What is one thing that makes a story great? Imagery. It helps drag the reader into the imaginary world and visualize what is going on around them. One story with exceptional imagery is the play Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare. Back in the early 1600, plays were performed with few props in the middle of the day, so it was necessary for Shakespeare to add detailed images in his plays. Macbeth contains multiple themes that rely on the use of words to convey illustrations, but blood is the most common. In the play Macbeth, blood imagery is used to give the audience a clear picture of the scene, as well as flesh out the characters thoughts, and develop throughout the play to represent different meanings. Originally, the word bloody is
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Before Macbeth goes to murder Duncan, his mind tricks him into seeing a dagger, which causes him to state, “It is the bloody business which informs/ thus to mine eye” (II, i, 57-58). It is a crucial part of the play, because this is the first indication that Macbeth is not sane. It makes the reader start to question Macbeth and his motives. Referring to the murder as “the bloody business,” reminds the onlooker of the dark image of how Duncan’s death will look. While simply using the word murder would have sufficed, having Macbeth say bloody business instead helps push the fact that he knows the act is morally wrong. Blood is used in this way again in act 3, where Macbeth is talking Banquo about Malcolm and Donalbain. He tells Banquo, “ We hear our bloody cousins are bestowed/ in England and in Ireland, not confessing/ their cruel parricide, filling their hearers/ with strange invention” (III, i, 33-36). Macbeth says that the murders have run instead of confessing to killing Duncan, but they did not commit the crime. Macbeth, the true murder, wanting to reinforce the idea that they did, uses the word bloody to add impact to the statement. These line also contain a bit of dramatic irony, because Macbeth is saying it is wrong the the princes did not confess to the murder, when the audience knows too well that Macbeth did it, and he has no plans to confess either. While the meaning of the …show more content…
At the end of scene 2, Malcolm and Donalbain are fretting after they find out their father has been killed. Donalbain warns Malcolm, “Where we are,/ there’s daggers in men’s smiles; the near in blood,/ the nearer bloody,” and suggests they both leave the country (II, iii, 162-164). They think that, wherever they go friendly people will always being hiding daggers, because the closer to family they are, the closer they are to danger. This, is exactly what Macbeth was planning on. If they had not fled, Macbeth would have gotten more blood on his hands by killing them, so he could become king. Blood is used as family again, all the way at the end of the fifth act. Macbeth is talking to Macduff and cations him, “My soul is too much charged/ with blood of thine already” (V, viii, 6-7). Macbeth is already burdened with the death of Macduff’s entire family, so he does not wish to kill Macduff as well. There is a multitude of deaths in the play, and these lines help to remind the audience of who Macbeth has killed. It also continues to force the fact that Macbeth is guilty about what he has done and wishes not to slaughter Macduff as well. At this point, it can be presumed that Macduff is staring Macbeth down, absolutely livid as he says these words. Both of these examples use blood to talk about family, instead of murder or blood, but it does not make them any less
Before Macbeth goes to murder Duncan, his mind tricks him into seeing a dagger, which causes him to state, “It is the bloody business which informs/ thus to mine eye” (II, i, 57-58). It is a crucial part of the play, because this is the first indication that Macbeth is not sane. It makes the reader start to question Macbeth and his motives. Referring to the murder as “the bloody business,” reminds the onlooker of the dark image of how Duncan’s death will look. While simply using the word murder would have sufficed, having Macbeth say bloody business instead helps push the fact that he knows the act is morally wrong. Blood is used in this way again in act 3, where Macbeth is talking Banquo about Malcolm and Donalbain. He tells Banquo, “ We hear our bloody cousins are bestowed/ in England and in Ireland, not confessing/ their cruel parricide, filling their hearers/ with strange invention” (III, i, 33-36). Macbeth says that the murders have run instead of confessing to killing Duncan, but they did not commit the crime. Macbeth, the true murder, wanting to reinforce the idea that they did, uses the word bloody to add impact to the statement. These line also contain a bit of dramatic irony, because Macbeth is saying it is wrong the the princes did not confess to the murder, when the audience knows too well that Macbeth did it, and he has no plans to confess either. While the meaning of the …show more content…
At the end of scene 2, Malcolm and Donalbain are fretting after they find out their father has been killed. Donalbain warns Malcolm, “Where we are,/ there’s daggers in men’s smiles; the near in blood,/ the nearer bloody,” and suggests they both leave the country (II, iii, 162-164). They think that, wherever they go friendly people will always being hiding daggers, because the closer to family they are, the closer they are to danger. This, is exactly what Macbeth was planning on. If they had not fled, Macbeth would have gotten more blood on his hands by killing them, so he could become king. Blood is used as family again, all the way at the end of the fifth act. Macbeth is talking to Macduff and cations him, “My soul is too much charged/ with blood of thine already” (V, viii, 6-7). Macbeth is already burdened with the death of Macduff’s entire family, so he does not wish to kill Macduff as well. There is a multitude of deaths in the play, and these lines help to remind the audience of who Macbeth has killed. It also continues to force the fact that Macbeth is guilty about what he has done and wishes not to slaughter Macduff as well. At this point, it can be presumed that Macduff is staring Macbeth down, absolutely livid as he says these words. Both of these examples use blood to talk about family, instead of murder or blood, but it does not make them any less