Here are your questions for the second blog post, which is due by Sunday morning. As we have no school on Friday, you get an extra day to work on it, so should have it completed in time. The same rules apply: around 100 words or more, include citations in your argument, and reference to the text. Also, be sure to have a clear topic sentence, and a strong final sentence to conclude your paragraph. Finally, there were many typos in the first blog posts, so be sure to proof read. Please DO NOT include your name here--only your student number. Thank you,
Any questions can be directed to smcmeek@uvic.ca
Questions:
1) Do you think Lady Macbeth is beginning to break down? Are there any signs of weakness in Act II that would make you think this? (Hint: there are at least 3 examples that could be seen as signs of weakness).
2) Discuss the images of darkness in the play. Why was it appropriate that Duncan was murdered at night?
3) Discuss Banquo's character. What type of a person is he? Why would Shakespeare have protrayed him in this way? Use lines of Banquo's speeches to support your answer.
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In Act one Lady Macbeth is seen as a very strong, self assured character; a pillar that weighs on Macbeth's conscious as he decides to murder. This image begins to waver in scene two, in which three definite instances of weakness on the Ladies part occur. The first is her own failure to murder Duncan, as the king's sleeping figure too strongly resembled her father. This decision shows the first time which she does not take her own advice, and thinks too much on her actions. The second instance of weakness is found when she states, "That which hath made them drunk hath made me brave" (act2,scene2,lines1-2). This quote shows that she had been drinking along with the drunk guards. Her need to consume alcohol to feel "brave" enough to commit murder is another indication of her wavering strength of mind. Lastly, the audience hears her doubt in the success of her plan when she says, "Alack! I am afraid they have awak'd" (act2,scene2,line10). This last quote shows that she is unsure of their success, despite the confidence with which she assured Macbeth in the last act of their accomplishment. These three examples illustrate Lady Macbeth's growing weakness of mind, and foreshadow a not so distant breakdown.
112253(G)answered #1:
Through the reading of Act II, one may concede that Lady Macbeth’s character is beginning to break down. When the time comes for Duncan to be murdered, Lady Macbeth shows her first sign of weakness by not committing the crime herself. She was the first to arrive at Duncan’s chambers, but she claims to have seen too much of her own father in Duncan as he slept to follow through on her plans. Her line, “had he not resembled my father as he slept, I had done’t,” marks the beginning of Lady Macbeth’s unravel. Her other doubts of Macbeth’s success in murdering Duncan show that her certainty is running low. “I am afraid they have awak’d. And ‘tis not done; the attempt and not the deed confounds us.” Her feelings are shown clearly in this line in that her husband’s failure would ruin the both of them. Worry is edging into her previously confident thoughts. After Duncan’s murder, Lady Macbeth tells her husband not to look back on their crimes as it will drive the both of them mad. “These deeds must not be thought, after these ways; so, it will make us mad.” This line shows not only Lady Macbeth’s compassion for her husband’s sanity, but also her own weakness of giving in to insanity. Act II may foreshadow Lady Macbeth’s breakdown, but it is clear that she is still the driving force between herself and Macbeth.
73397 Blk A
Question #1
In Act I, Lady Macbeth is portrayed as a strong independent woman, showing no signs of uncertainty about herself. Entering Act II, her weakness comes into play and she begins to break down. It starts with the murder of Duncun where she cannot commit the crime herself. "Had he not resembled My father as he slept, I had done't", this line shows her first sign of weakness. "That which hath made them drunk hath made me brave". This quote presents Lady Macbeth's second weakness as to which she needs to drink alcohol to feel brave enough to murder someone. Lastly, "Alack! I am afraid they have awak'd" shows that Lady Macbeth is much more insecure about their success towards the murder. Where as before, she was confident and had no regrets. Even though Lady Macbeth has weaknesses, she is still the strong leader between her and Macbeth.
79609 (Blk G) #2
Banquo is portrade as a very loyal and supportive fighter for the king. Banquo has a very clean mind and will do nothing which will make it harder for him to sleep at night." So I lose none in seeking to augment it, but still keep my bosom franchis'd and allegiance clear, i shall be counsell'd" line 26. This in when Banquo tells Macbeth he will help in what ever Macbeth needs as long as it is loyal to the king and is the right thing to do. Shakespeare portrade Banquo in this was because he made the play for a king who was a direct desendant of the real life Banquo. Shakespeare woulod have made Banquos' character look appealing for that reason.
