The last book I read was “Mortal Fire”. A great book, and one that suited this topic.
The next book I shall read will be: “Fahrenheit 451” by Rad Bury. The reason being is that I have wanted to read the book for a while, and so will do so for this class so that I am motivated to understand it properly.
I f anyone disagrees with this choice for some reason, just say so in the comments. Thank you.
How does Shakespeare use language to reinforce his ideas in Macbeth? (How does Shakespeare make you understand his ideas through what Macbeth says and does.)
Idea : Brevity of life.
Metaphor! Also use of meter, and repetition, and alliteration. Like “Out, out, brief candle.”
The paragraph should probably relate to the question, and show insight to what it means. Also having evidence for what you say.
Shakespeare, in his tragedy Macbeth, is preoccupied with the relationship between humanity and the forces in life beyond our control. Macbeth, who has just learned of his wife’s untimely death considers his life to be ” like a walking shadow ” . It is his use of metaphor, and the interplay between symbols of light and dark, that Shakespeare communicates this idea of the nature of death. In the metaphor “A poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage, and is then heard no more”, Shakespeare is communicating that in life we follow the script provided to us and that life will only last so long before it ends.
And now here is a passage from “Macbeth”.
What beast was’t, then,
That made you break this enterprise to me?
When you durst do it, then you were a man;
And, to be more than what you were, you would
Be so much more the man. Nor time nor place
Did then adhere, and yet you would make both:
They have made themselves, and that their fitness now
Does unmake you. I have given suck, and know
How tender ’tis to love the babe that milks me:
I would, while it was smiling in my face,
Have pluck’d my nipple from his boneless gums,
And dash’d the brains out, had I so sworn as you
Have done to this.
This passage is said by Lady Macbeth. What I shall write for the following paragraph shall be Ambition and Loyalty.
In the stage play “Macbeth”, which was written by Shakespeare, there is a wife who makes her husband do as he said he would, for her own goals. We can see this as Lady Macbeth tells Macbeth how she would “dash’d the brains out, had I so sworn as you Have done to this” when describing just how committed to a promise she can be, and to what lengths Macbeth should go to achieve her goals. From this we see how Shakespeare can use words to bring an idea of imagery to mind, in this case, of a baby’s head being smashed open. From saying all this and “Nor time nor place Did then adhere, and yet you would make both” allows us to understand Lady Macbeth’s own ambition to get all that she can in life, even if it is probably impossible. And from her own ambition, she also expects loyalty from Macbeth, no matter how horrible it is. Because of these words Shakespeare has managed to describe just how wrong ambition can be in the hands of someone who uses it for personal gain, and will do anything to get what they want. Shakespeare also describes in this moment how loyalty is demanded by the ones who want it all, and that there should be a limit to how loyal to a promise you are or you could become what most people view as evil. And if you do become this definition of evil, then what ever the promise you were completing, it simply won’t be worth it anymore.
To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day
To the last syllable of recorded time,
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more: it is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.
Said by Macbeth. Said when Lady Macbeth died. What I take this to mean, is that Macbeth is talking about how death will continue to come. With all this time passing us, death only gets closer, and it will continue to come, even if you believe yourself to be immortal, and shall last all of time. And as it gets closer, life will go out(Out, out, brief candle!). Life is a shadow, that will only last a rather small amount of time. Then he says how not matter what your position in life is, it has no point. Life is stupid, and has no point. He is feeling despair, pointlessness, or maybe even worthlessness.
Macbeth pretty much says that: “Some time soon we all die, and there isn’t a thing we can do about it. And what we did before has no point. Our lives are brief and will disappear without us even noticing. Life is just a shadow on this world, basically, of no material power over anything else. In fact, what we do is just a brief look on reality, a mere imitation and act that you put on. Which will end to never be heard from again. Your life is just a story, to be looked on by others as full of fury, and leading to nothing important.”
Characters: Malcolm, Old Siward, Rosse, and soldiers. Also Macduff, and the head of Macbeth.
Time: After war.
Location: In the castle.
Events: Malcolm talks of how they have lost their friends, and Macduff is missing. Then they talk of how the old Siward’s son is dead, and the old Siward is happy to hear that he died as a man, facing off against his attacker. And then Macduff walks in holding Macbeth’s head. Then he says how Malcolm is now king! Malcolm says some things, including how Lady Macbeth most likely took her own life, and that all the thanes are now earls(An english title.).
Quote: “Some must go off; and yet, by these I see, so great a day as this is cheaply bought.” This is said by the old Siward. What he means is that some people have died, and must leave, and yet, this cost is little when compared to the great achievements they have made. Scotland has been saved from Macbeth, and all the death it took at achieve this was worth it. In fact, even if there was still more death than what they have heard about, it would still be worth it. Do be aware of the fact that he says this before he discovers his son is dead(Which he takes quite well).
Characters: Macbeth, Macduff.
Time: War.
Location: Field in front of castle.
Events: Macbeth says he is alone, and that he wonders how he can die. Then Macduff tells him to turn around. Macduff and Macbeth talk to each other, and fight. Then Macbeth says he can’t be killed by anyone born from a women, which Macduff then says how he was ripped from his mother’s womb(a c-section). Macbeth says he won’t fight, which Macduff then says he must yield, which Macbeth also disagrees with, so they fight. And Macbeth is slain.
Quote: “I have no words; My voice is in my sword: thou bloodier villain than terms can give out!” THis is said by Macbeth as he is about to kill Macbeth. What he means by this is that he has nothing to say with his mouth, and shall instead convey what he wants to say by his sword. Then he calls Macbeth names.
Characters: Macbeth, Young Siward, Macduff will enter soon after.
Time: What else, the battle!
Location: The plains.
