“Macbeth does murder sleep”
- Theme of guilt
Act 2 scene 2
- Macbeth is destroyed by his own peaceable innocence
- Sleep symbolises purity and rest- by killing Duncan he is murdering his own ability to rest
- The metaphor represents his inner turmoil
- Sleep is cursed?
“I could not say ‘Amen’ “
Theme of guilt
Act 2 scene 2
- He could not bring himself to say it
- He is realising the severity if what he’s done
- He knows he has committed sin
- He implicitly understands the religious consequences of his deed; killing a king is a direct challenge to God’s order as kings were believed to be chosen by God.
- Macbeth recognises even at this early stage that his deed will not go unpunished
Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood clean from my hand?
Theme of guilt
- Macbeth feels his guilt is so immense that nothing can cleanse it
- Hyperbole and imagery of blood emphasise the permanence of guilt.
- Reflects the religious idea that sin can’t easily be washed away.
- Macbeth uses hyperbole, suggesting even the vastness of the ocean is insufficient to cleanse his soul, and his guilt would instead corrupt the sea itself.
- Neptune was the Roman God of the see - suggests how he is turning away from his religious after committing such sin
Context for guilt
Shakespeare wrote Macbeth for King James I, who believed in the Divine Right of Kings and the supernatural. By showing Macbeth and Lady Macbeth destroyed by guilt, Shakespeare reinforces the message that regicide is a sin against God. The audience would see guilt not only as emotion but as moral justice — the natural consequence of betraying the rightful order
How is guilt portrayed through Lady Macbeth
Lady Macbeth is initially free from any feelings of guilt . Her journey in the play takes her from power and strength to weakness and insanity . Whereas Macbeth’s guilt makes him more violent and brutal, Lady Macbeth’s guilt makes her go into herself. She closes herself off to everyone else, cannot be in darkness, and sleep walks as she is trapped in her own guilty thoughts. The way her guilt takes over is gradual but destructive , showing how even the most callous (insensitive and cruel) and cold people aren’t immune to God’s judgement and their own human conscience.
“What’s done, is done,”
Shakespeare demonstrates how guilt and regret can’t be escaped . Lady Macbeth tells her
worried husband, “What’s done, is done,” (3.2) , suggesting they can’t change their fate
and will just have to live with the consequences . Shakespeare suggests that greed and
ambition can’t predict the guilt that comes with making fantasies into reality. The line
becomes a refrain for her, as later she mutters to herself in her sleep, “What’s done
cannot be undone,” (5.1) . The repetition makes it appear like she is trying to convince
herself to let go and get the courage to face reality. The change from “is done” to “cannot
be undone” gives the impression that her guilt and desperation have increased .