72092
Block A
Question #1
Throughout the first act, Lady Macbeth proves herself to be a manipulative and powerful woman, however during the second act, her strength begins to diminish signalling that she may be on the verge of a breakdown. Three examples of her decline are her reliance on alcohol, her questioning the success of her mission and her inability to kill Duncan. At the beginning of scene two Lady Macbeth states “that which hath made them drunk hath made me bold” giving the reader the impression that she required the backup strength and assurance that alcohol provides to complete her plan. Apparently, the consumption of alcohol did not exactly help maintain her strength as she is nervous and tense, fearing discovery and failure. An example of this doubt is her line “ Alack! I am afraid they have awak’d” showing her fear that Macbeth was caught committing the murder. The strongest example of her lack of conviction is her inability to murder Duncan. “ Had he not resembled my father as he slept, I had done’t” was her excuse for her fault, but this is the first obvious sign of a breakdown. Lady Macbeth started this story with a great deal of conviction and vitality, but throughout the second act her wavering stability foretells a complete mental and physical breakdown.
72167 (g)
Images of darkness depict the uncertainty between the characters as well as the suspense of a murder. When Duncan is murdered the play becomes even darker, starting with talk of a screeching owl, following with lady Macbeth and Macbeth discussing the guilt and blood that the murder had caused. It is important that Duncan was murdered at night because the castle would be sleeping and the guards, drunk. It is also essential that the murder take place at night because darkness could be used as an image of death and murder.
111313
Question 1)
There is much evidence to support the idea that Lady Macbeth is beginning to break down in Act 2. In act 1 she was the driving force behind Macbeth's ambition. In act 2 though, we can see that the roles between Macbeth and his wife are beginning to switch, although they have not switched completely yet. Even though Lady macbeth said that she would do the murder for her husband, she could not follow through with the deed due to the old kings resemblance to her father. "Had he not resembled
My father as he slept, I had done't." This is strong evedince supporting her weakness. Still, she has some sence about her, and tells Macbeth to go wash his hands and give the gaurds the daggers. This shows that she is not completly broken yet.
72385(G)
In Act one lady Macbeth is a character that backs up Macbeth's weaknesses. Her strength and self confidence begins to waver in act 2. The three events of weakness all occur around the killing of Duncan. The first is when she fails to kill Duncan herself because his sleeping looked like her own father. The second instance of weakness was when she "hath made them drunk hath make me brave." (I,ii,1-2) this is when she consumed alcohol along with the guards. This could have been just so that she could prove that the wine was not drugged, even though it was. But it also could have been a sign that she was unsure of the plan and that she needed to feel better. The third and final example of weakness, was when she has doubt in the very plan that she designed. when she hears movement she is "afraid they have awak'd" (II,ii,10). this is because she is unsure of her or Macbeth's success in carrying out the plan. Together these three examples show that her character is cracking, and that a complete change is not far off.
73776 G
number one
Lady Macbeth is beginning to break down in act 2. In act 1 she is strong headed about killing Duncan and has no hesitation but in act 2 she shows hesitation in a few ways. Number one she says he reminds her of her father to much to kill him. Number two is when she says the reason she has courage to kill Duncan and is not backing out is she had been drinking with the guards, "That which hath made them drunk hath made me brave". The third reason is she shows unsureness of their success, when in act 1 when she was sure of her self she was reassuring Macbeth they are successful. These reasons are all examples of sings Lady Macbeth is awaiting a breakdown.
119577 (G)
Question 2
The opening dialogue sets Scene1 in Act2. It is past midnight, the moon has set, and the stars cannot be seen. Symbolically, the airy lightness that greeted Duncan's arrival at the castle in Act1 has completely vanished to be replaced by brooding darkness.
It is appropriate that Duncan is murdered at this night because Shakespeare wanted to create a fearful atomosphere and also wanted to tell tha readers that this awful killing will continue. It can be say that Duncan's murder is a peg to hang the murders that will be happen in later Acts.
