fair is foul, _____ 3
and foul is fair
- chiasmus (mirrored phrasing) reinforces equivocation, confusion and reversal of standard societal structure, implying that the witches are unnatural and therefore shouldn’t be trusted
- alliteration of the ‘f’ sound gives this scene a chant-like rhythm, which is ominous and off-putting
- paradox of this reversal of roles highlights early in the novel that this is a dystopian world where nothing is as it seems, and foreshadows corruption due to lack of moral order
unseamed him ______ 2
from the nave to the chops
- hyperbole exaggerates his heroic character, as well as making a contemporary audience deem him as worthy of being a higher authority figure, and leads them to blame lady macbeth for the downfall of such a ‘valiant’ leader
- the graphic metaphor ‘unseamed’ makes his actions more violent and memorable
to win us _____ 3
to our harm, the instruments of darkness tell us truths
Banquo says this to Macbeth after the witches’ prophecies
- foreshadows the witches’ deceptive nature and Macbeth’s eventual downfall
- ‘instruments of darkness’ metaphorically refers to the witches, suggesting they are tools of evil and are controlled by an even more malevolent force
- ‘darkness’ has connotations of evil, sin, treachery and deceit, serving religious imagery which highlights the Jacobean belief that the devil influences witchcraft
______ tell us truths
to win us to our harm, the instruments of darkness
_____ the chops
unseamed him from the nave to
this supernatural ________ 4
soliciting cannot be ill, cannot be good
Macbeth is confused after the witches’ prophecy that he will be king
- modal verb ‘cannot’ demonstrates certainty, which highlights his inner conflict and doubt in his own reasoning, which suggests the witches have already corrupted his mind and signifies his moral downfall
- antithesis of ‘ill’ and ‘good’ demonstrates conflict with opposing forces, but highlights that Macbeth resides in a morally grey area
- paradox is contradictory and reflects Macbeth’s confusion.
- repetition of ‘cannot be’ reinforces Macbeth’s obsessive nature, as he struggles to reason with his desires
___________, cannot be good
this supernatural soliciting cannot be ill
present fears ____ 1
are less than horrible imaginings
Macbeth expresses that tangible fears he faces don’t surmount to the thought of killing Duncan. the witches prompt him to envision regicide (he has not yet killed Duncan)
- semantic field of dread in ‘fears’ and ‘horrible’ reflects Macbeth’s anxious psychological state
_______ imaginings
present fears are less than horrible
that is a step _______ 2
on which i must fall down, or else overleap
the aside reveals his true intentions, which imply murder
- modal verb ‘must’ reflects his urgency and determination
the ‘step’ symbolises order and hierarchy of Great Chain of Being, which Macbeth is willing to disrupt
_______ without my stir
if chance will have me king, why chance may crown me
if chance ___________ 3
will have me king, why chance may crown me without my stir
- personification of ‘chance’ highlights fate’s influence over Macbeth and reinforces his inability to control the situation
- modal verb ‘may’ shows his hesitation, reflecting that it’s not just the witches who are responsible for his moral downfall
- his passive attitude in ‘without’ reinforces hubris
stars, ________ 2
hide your fires; let not light see my black and deep desires
- imperative ‘hide’ demonstrates his attempt to warp the natural world, which reflects ambition and foreshadows the corruption of Scotland
- ‘black’ symbolises secrecy, deceit and corruption in Macbeth’s sinister nature
______ human kindness 2
yet i do feat thy nature, it is too full of the milk of
- ‘milk’ symbolises purity, femininity and nurture, which juxtaposes the violence he is capable of
- gender imagery of ‘milk’ highlights lady macbeth’s view that macbeth isn’t masculine enough, as she adopts a mocking tone
_________ or else overleap
that is a step on which i must fall down, or else overleap
yet i do _______
fear thy nature, it is too full of the milk of human kindness
______ desires
stars, hide your fires; let not light see my black and deep
art not without _________
ambition, but without the illness that should attend it
unsex ________ 2
me here, and fill me with direst cruelty
- imperative ‘unsex’ shows her forceful nature and dominance over the force of nature, as she commands it
- ‘unsex’ indicates that femininity is associated with weakness, and presents lady macbeth as a malevolent force whose capabilities are inhibited by her gender and role in society
_______ attend it
art not without ambition, but without the illness that should
look like ____ 2
the innocent flower, but be the serpent under’t
- metaphor ‘be the serpent’ is a biblical allusion to the devil contrasted to edenic ‘flower’, which highlights deceit and moral downfall
- imperative ‘look’ demonstrates her dominance over Macbeth, despite being a woman
________ cruelty
unsex me here, and fill me with direst
________ under’t
look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent
his virtues _________ 1
will plead like angels
during a soliloquy, macbeth acknowledges that killing a blameless king will trigger a divine outrage and upset the Great Chain of Being. illustrates that macbeth is morally aware of the evil nature of regicide before proceeding
- simile ‘like angels’ compares Duncan’s morality to those of angels, emphasising purity and divinity, and has religious connotations