Macbeth | Time

In the first excerpt, Tom Driver proposes that Macbeth contains three kinds of time: chronological time, providential time, and Macbeth's time. Stephen Spender, in the second excerpt, discusses the unsuccessful efforts of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth to separate the past, present, and future aspects of time.

Tom F. Driver
In Macbeth there are three kinds of time: (1) time measured by clock, calendar, and the movement of sun, moon, and stars, which for the sake of convenience we may call "chronological time;" (2) an order of time which overarches the action of the entire play and which may be called "providential time;" and (3) a time scheme, or an understanding of time, belonging to Macbeth, which maybe called "Macbeth's time." (pp. 143-44)

The play contains a very large number of references to chronological time; that is, to the day, the night, or the hour. There...


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