73319 BLOCK A
QUESTION ONE
Previously portrayed as brave, self assured, determined and cruel, Lady Macbeth revieled her sensitive side in Act II. The character change has displayed the one drawback to Lady Macbeth. As seen in scene two, " That which hath made them drunk hath made me brave", shows a weaker side to Lady Macbeth because she needed the help of alcohol to heighten her bravery and continue with the thought-out plan. Another example of Lady Macbeths crumbling character, would be the fact that even after drinking, she couldn't kill the King. She was unable to kill him because he reminded her of her father, sleeping soundlessly. She couldn't continue any farther, so she made sure Macbeth would commit the crime. At this point, she has made a distinctive change to her usual sneaky character. However, she quickly transforms back to her cruel form, when she assures Macbeth, who was frightened and sinned, what's done is done, and to stop fretting over the crime. She volunteers to go smear the blood on the guards, while Macbeth goes and cleans off the blood. Lady Macbeth is still the one with the assured mindset,unlike Macbeth, but her character has shown significant changes and it wouldn't be surprising to see her character crumble later on in the story.
72079
Question #3
Throughout Macbeth Banquo is a very strong, loyal character. He is portrayed in such a way that we really like him and respect him. This was done because the play itself was written for King James and it is said that the line of Kings that Banquo is to father includes King James, so it is fitting that Shakespeare would want to please the King by making his ancestor one of the most honest, loyal and respectable characters. Within Act II there are various quotes to support this, they express that Banquo is willing to do almost anything but nothing that would tarnish his honour or go against his moral values. This was all done to please the King that they play was written for so the character of Banquo probably won’t change much throughout the play unlike other characters whom are not “made” for someone.
79506
Blk. A
In act two there is definite evidence that Lady Macbeth is breaking down including her temporary role reversal with Macbeth, her anxiety before the murder of Ducan and her inability to kill Duncan. The end of scene one and the beginning of scene two reprsent a reversal of Macbeth's and Lady Macbeths roles in the story. The usually unsure Macbeth is by the end of scene one very ready for murder. We know he is ready when he says "I go and it is done, the bell invites me" (scene1 line62). Meanwhile the bell ringer, Lady Macbeth is worried, when Macbeth arrives after murdering the king she says anxiously ",I am afraid they have awaked and 'tis not done;"(Scene2 line10). Before this and indeed before the murder is done she is scared out of her wits. She proves this herself when she has been drinking to hide her fears "What hath quench'd them(the grooms)hath given me fire,"(scene2 line2).The drink ,however only seems to put her on edge being startled by the owl that marks Duncans death "it was the owl that shriek'd the fatal bellman"(scene2 line3). Despite all this it is not Lady Macbeth's fear that reveals her breakdown it is her humanity. Lady Macbeth's inability to kill Duncan stems not from fear but is because while asleep Duncan resembles Lady Macbeth's father"Had he not resembled my father as he slept..." this line is certainly a surprise to the reader who has been shown a heartless woman throughout the story. In act 2 Lady Macbeth shows many cracks in her armour but is fearfull aprehension and inablility to kill Duncan a passing thing or is there further breakdown to come.
111141 (a)
Banquo is an honourable character. He will not break the law to achieve anything, but believes in the law and is loyal to his ruler. Shakespeare shows him as this type of character to show him as the one that is pure, and will not be tempted to sway to be doing any evil. "Against the undivulg'd pretence i fight Of treason malice," (act2, scene4, lines 136-137) this speach show banquo unsurpassed loyalty to the king. He is a man whos intergrity will never waver.
113240
Question #2
Darkness imagery plays a large roll in setting the mood for the play. Firstly, Macbeth is meant to be a tragic hero in this play, and so he must cause a tragedy. The darkness imagery surrounding the murder of Duncan (“…by the clock ‘tis day, and yet dark night strangles the traveling lamp…”) gives the act the impression of being against nature itself. Second, almost everything is more demonic and dismal during the night but because the play would be performed outdoors Shakespeare would need to remind the audience that this part of the play takes place at night. He does this by including darkness imagery to spark the audience’s imagination. The darkness imagery sets the mood for the play and makes certain events seem more tragic.
