Macbeth

Question 1

How does Shakespeare present guilt in the play as a whole?

Answer 1

-Guilt haunts Macbeth, both as a ghost that he sees, as well as the heaviness on his conscious
-Macbeth’s guilt is focused on the murder, as he expresses his greatest remorse directly before and after he kills Duncan.

Question 2

How is Macbeth presented throughout the play?

Answer 2

Macbeth is presented as a tragic hero, as at the start of the play he is portrayed as a brave warrior. This is shown through Macbeth first being shown on the battlefield. Then later, after killing Duncan Macbeth begins to gain an alternative personality and then presents himself as more of a frightened man that then reveals to be a dictating tyrant.

Question 3

What does the quote “Is this a dagger which I see before me” show

Answer 3

It shows Macbeth being consumed by his desires to kill the king which drives him to infer that he wants to kill Duncan.