Macbeth Blood Essay - 2596 Words

What bloody man is that? in these, the opening words of the plays second scene, King Duncan asks about a sergeant. The sergeant then tells the story of Macbeths heroic victories over Macdonwald and the King of Norway. The sergeants telling of the story is in itself heroic, because his loss of blood has made him weak. Thus his blood and his heroism seem to enhance the picture of Macbeth as a hero. As Lady Macbeth plans to kill King Duncan, she calls upon the spirits of murder to make thick my blood; stop up the access and passage to remorse. Thin blood was considered wholesome, and it was thought that poison made blood thick. Lady Macbeth wants to poison her own soul, so that she can kill without remorse. Macbeth says this is a†¦show more content†¦Then he calls upon night to come and with thy bloody and invisible hand cancel and tear to pieces that great bond which keeps me pale! The great bond is Banquos lease on life. A man becomes pale with fear or worry because the blood drains away from his face. Macbeth believes that if Banquos blood is shed, his own blood will return, and he wont be pale anymore. After he has become king, Macbeth gives a banquet for his noblemen. The banquet has barely begun when Macbeth has to go to the door to speak with first murderer. Theres blood on thy face, he says and the murderer proudly tells him its Banquos blood, and that he left Banquo in a ditch with twenty trenched gashes on his head, all deadly. A little later, just as Macbeth is talking about how much he wishes that Banquo were at the banquet, Banquos Ghost appears. Macbeth says to the ghost, thou canst not say I did it; never shake thy gory locks at me. The ghosts gory locks are the locks of his hair, covered with clotted blood. After the ghost has gone, Macbeth tells himself that its not his fault that the ghost showed up. He says that men have been killing men for a long time, since before there were even laws against it; blood hath been shed ere now, I the o lden time, ere human statute purged the gentle weal. Its a natural thing to shed blood; whats not natural is that now the dead rise again, with twenty mortal murders on their crowns, and push usShow MoreRelatedBlood Imagery in Macbeth Essay1451 Words   |  6 PagesMacbeth is the ultimate story of a fight between the forces of good and evil. It tells the tale of a tragic hero whose quest for power leads to his ultimate downfall. Macbeth starts out as an honorable warrior but changes when his ambition becomes uncontrollable. As he becomes increasingly paranoid, Macbeth uses violent means to eliminate threats to his Scottish throne. As the play progresses, blood continuously plays a part in the events as the murders become more frequent. 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