Question#1
Block: A
In Act 1 Lady Macbeth lady Macbeth is a very strong and indepented lady who finds herself convincing Macbeth into doing stuff he is unsure about doing and she is never uncertain of herself. In Act 2 of Macbeth she starts to show a bit of weakness and one example of this is when she is going to murder Duncan but she cannot commited the crime becuase she thinks Duncan looks like her father when she is sleeping. "Had he not resembled My father as he slept, I had done't" Then she starts talking about as she drinks achol she gets drunk therfore she thinks she is more brave and aware of her murdering Duncan. Lady Macbeth was very confident in her and Macbeth murdering Duncan but as the story goes on she is weak but i think she is still stronger then Macbeth in a way.
Dylan Foster- Virtue
Block:A
72502 (G)
question #3
Shakespear was appointed to make a play depicting the history of king james IV who became james I of england, and Banquo plays a major role in this fictional history. First of all banquo is portayed as the protagonist in this tragedy. He is a loyal and trustworthy kinsman to Duncan. second of all, as a friend of macbeth helps forshadow macbeth's evil intentions. In act 2 secne 1 banquo and fleance are approached in the night by macbeth, banquo not knowing who it is says "give me my sword,-who is there?". third banquo's future predicted by the witches portrays him not becoming king, but fathering a whole generation of kings. banquo dimisses this, as he believes it was a dream (macbeth on the other hand lies to banquo by agreeing that it must have been a dream). as Shakespear dedicating this play as history for king James I intends for banquo to be the great, great, great... grandfather of king James I of england.
78031 (Blk A)#2
Darkness is neede in this scence of the play to show the murder as well as the suspicion between the characters. With the murder being comitted at night it adds to the evil that is being done. Also the everyone in the castle would be a sleep, so no one would know who did it. The darkness also depicts the suspicion between all the characters.
113112
block A
#1
In the end os act one lady macbeth is so shure that the plan will work, whith out any falt. as we start to get in to act two we shatr to get the idea that she is not so shure about it.when lady macbeth is about to kill the king she cant do it because he looks to alike to her father and she makes macbeth do it."Had he not resembled My father as he slept, I had done't". another reason why lady macbeth is unshure is because she is drinking with the guards, which meand she has to rely on alcohol." That which hath made them drunk hath made me brave".The last reason is because she is unshure that people will believe that story and the guards with say something.
119798 (G)
Question 1
Shakespeare shows Lady Macbeth as a very strong person with confidence, and a very supportive person for Macbeth. However she is beginning to break down, and shows her weakness in Act two. there are three examples that could be seen as signs of weakness. At first, she shows her weakness as she says "Had he not resembled my father as he slept, I had done't". She has been prevented from committing the murder herself by Duncan's resemblance to her father. This touch of human feeling enlists, to a slight extent, the sympathy of the audience and makes her more feminine. She shows the second sign of her weakness as she says "I am afraid they have awak'd" Before they kill the king. We can see her fear of murder. Lastly she says "That which hath made them drunk hath made me hold". She herself is exhilarated by some of the same drink and is thus enabled to stand up under the strain of the scene. She tries to calm down, and get courage to murder the king by drinking alcohol. Lady Macbeth is very strong, and intelligent. However she has some weakness as a human. She started to show in Act two by these three exaples.
121569
Question 1
Lady Macbeth starts off in the play as a very strong person, and is the one who convinces Macbeth to murder Duncan. During scene two, we start to see Lady Macbeth crumble under the pressure of the murder of the King happening in their own household. First off, she did not even commit the murder herself. She persueded Macbeth to, and then did nothing herself after so much talk and persuation. Another point in the play that shows her weakness is when she states to Macbeth that " Had he not resembled
My father as he slept, I had done it." She had to use this line as a back up for doing nothing, and backing out of it at the last moment. Even after the murder had been done, and over, we see that she is still continunally breaking down. The role does switch again, when Lady Macbeth has to faint, just in order to cover up for Macbeths hyperbolized feelings towards the Kings death. Through all this, we can see that both Macbeth and his wife are due for some trouble in the future.
