Ambition Flashcards
(15 cards)
Write an intro for how the theme of ambition is presented in Macbeth.
Write a conclusion for how the theme of ambition is presented in Macbeth.
Roughly plan an essay stating ‘how is the theme of ambition presented in Macbeth?’
What would your thesis statement be for how ambition is presented in Macbeth?
State 6 quotations relating to the theme of ambition in Macbeth.
- ‘Come you spirits’ ‘unsex me here’.
- You are too full of the milk of human kind’
- ‘Stars hide your fires, let not light see my black and need desires’.
- ‘Upon my head they placed a fruitless crown’
- ‘Out damned spot! Out I say!’
- ‘Life’s but a walking shadow’
Analyse the quotation: ‘Stars hide your fires, let not light see my black and deep desires’
Analyse the quotation: ‘Come you spirits’, ‘Unsex me here’.
- Lady Macbeth’s desire for the spirits to ‘unsex’ her highlights her belief that ambitions can only be fulfilled by a masculine role.
- She defies Jacobean expectations as she wishes to be rid of all compassion and weakness - attributes associated with women at that time - in order to acquire the ‘cruelty’ she needs to commit regicide.
- LM appears willing to act on her ambition, reinforced by the imperative verb ‘come’, which creates an almost urgent tone. However we infer that her call upon the supernatural means she is not a cruel character by nature.
- This foreshadows her inability to deal with guilt at the end of the play.
Analyse the quotation: ‘Is this a dagger that I see before me’
Analyse the quotation: ‘Out damned spot! Out I say!’
- Through LM’s guilt and madness, Shakespeare is presenting the tragic consequences of misplaced ambition.
- Sleep emblematises innocence, highlighting that LM’s sleepwalking is a result of her guilt.
- The repetition of ‘Out’ highlights her desperation to cleanse the metaphorical ‘spot’ of guilt, which is symbolic of the blood on her hands and her conscience.
- The exclamation ‘I say!’ emphasises her command over the ‘spot’ showcasing her initial assertive nature, while also revealing the irony of her inability to control guilt.
- This quotation contrasts with her earlier claim that ‘a little water clears us of this deed’. LM tragic fate serves as a warning to the contemporary audience against overthrowing King James because of their ambition.
Analyse the quotation: ‘You are too full of the milk of human kind’.
Analyse the quotation: ‘Upon my head, a fruitless crown was placed.’
Which characters relate to the theme of ambition?
- Macbeth
- Lady Macbeth
- Banquo? Can use as a comparison for Macbeth 👍
How does the theme of ambition relate to the divine right of kings?
How does the theme of ambition relate to regicide?
How does the theme of ambition relate to King James I?