Events: Macbeth speaks of how he can’t be killed by anyone who was born from a women. Then the young Siward decides to attack him, and Macbeth kills him. This only makes Macbeth happier. Macduff searchs for Macbeth. Malcolm and the old Siward enter the castle.
Quote: “They have tied me to a stake: I cannot fly, but, bear-like, I must fight the course.” This is said by Macbeth. What this means is that Macbeth believes the witch’s have doomed him to fall by having him be stuck in Dunsinane(They have tied me to a stake). Because of this, he can’t escape(fly away), so he must fight his enemy himself(bear-like). Perhaps he dislikes the witches for what they did, and has decided to fight his own way out of this problem.
Characters: Malcolm, Old Siward, Macduff.
Time: Before the battle.
Location A plain before the castle.
Events: Malcolm tells them to drop the branches they were using to hide themselves. Malcolm’s cousin and the old Siward son is to lead the charge, while Macduff takes care of everything else. They hope to win tonight. Macduff tells the trumpets to start. They will charge!
Quote: “Those clamorous harbingers of blood and death.” Which is said by Macduff as he talks about how the trumpets will call upon them all what is to happen. He says they are noisy, and will call upon them the idea of blood and death, which shall prepare them for the fight!
Spoiler warning. If you have not read the book, and plan to read it later, then please don’t read the following until you have done so.
Mortal fire is a fiction book that follows a small girl from some islands who was moved to a city in America. She is a genius when it comes to maths, and might have a photographic memory, which means she can remember pretty much everything she reads and hears, or sees. Her name is Canny Mochrie. Another thing about her is that she doesn’t know who her father is, and neither does her mother(For a reason explained later in the book.) Oh, and Canny can see something “Extra”, which I will also explain later. She has a step-father and a step-brother; both are rather smart. And then there is her famous mother, who is a bit…odd.
The story goes as follows. There was a coal mine accident 30 years ago, and Canny’s brother wants to investigate it. As this happens, Canny wanders into an enchanted valley, occupied almost entirely by children who all have the same last name and who can perform a type of magic. Canny realises that there is a magical language, and learns it in a matter of days, and is far better at it then most people in the valley. Before this happened, she had tried to climb a local hill in the valley, which is not a nice experience. At the top is the most powerful person alive, who she becomes friends with, possibly more.
After she stays there for a while, she realises the dangerous threat the valley poses to her, and decides to do something about it. The dangerous threat is that the valley is taking the magic from everyone, and also people’s memory’s of the valley, which could kill somebody, and will definitely change your life forever. Obviously, Canny would prefer this not to happen, so she begins to plan a way to escape this problem. Her plan is to go back in time, right back to the moment she first came into existence, and see the magic symbol that at appeared, then take this symbol and make a model of it. After doing this, she deposited it in the past with her brother, before they went to the valley. The only reason this was possible was that her mother was actually her twin sister who gave birth to her own clone. (Yeah, I know.) Then Canny left the valley, lost her memory and usage of magic, and all her skill in maths, which is where we leave the story, and skip a few years ahead. When we come back, Canny still has lost all her skills in math, to the point that it sickens her to look at an equation, and she has absolutely no idea what happened in that valley. After coming back from her brothers wedding, she decides to help clear out his room, and discovers the model she deposited with her brother in the ast. This model reminds her of the truth of what had happened, and now that she knows, she has all her magic, and knowledge, and the ability to use maths, back again. With this, she goes to the valley to break the enchantment that holds the family that lives there prisoner.
And that is the summary of the story. The way the magic works if you’re wondering, is that there was a magical language passed down through a family, which at one point was converted to the written word when somebody who could see sound converted into something everyone could read. The magic is described as “Making things stronger and better than they already are.” In reality, the magic really allows people to suggest something to happen to another object or life form, and this is only if you write directly on it.
That is the entire summary done. Please remember that this only here to help remind about what happened the book when I get around to writing a review and other things on it. And this will only be if I actually forget something, which I probably won’t, but still, always good to have a backup!
What beast was’t, then,
That made you break this enterprise to me?
When you durst do it, then you were a man;
And, to be more than what you were, you would
Be so much more the man. Nor time nor place
Did then adhere, and yet you would make both:
They have made themselves, and that their fitness now
Does unmake you. I have given suck, and know
How tender ’tis to love the babe that milks me:
I would, while it was smiling in my face,
Have pluck’d my nipple from his boneless gums,
And dash’d the brains out, had I so sworn as you
Have done to this.
This is said by Lady Macbeth as she try’s to make Macbeth realize how serious she is about killing the king.
Characters: Macbeth and Seyton. Also some soldiers, and a messenger.
Time: War time will begin.
Location: Dunsinane, within the castle.
Events: Macbeth says the english army will fail and run out of food before they can break down the walls of his castle. Then we hear the screams of women from inside the castle, which Macbeth didn’t recognise. He then says something about his inability to feel fear. Then he discovers the screamer was his wife as she died. Then he speaks, and in that speech, Shakespeare talks about how life is just a player on a stage. He is despairing. Then a messenger comes in and talks of how Birnam forest is walking towards his castle.
Quote: “Direness, familiar to my slaughterous thoughts, Cannot once start me.” this is said by Macbeth, after hearing a woman scream(His wife dying), and realising he hasn’t felt fear in a while. Then he says this, which counts towards how insane he is, as he talks about how he continues to think horrible, murderous thoughts about everyone, and he doesn’t even care. At this point the reader/watcher will begin to realise that Macbeth is truely lost. He doesn’t feel fear, he wants to kill and he can’t see a problem in this, and his reaction to someone screaming was that, he doesn’t care. Macbeth has lost all his empathy for anyone but himself, and even then, he reckons that it doesn’t matter as he “Can’t be killed.”