72874 Blk G
question #1
There are many signs of Lady Macbeth breaking down in Act 2. One clear sign was when she couldn't commit the murder herself. She thought Duncan looked like her father in his sleep. Also the second sign of weakness is shown in this quote "That which hath made them drunk hath made me bold". She needed to drink to make herself bold enough to do it. Lastly she worries that the guards have awakened and that the murder has not been committed. She was so sure that they could not fail and now she shows doubts that it could be a failure. These are key examples of her strong character faltering and growing weaker.
87066
block A
In act two there is alot of darkness, even more then in Act one. In Act one it starts with a dark and stormy night and with witches, giving you the impression its a very dark play. You are then given the imagry of darkness with the talk to blood, death, and the battle. You are reminded of many of these things in Act two. For the weather is horrible when Duncan arrives at Macbeths castle. Then he is murdered and Lady Macbeth talks of blood when she smears it onto the guards. Also when Macbeth murders Duncan an Owl shrieks and Duncan's horses eat each other. It is also said that the play gets darker and stranger after the death of Duncan. Concluding that there is a great amount of dark imagry in Macbeth.
106680
Block G
QUESTION 2
From the very first scene of Shakespeare’s Macbeth a sense of wickedness is the main setting of the story. Darkness is displayed throughout the first two acts of the play with characters thoughts, actions and clear foreboding imagery. I found that having this dark mood from the beginning brings out an ominous sense of evil and foreshadows what will come. One example of the deep darkness is when Lady Macbeth says “Are but as pictures; ‘tis the eye of childhood that fears a painted devil…”(Act 2 Scene 3 Line 54) This example says that she not need to fear the devil. Another example of darkness in the play is when Lady Macbeth talks about becoming more masculine and says “…Come, thick night, and pall thee in the dunnest smoke of hell, That my keen knife see not the wound it makes, Nor heaven peep through the blanket of dark, to cry…” (Act 1 Scene 5 lines 49-53) Both of these example are apparent for their murky imagery and there are many more dark imageries throughout Macbeth. I feel that night was the best and most obvious time to murder Duncan. This was most likely chosen because darkness is one of the main moods of the play and having the first murder at night creates an eerie feeling for the audience. The change in weather on the night of Duncan’s murder also provoked a sense of fear in the readers, making a gloomy atmosphere for the first murder to take place and create a tension for the other murders to follow.
106288
Block G
At the begining of the play Lady Macbeth is portrayed as a very wise and confident character. She knows what she wants and how to get it. As act 11 begins several quotes would hint to the fact that Lady Macbeth has started to break down. That she isn't as confident, and begins to question her actions. The first clue to Lady Macbeth breaking down occurs when she attempts to murder Duncan. Lady Macbeth quotes "had he not resembled my father as he slept, I had done’t,". This proves that she isn't as mentaly and emotionaly strong. Duncan looked to much like her father as he lay asleep therefore, Lady Macbeth could not kill Duncan. The seconed quote is "That which hath made them drunk hath made me brave". This shows the lack of courage within Lady Macbeth. She has to rely on alcohol to give her the neccessary boost of determination required for her to commite murder. The final quote "Alack! I am afraid they have awak'd". Shows Lady Macbeth insecurities surrounding Duncan's murder. These three key moments have proven the fact that Lady Macbeth is no longer her over confident character and has began to slowly but surly break down.
67488
Block G
Question #2
It is highly symbolic that Duncan is killed at “when the moon is down” (11, 1, 2) because both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth summon darkness to cover their evil deed. “Stars! Hide your fires” (1, 4, 50), is an apostrophe pronounced by Macbeth in his aside. He is asking the stars to stop shining so the darkness would hide his “black and deep desires” (1, 4, 51) to murder the King in order to replace him. In the next scene, Lady Macbeth receives her husband’s letter telling her of the witches’ prophecy, and she asks the spirits to make her strong and manly. Furthermore, she asks night to “pall thee in the dunnest smokes of hell” (1, 6, 49) so that she would not even see herself committing an act of murder and heaven would not “peep through the blanket of the dark” (1, 6, 52). On the night of the murder, Banquo cannot sleep because he is afraid unleashing the dark thoughts he has regarding the witches’ prophecy in his dream. He tells his son “there’s husbandry in heaven; their candles are all out,” (2, 1, 4-5). The stars are not shining, just like Macbeth and Lady Macbeth had wished for, and it is an ominous and oppressing atmosphere that covers Duncan’s murder.
