how our partner’s rapt’, which in Jacobean times meant spellbound, or possessed. Also, after he has killed Duncan, later in the play, he is unable to say ‘Amen’, which was seen by Jacobeans as a sign of being possessed.
In the scene, Lady Macbeth uses a lot of symbolism and imagery. All of it would have been understood by a Jacobean audience, as they would all have been superstitious. A lot of the imagery in the scene is linked to darkness and evil. References to darkness were particularly important as the play would have been seen in mid-afternoon, so any night-time or darkness in the play would have had to be represented by what the actors said. It was also a link to evil, an important theme of the play. This means that Shakespeare often makes actors refer to darkness. When Lady Macbeth says ‘Nor heaven peep through the blanket of the dark’ her words signify both darkness and evil, as heaven and good will be blocked out. Animal symbolism is also used a lot in the scene and in the play, because it was important to Jacobeans. Different animals were seen to symbolise different things. Shakespeare uses this as another technique to keep the audience’s attention and interest. Two examples of this in Act 1 Scene 5 are when Lady Macbeth says ‘The raven himself is hoarse’, and when she is speaking to Macbeth and tells him to ‘Look like the innocent flower, But be the serpent under’t.’ The serpent was seen to be a symbol of evil and treachery, due to its part in Genesis in the Bible. This bible allusion would have been important, as religion was also a significant part of Jacobean life.
This quote – ‘Look like the innocent flower, But be the serpent under’t’ is also a reference to the gunpowder plot, an event that was contemporary with the play. After the gunpowder plot was discovered, a medal was struck to commemorate King James’s escape. It showed a serpent concealed by flowers. This would have been recognised by a Jacobean audience, as the gunpowder plot and the medal were very well known current issues, and would have helped to maintain their interest in the play. Earlier in the play, in Act 1 Scene 3, there is also a mention of the ship the Tiger – ‘Her husband’s to Aleppo gone, master o’the’Tiger’. The Tiger had a disaster struck voyage of 567 days, at around the time that ‘Macbeth’ was written. Shakespeare mentions this voyage in some detail, attributing it in the play to the curses of the witches. He even mentions the length of the voyage – ‘Weary sennights nine times nine’. These ideas about the voyage of the Tiger would have interested a Jacobean audience, and it’s being attributed to witches would have especially pleased King James, whose interest in witchcraft was partly due to the fact that he thought witches had tried to drown him at sea. The references to old Kings of Scotland in the play would also have interested him, as he was King of both Scotland and England. The idea that Duncan, who was probably his ancestor, was a good King, would have appealed to him. The whole play, showing what happens if a King was killed, would have also pleased him, as it shows how bad things would have been if the gunpowder plot had been successful.
Two other techniques used by Shakespeare in the play to keep the audiences interest and attention are ambiguous language and puns. These would all have been picked up upon by a Jacobean audience and would have enhanced there interest in and enjoyment of the play. In Act One Scene 5, there are two puns in the second of Lady Macbeth’s soliloquies. When she says ‘And fill me from the crown to the toe topfull’ she uses the word crown to mean both the top of her head and a crown that a queen would wear, indicating her aspirations. When she says ‘That my keen knife see not the wound it makes’, the word keen means both eager and sharp. There is also a lot of ambiguous language in the scene. Lady Macbeth uses it to disguise her true meaning when she is speaking to Macbeth. When she speaks of ‘This night’s great business’ she could be referring to the feast, or her plan to kill the king, and her words ‘He that is coming Must be provided for’ could mean that he (the king) must be fed and cared for, or that he must be killed.
Ambiguity is an on running theme throughout the play. The play has many themes, which would have helped a Jacobean audience to understand the play, and would also have made them enjoy it more. Many of the themes were also important issues in Jacobean times. The themes of the play include the supernatural, which is a major theme, ambition – ‘I have no spur To prick the sides of my intent, but only Vaulting ambition’, violence, guilt or conscience – ‘whose horrid image doth unfix my hair’, and antithesis – ‘Fair is foul and foul is fair’. Antithesis – the juxtaposition of opposites - is one of the most important themes in ‘Macbeth’. It comprises order and disorder, good and evil, appearance and reality, and darkness and light, all of which are important themes in their own right. It creates contrast in the play, and this use of antithesis would have been very important in keeping the interest of and entertaining a Jacobean audience. Shakespeare’s use of language helps to emphasise all these themes.
In Act 1 Scene 5, soliloquy is used to let the audience know Lady Macbeth’s true feelings and ambitions. Soliloquy is used throughout the play to link a character with the audience, creating tension, suspense and dramatic irony. Dramatic irony – when the audience know something that a character does not - is also very important throughout the play. In Act 1 Scene 5, when Lady Macbeth is planning to kill the King, the audience knows that the King will be staying at her castle that night, but she does not, and is shocked when she is told – ‘Thou’rt mad to say it.’
In my opinion, Shakespeare effectively creates dramatic impact in Act 1 Scene 5 of Macbeth. I think that this impact would have been particularly pronounced on a contemporary Jacobean audience. Shakespeare uses a wide range of techniques, all of which are used successfully. The scene, and the play, would have appealed to and interested all of a Jacobean audience, from the King downwards, because of these techniques and the dramatic impact they create.
