Macbeth Imagery Essay, Research Paper
In all of Shakespeare’s plays he uses many forms of imagery.
Imagery, the art of making images, the products of imagination. In the play
‘Macbeth’ Shakespeare applies the imagery of clothing, darkness and blood.
(listed from least to most), Each detail is his imagery, it seems to contain an
important symbol of the play. Symbols that the reader must understand if they
are to interpret either the passage or the play as a whole. Within the play
‘Macbeth’ the imagery of clothing portrays that Macbeth is seeking to hide his
"disgraceful self" from his eyes and others. Shakespeare wants to
keep alive the ironical contrast between the wretched creature that Macbeth
really is and the disguises he assumes to conceal the fact. In opinion, the
reader thinks of the play honours as garments to be worn; likewise, Macbeth is
constantly represented symbolically as the wearer of robes not belonging to
him. He is wearing an undeserved dignity, which is a crucial point that
Shakespeare has made. The description of the purpose of clothing in Macbeth is
the fact that these garments are not his. Therefore, Macbeth is uncomfortable
in them because he is continually conscious of the fact that they do not belong
to him. In the following passage, the idea constantly recurs that Macbeth’s new
honours sit ill upon him, like loose and badly fitting garments, belonging to
someone else: "New honours come upon him,
Like our strange garments, cleave not to their mould, But with the aid of
use."(Act I, iii: 144) The second form used to add to the atmosphere, the imagery
of darkness. In a Shakespearean tragedy, we have known him to create a special
tone, or atmosphere to show the darkness in a tragedy. In ‘Macbeth’,
Shakespeare draws upon the design of the witches, the guilt in Macbeth’s soul,
and the darkness of the night to establish the atmosphere. All of the
remarkable scenes take place at night or in some dark spot; for instance, the
vision of the dagger, the murder of Duncan, the Murder of Banquo, and Lady
Macbeth’s sleep walking. Darkness is the time when the traveller hastens to
reach safety in his inn, when Banquo rides homeward to meet his assassins;
furthermore, it is the time when the wolf howls, the owl screams, and when
murder steals forth to his work. In ‘Macbeth’ darkness symbolises many things.
First, and most important, it stands for the evil and death in the play. The
darkness could partially blind out all of the horrible things that occur in the
night. For, only in darkness can such evil deeds be done. Secondly, the
darkness shows one of Lady Macbeth’s weaknesses: her fear of dark. In the play,
phrases of fear escape from lips even in her sleep. She believes darkness to be
the place of torment. Within the whole drama, the sun seems to shine only
twice. First, in the beautiful but ironical passage when Duncan sees the
swallows flirting round the castle of death. Another time, when at the close of
the avenging army gathers to rid the earth of its shame. Therefore, the reader
can conclude that Shakespeare portrays darkness to establish the evil parts of
the play; whereas, we employ daylight to define victory or goodness in the
play. We have known blood to all of us to represent life, death and often
injury. Blood is an essential part of life and without blood, we could not
live. This is known to everyone, and because of this, when Shakespeare uses the
imagery of blood to represent treason, guilt, murder and death. We have easily
understood it and fits in perfectly with the ideas we have of blood. Therefore,
this essay weighs blood to the most important imagery of Shakespeare’s play
‘Macbeth’. Shakespeare mentions the word blood, or dif
in the play. Forty-two times to be exact (ironically, the word fear also is
used the same amount), with several other passages dealing with imagery.
Perhaps the best way to describe how the image of blood changes throughout the
play, by following the character changes in Macbeth. First, he is a brave
honoured soldier, but as the play progresses, he becomes identified with death
and bloodshed, along with showing his guilt in different forms. The first
sinister reference to blood is one of honour, showed in Act I scene ii. This
occurs when Duncan sees the injured sergeant and says: "What bloody man is
that?". This is symbolic of the brave fighter who has been injured
in a valiant battle for his country. In the next passage, in which the sergeant
says: "Which smok’d with bloody
execution," He is referring to Macbeth’s braveness in which he covers
his sword in the hot blood of the enemy. Act II, Scene ii. The symbol of blood
now changes to show a form of treachery and treason. Lady Macbeth starts this
off when she asks the spirits to "Make thick my blood." What she is
saying by this, is that she wants to make herself insensitive and remorseless
for the deeds that she is about to commit. Lady Macbeth knows that the evidence
of blood is a treacherous symbol, and knows it will deflect the guilt from her
and Macbeth to the servants when she says: "Smear the sleepy grooms with blood.", and
"If he do bleed, I’ll gild the faces of the grooms withal, for it must
seem their guilt." Act V, Scene i – Lady Macbeth shows the most vivid example
of guilt with the use of the imagery of blood, in the scene that she walks in
her sleep. She says: "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 out power to account? Yet who have
thought the old man to have had so much blood in him?" All these references in the quotation are to murder and both
include direct references to blood, again linking blood to treachery and
murder. Yet, this speech represents the fact that she cannot wipe the
bloodstains of Duncan off her hand. It is ironic that she says this, because
right after the murder, when Macbeth was feeling guilty, she said: "A little water clears us of
this deed." When the doctor of the castle finds out about this
sleepwalking, he tells Macbeth, "As she is troubled with thick-coming
fantasies," meaning that Lady Macbeth is having dreams that deal with
blood. Macbeth knows deep in his mind she is having troubles with her guilt,
but does not say anything about it. Act V, Scene viii – just before the ending
of the play, Macbeth has Macduff at his mercy, and lets him go, because of his
guilt. He shows that he is guilty, when he says "But get thee back, my
soul is too much charg’d with blood of thine already." Of which, Macduff
Replies, "I have no words, my voice is in my sword, thou bloodier villain
than terms can give thee out." After the death of Macbeth at the hands of
Macduff, the imagery of blood swings back to what it was at the beginning of
the play. But, it is the honour of Malcolm this time. The death of Macbeth is
honoured achievement that they congratulate Macduff for. So as we have seen the
imagery of blood change from honour to treachery, and then to guilt. After, it
returns to honour again after the villain that changed the imagery of blood
from honour to tyranny is killed. Due to these many changes, we have proved
that the imagery of blood has many different forms that we can attribute to it
during the play. Therefore, blood is the main imagery notion.