During Act 1, Lady Macbeth stands by her husband, as a dark, powerful influence. During Act 2, however, this picture of a self-assured woman begins to fade. There are three highlights of weakness on Lady Macbeth's part in Act 2 : her failure to kill King Duncan herself, allowing Macbeth to do it instead, her reliance on alcohol for strength, and her increasing doubt in the success of their plan. At the beginning of Act 2, Lady Macbeth enters Duncan's room with the intention of a silent murder. When she sees him however, she is taken aback and cannot commit the crime. "Had he not resembled my father as he slept, I had done't." The next demonstration of weakness comes when the Lady admits that she had been getting drunk with the guards (now asleep), in order to increase her confidence for murder. "That which hath made them drunk, hath made me bold." Her last portrayal of weakness comes when she says, "Alack! I am afraid they have awak'd." She doubts the success of her husband, and is afraid he has been caught in the act. Lady Macbeth reassures herself by reassuring her husband, and we shall see what the results are in Act 3.
75074
A
During Act 1, Lady Macbeth stands by her husband, as a dark, powerful influence. During Act 2, however, this picture of a self-assured woman begins to fade. There are three highlights of weakness on Lady Macbeth's part in Act 2 : her failure to kill King Duncan herself, allowing Macbeth to do it instead, her reliance on alcohol for strength, and her increasing doubt in the success of their plan. At the beginning of Act 2, Lady Macbeth enters Duncan's room with the intention of a silent murder. When she sees him however, she is taken aback and cannot commit the crime. "Had he not resembled my father as he slept, I had done't." The next demonstration of weakness comes when the Lady admits that she had been getting drunk with the guards (now asleep), in order to increase her confidence for murder. "That which hath made them drunk, hath made me bold." Her last portrayal of weakness comes when she says, "Alack! I am afraid they have awak'd." She doubts the success of her husband, and is afraid he has been caught in the act. Lady Macbeth reassures herself by reassuring her husband, and we shall see what the results are in Act 3.
72110 (A)
In Act 2 Lady Macbeth can be seen as a ruthless, colluding character, who consires to kill the fair King Duncan so that her husband Macbeth may claim the throne as his own. Contradictory to this, when it comes time for the murder of Duncan, she backs out and says "Had he not resembled my father as he slept,(I had don't." this is an unusual turn of events for Lady Macbeth's charicter. (II:ii, 13-14) This chift in intent could be forshadowing leading to an eventual collapse of her charicter, if she cannot compose herself to the reality's she will soon face.
Banquo is portrayed by Shakespeare as a nice, honest and trusting character. He unlike Macbeth does not take any actions to make his prophecies come true, he decides to simply wait and see if they will occur on their own so described when he says, “So I lose none in seeking to augment it, but still keep my bosom fanchis’d and allegiance clear. I shall be counsell’d,” which shows how he is waiting to see if his fortune told by the witches will come true like Macbeth’s did. Shakespeare probably portrays Banquo in such a kind, trusting light to show the difference and changes in Macbeth’s character through contrast as well as to create irony.
last comment from 121508..blk A
79456
Block: G
Question #1
In Act one, Lady Macbeth is portrayed as a strong, and ruthless character, who wants her husband to kill Duncan, and seize the crown. An example of her strength is when she says that she would kill her own child (act 1, scene 7, line 56 "dashed it's brain out, had I so sworn as you have done to this"). Then later in the play, the audience begins to see three weaknesses that surfaces in the second act. One of these weaknesses is that she needs to consume alcohol in order to gain some confidence to murder Duncan (act 2, scene 2, line 1-2 "That which hath made them drunk hath made me bold"). The second weakness that is found is when she begins to doubt herself and Macbeth. She has doubt in whether her plan shall work or not, and whether Macbeth will be able to pull off the murder (act 2, scene 2, line 10. "alack, I am afraid they have awaked"). The last, and most notable weakness is when she did not commit the murder herself, because when she saw Duncan asleep, it reminded her of her father (act 2, scene 2, line 13-14 "Had he not resembled my father as he slept, I had done't").
