Student Question
What language techniques relate to the portrayal of Lady Macbeth in Macbeth, particularly in her interactions with Macbeth?
Point one: If Lady Macbeth really cares about Macbeth, she would not pressure and instruct him to do something which he chose not to.
Quote: "Look like the time, bear welcome in your eye, Your hand, your tongue, look like th' innocent flower, But be the serpent under't .."
Language technique: imperatives, by ordering Macbeth to "look like..bear welcome..be the..."
Second quote: "Was the hope drunk...And to wake it now to look so green and pale...At what it did so freely?"
Language technique: Personification: hope is drunk & metaphor: drunk is to be green and pale.
Point 2: Lady Macbeth challenges Macbeth's masculinity
Quote: "When you durst do it, then you were a man;"
Language technique: None.
Point 3: Lady Macbeth is unconcerning of the information she has received, whether or not the witches' predictions are good, if Macbeth chooses to act upon it
Quote: None, of course.
Language technique: ??
Quick answer:
Language techniques in Lady Macbeth's portrayal include imperatives, personification, and metaphors. She pressures Macbeth using imperatives like "look like the time" and personifies hope as "drunk" to manipulate him. Lady Macbeth also employs the metaphor of drunkenness to suggest their actions require a loss of inhibition. Her manipulation and disregard for Macbeth's well-being highlight her ambition and influence over him.
The personification of hope and the metaphor of drunkenness.
You could add to your second point and quote. Lady Macbeth uses the metaphor of drunkenness and the double meaning of spirits: as alcohol and the supernatural. In Act I, Scene 5, before Macbeth arrives, we find Lady Macbeth in soliloquy. She decides that Macbeth will need some encouragement or even some brainwashing in addition to the words of the witches.
Hie thee hither,
That I may pour my spirits in thine ear;
And chastise the valor of my tongue
All that impedes thee from the golden round,
Which fate and metaphysical aid doth seem
To have thee crown’d withal.
She pours spirits in his ear. Her words are meant to intoxicate him into acting in ways he would not normally (or soberly) act. When Macbeth hesitates, she says “Was the hope drunk." She is clearly stating that the motivation to murder must be induced by words which intoxicate. Her words are spirits. Hope (as in her hopes for Macbeth to ascend to power by murderous means) is also drunk. Hope is usually an optimistic or even ethical property. This is an interesting personification because hope is drunk with malice. Sometimes, hope can be drunk with idealism like someone drunk with love. In Macbeth’s case, his drunkenness (or the drunkenness of hope) is darker. You can see the progression of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth throughout the play. The play on words like “drunk” and “spirits” evokes the idea that they must be drunk, to lower their inhibitions, to actually change who they are and how they act in order to go through with murder. The metaphor of drunkenness eventually becomes madness with both characters.
Other than obtaining power, she clearly does not have Macbeth’s best interest at heart. She desires power. She understands that he must be persuaded. She asks to be unsex’d. This goes along with the drunk/spirit metaphor. They both must become different. First they must psyche themselves into committing the murders. This begins their psychological change. Later, guilt will make them crazy. In both cases, it’s as if they ingested spirits (alcohol) or were taken over by spirits (supernatural). However, this is just the metaphor. They talked themselves into committing the murders and made themselves crazy with guilt. So, their intoxication/spiritual corruption is self-induced.
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