These lines are part of Macbeth’s soliloquy which is a literary device that Shakespeare uses regularly throughout the play to show the audience Macbeth’s inner most thoughts. In these lines, Macbeth begins to reveal his thoughts about killing the King. He knows this is wrong and it will destroy the natural the order that the King has. In this scene some of the plays themes become evident. One of the most important themes in the play is ambition.
It is also interesting here to note that Macbeth and Banquo react differently to the witches and their prophecies.
“The instruments of darkness tell us truths”
Here Banquo is shocked that the witches’ prophecies actually came true and show belief that during Shakespearean times, witchcraft was seen as evil and dark. Here Banquo is not blinded by his ambition like Macbeth.
In Act 1 scene 7 Macbeth struggles with his conscience. Part of him is driven by his ambition and will stop at nothing to become king, but the other part of him knows that killing the king will be against the Divine Rights. In soliloquy Macbeth reveals his innermost thoughts and the audience can see his reservations on the task of killing king. This shows a major turning point in his behaviour and at this stage he is heavily influenced by Lady Macbeth.
Again Shakespeare uses the soliloquy to show the audience Macbeth’s personal thoughts. He fears killing the king for the punishment and damnation.
“We still have judgement here that we but teach/Bloody instructions”. In Shakespearean times people would have held Christian beliefs that a crime resulted in punishment and damnation and Macbeth at this stage was held back by these beliefs.
In this soliloquy Shakespeare also uses imagery of angels and cherubim when Macbeth speaks of the great sadness of a death of such a good king.
“Striding the blast or heaven’s cherubim horsed”
These images strongly suggest that the King is linked to divine powers and Macbeth knows that there would be great unrest, sadness and revenge for an act of killing such divine power. At this point the audience can see him struggle with his conscience and his ruthless ambition.
“I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent but only vaulting ambition.”
Here Macbeth admits that he lacks motivation but has a great deal of ambition to push him forward.
At this point in the play Lady Macbeth becomes extremely important in Macbeth’s behaviour. After Macbeth’s soliloquy Lady Macbeth walks in and asks her what news she from Duncan. Macbeth tries to avoid the conversation but Lady Macbeth keeps turning the conversation back to Macbeth becoming King and does not letting him avoid the topic. Here the audience can see how calculating and powerful Lady Macbeth can be. Macbeth says he decided not to kill Duncan. Lady Macbeth calls him a coward and questions his manhood. Macbeth quickly gets offended.
“Prithee, peace. /I dare do all that may become a man”
Here Macbeth says he’s willing to prove he is a man regardless of what he must do.
Then Lady Macbeth fills his mind with evil thoughts, saying that she will make the king’s bodyguards drunk so killing the king will be easy, Macbeth applauds her.
In Act 2 scene 2 Lady Macbeth finally talks Macbeth into killing Duncan. Lady Macbeth is exhilarated by the drink. She waits for Macbeth to come back from killing Duncan. Macbeth is obsessed by his inability to say ‘Amen’, and by a voice crying that he has murdered sleep and will never sleep again.
“One cried ‘God bless us!’ and ‘Amen’ the other, /As they had seen me with these hangman’s hands. /List’ning their fear, I could not say ‘Amen’”.
In these lines Macbeth talks about his inability to say ‘Amen’ because he had blood covered hands as a result of killing Duncan. Lady Macbeth is not sympathetic towards his feelings.
“Lady Macbeth: Why did you bring these daggers from the place? They must lie there. Go carry them and smear/ The sleepy grooms with blood.
Macbeth: I’ll go no more. /I am afraid to think what I have done; Look on’t again, I dare not”
She dismisses Macbeth and orders him to return the daggers but Macbeth refuses. Lady Macbeth takes the daggers from Macbeth to smear the blood on the guards herself.
“Infirm of purpose! /Give me the daggers. The sleeping and the dead/ Are but pictures”
In these lines Lady Macbeth tells Macbeth to hand her the daggers and that the sleeping and the dead are both the same. This scene creates an eerie and daunting effect. Lady Macbeth and Macbeth’s relationship in this scene is fairly close
Before Act 3 scene 4, Macbeth develops further as he just orders the death of Banquo and Fleance and during Act 3 scene 3, Banquo is killed and Fleance escapes. Also in this scene, Macbeth is beginning to crack as he sees Banquo’s ghost. Lady Macbeth calms the Lords down as they are startled by Macbeth’s interesting behaviour.
“Avaunt and quit my sight! Let the earth hide thee! Thy bones are marrowless, thy blood is cold; /Thou hast no speculation in those eyes/Which thou dost glare with.”
In this quote, Macbeth is talking to Banquo’s ghost and telling him to leave his sight and go back to hi grave. At this point Lady Macbeth tries to cover Macbeth and tells the Lords that he always has fits and that it is a normal thing. Banquo’s ghost could be a metaphor of Macbeth’s conscience.
Clearly, conscience is one of the themes in Macbeth and Lady Macbeth goes from being the most determine to push Macbeth into killing the King to the most conscience stricken and we see it in the sleep walking scene.
“Yet here’s a spot” “Out damned spot! Out I say! One, two. Why then ‘tis time to do’t. Hell is murky. Fie, my lord, fie, a soldier, and afeard? What need we fear? Who knows it, when none can call our power to account? Yet who would have thought the old man to have had so much blood in him?” “The Thane of Fife had a wife. Where is she now? What, will these hands ne’er be clean? No more o’that, my lord no more o’that. You mar all with this starting.” “Here’s the smell of the blood still; all the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand. O, O, O.” Wash your hands, put on your night-gown, look not so pale. I tell you yet again, Banquo’s buried; he cannot come out on’s grave.” “To bed, to bed; there’s knocking at the gate. Come, come, come, come, give me your hand; what’s done is done cannot be undone. To bed, to bed, to bed.”
In this very strong female character, we can perhaps see the influence that Queen Elizabeth I had on him.
In Act 5 scene 5, we see the near end of Macbeth’s development. In this scene Macbeth is preparing for war against Malcolm and Macduff. Lady Macbeth dies and Macbeth starts to reveal his true feelings towards her.
“She should have died hereafter; / There would have been a time for such a word. /Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow/ Creeps in this petty place from day to day/To the last syllable of recorded time; /And all our yesterdays have lighted fools/The way to dusty death. Out, out brief candle,/Life’s but a walking shadow, poor player/That struts and frets his hour upon the stage/And then is heard no more. It is a tale/Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury/Signifying nothing.”
This comes from Macbeth’s world famous soliloquy which is linguistic device that Shakespeare uses. Here Macbeth is full of sorrow and he is regretting everything that he has done. He says that everyone has their “five minutes of fame” but when it is over, that person shall never be heard of again. He is also imposing that life is an elusion and that it is completely pointless.
I have attempted to trace the development of Macbeth’s character throughout the play and I have selected significant scenes that mark turning points in Macbeth’s behaviour and I have noted how these affect his relationship with Lady Macbeth. Shakespeare also creates from the beginning an atmosphere of things supernatural of a world of magic and prophecies. Above all, in this play he produces language of great poetic beauty. There are two themes, ambition and conscience.