All of these weaknesses that begin to surface, show us that Lady Macbeth is no longer the strong, and ruthless character that we were lead to believe in the first act.
90475
There are many images of darkness in Macbeth. The concept of witches and murder is enough to create a dark feel through- out the play, but even after the King is murdered, the plot turns more sinsiter. Macbeth's demeaner completely changes within a span of 2 scenes and he transforms from loyal nobel, to a scheming liar. His wife on the other hand, changes aswell, but in a different way. Lady Macbeth changes from a cold-hearted woman to a weak and indecisive one. It is appropriate that Duncan in murdered at night because it just adds to the drama Shakespear is creating. It is more effective to murder at under the cover of darkness, while others are sleeping, and it makes this act even more frightening. When are we more vunrable then during our slumber? Even a King is not safe. By creating an eclipse the next day, he shows that the natural order is turned, but also he can keep the darkness through-out the next day to keep with the gloomy atmosphere he previously created. It is expected and effective to parralel the events with the weather and setting, which Shakespear does very well. Overall, the darkness theme in the plot starts off lightly and grows more and more disturbing as it progresses. The imagery in this play really helps the audience or reader picture the events taking place.
84578
Banquo is depicted by shakespeare as a noble and loyal character. The most likely reasons seem to be that orginally Macbeth was written for King James, for this reason Banquo who is a real descendant to him, is naturally portrayed as a strong and dignified man. Banquo is also portrayed as "good" to compare the "bad" in Macbeth. Whereas Banquo is loyal to his King and would rather wait then to force any such premontion, “So I lose none in seeking to augment it, but still keep my bosom fanchis’d and allegiance clear. Macbeth is willing to allow the greed and evil in him to take over. Lastly Banquo is a virtuos friend to the antangonist because this allows audiences to see chance between Macbeth and his evil intentions. If Banquo can disregard them then why cannot Macbeth. These examples explain why and how Shakespeare illustrated Banquo as a wholesome character.
121836, A
Q#1
Lady Macbeth is showed as an independent woman, and we have the feeling that she is very cold, but in act II, she shows some weakness when she is about to murderer Duncan, because he reminds her to his father "Had he not resembled My father as he slept, I had done't", another weakness was when she was waiting for Macbeth to commit the crime and she says: "Alack! I am afraid they have awak'd" this quote shows that Lady Macbeth feels insecure about the murder, and she is afraid to be discover, but after the murder she recovers and acts without guilt.
Question 2.
111465 (A)
Macbeth is fittingly known as one of Shakespeare’s darkest tragedies of all time. Complex and very dark imagery plague the supposedly cursed play from the opening scene in which the witches deliver their first “thought-provoking” prophecy, to Duncan’s murder at Macbeths own hands to help bring forward important symbols to the audience. Gore- imagery used in lines such as, “and Duncan’s horses, - a thing most strange and certain,- beauteous and swift, the minions of their race, turn’d wild in nature, broke their stalls, flung out, as they would make war with mankind,”(Act II, Scene IV, 14-17) help directly symbolize the unrest between the nobles over Duncan’s suspicious and sudden death. Following Duncan’s fitting death in the dead of night (for only a deed so deceitful and dark in nature could occur at such a time), there are also many other unnatural occurrences that take place across Scotland. An example of this follows in the line, “there was a sparhawk also strangled by an owl” (Act II, Scene IV, 12-13), secretly symbolizing Macbeth’s unlikely murder of his king. Not only does Shakespeare use cunning dark imagery to symbolize important themes in his play, but his use of blood imagery is very effective. Right from the opening battle, so detailed with the killing of treacherous nobles, to Macbeth’s line “with all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood clean from my hand, no, this my hand will rather the multitudinous seas incarnadine, making the green one red” (Act II, Scene III, 61-63) giving the audience the idea that this play is so full of spilt blood that it would turn and entire sea red. Finally, the most important piece of imagery that help keep the play dark is the fact that, “for the space of six months together after this heinous murder there appeared no sun by day, nor moon by night in any part of the realm, but still the sky covered with continual cloud”, helping the audience stay in the constant state of darkness that is Shakespeare’s mood for the tragedy. Macbeth is fittingly one of Shakespeare’s darkest tragedies, filled with complex symbolism, blood imagery, and darkness. Macbeth’s cold and blood thirsty ambition combined with the powerful dark imagery used in this play foreshadow the ever thickening turmoil that is to now known as one of the greatest tragedies of all time.
(75061) (G)
In the second Act, the reader starts to see Lady Macbeth break down. In Act one, she was a strong figure who wanted to be a man in order to become stronger and crueler and now, we see she is becoming weaker. She has Macbeth convinced that the "deed" will be efortless and nobody will find out but as we see she begins to question wether the chaimberlains have awoken "I am afraid they have awak'd. And 'tis not done" (II, ii, 10-11). The reader also sees that Lady Macbeth could not kill Dunkan ""Had he not resembled my father as he slept, I had done 't" (II, ii, 13 - 14) because he looked like her father as he slept. Lady Macbeth also indicates that she feels remorseful after Dunkan has been killed "My hands are of your colour but I shame" (II, ii, 64), meaning she has played just as big a part as Macbeth but she feels ashamed of doing this "deed".
111178
Following act one, act two of the play Macbeth is very dark. The play opens with a very dark scene; lightning, thunder, and three witches, Shakespeare also gives you the imagery of battle fields and bloody deaths. In act two, when Duncan arrives at Macbeths castle the weather is stormy. When Duncan is murdered Lady Macbeth rubs the blood onto the guards as an owl shrieks into the night. After Duncan’s death the play is said to become “strange” and darker which gives the impression of dark imagery.
72117 (G)
There are many images of darkness in the play, especially in this act. It starts off at night when the moon is down and the stars cannot be seen. Noises such as the screeching owl and constant knocking also add to the tension of the murder. If Duncan’s murder was not done at night and let’s say broad day light, it would not have been as effective. Committing the murder in the middle of the night makes it have a more eerie and dangerous, atmosphere. This act is full of blood, guilt and death which makes it seem it will only become more disturbing as we go on.
71888 (A)
Question #1
The character of Lady Macbeth is made to up to be that of a strong and powerful woman, she is thought to be the back bone of Macbeth himself. As the play progresses we finally see that maybe she is not all that. Her weakness start to show as the story is told. In Act 2, her courage to kill Duncan herself is diminished when she finds herself thinking of her own father and cannot follow through. Another example of this is shown in Act 2, Scene 2 “ That which hath made them drunk hath made me bold”. When she says this it gives the reader the idea that she is scared to be caught and doubts that Macbeth will go through with it so she drinks to ease her worries. Again she is worried by doubt in Act 2, Scene 2 “ Alack, I am afraid they have awaked And ‘tis not done.” When Lady Macbeth says this it shows her weakness of doubt and worry. Lady Macbeths slow breakdown in this play is just beginning.
72587 (A)
From act I through the end of act II, there has been a noticeable change in Lady Macbeth. At first, she came off as a very intimidating lady, who was sure of herself and everything she wanted to accomplish. As the reader reaches act II, it is evident that Lady Macbeth is starting to dwindle and become less and less strong. her first sign of weakness is when she says “had he not resembled my father as he slept, I had done’t,” when she is referring to Duncan fast asleep. Her second sign of her breaking down is when the murder is taking place and she is very worried and panicking about whether it has gone properly. her third and last sign of weaknes is when she admits to having resorted to alcohol to make her feel comfortable of the murder and have courage. All in all, it seems Lady Macbeth is on a slippery slope to breaking down.
71518
BLock A
Banquo is portrayed as a strong, loyal, and honest character. Shakespeare may have depicted him this way to outline the tragic hero of MacBeth, and bring out MacBeth's negative aspects, especially since he has sinful thoughts about such a dear friend of his. Banquo proves to be all that he time and time again, standing up for MacBeth, saying, "So I lose none in seeking to augment it, but still keep my bosom franchis'd and allegiance clear, I shall be counsell'd" This goes to prove that he is a truly good person.
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