Macbeth Light and Darkness

A detailed Summary of Macbeth Light and Darkness

The opposition of light and dark as symbols for life and death is the foundation upon which much of Shakespeare's Macbeth is built. Darkness in our society is indicative of many symbols of evil. For instance, a black cat, dark night, and dark place are all ominous symbols. Light, as it is used in Macbeth, often seems to be indicative of truth or life. The contrast between light and dark in Macbeth can best be seen through the dialogue of the characters and the ambiance of scenes in the play.

The characters in Macbeth make several references to light and darkness throughout the play. For example in Act 1 Macbeth says, "Stars, hide your fires; let not see my black and deep desires..." (Bevington pgs.632-633). Macbeth does not want the light, or his goodness, to see that he wants to murder King Duncan in order to receive the crown. Later on in that same act, Lady Macbeth cries out, "Come, thick night, and pall the in the dunnest smoke of hell, that my keen knife see not the wound it makes, nor the heaven peep through the blanket of the dark" (Bevington pg. 635). Lady Macbeth does not want anyone to see what she will do, and she also does not want to see it herself. The darkness, or evil, will cover her deed, and the light,

The imagery of light and darkness plays an important role in the scenes wherein murders occur. For example, in Act 2 while Fleance and Banquo are discussing the conditions of the night, Fleance states, "The moon is down." and Banqo replies, "There is husbandry in heaven; / Their candles are all out." (Bevington, pg. 641). In this exchange the reader learns that the moon is down and the night is starless. This is exactly the kind of night that Macbeth wanted because he thought it might conceal his guilt that he was feeling and make him brave to kill Duncan. Soon after Macbeth has murdered Duncan, Ross reveals that the "Traveling lamp", which is the sun, should be lighting the new day, and speculates that the night is stronger than the day, or that the day is ashamed of itself. Given that the sun did not rise, it can be surmised that the goodness of the light could not be shed on such a sinister and bloody murder scene. Later on in Act 3 the relationship between light and life is again presented. Under the veil of the darkness of the night, the murders make out a light, being held by Banquo before they murder him. This light, which Banquo holds, represents the life that the murders have extinguished.

In Macbeth, Shakespeare made the majority of evil actions occur during the night in order to attest to the fact that evilness is correlated with darkness. Conversely, Shakespeare linked the aspect of light with a certain goodness or truth. These elements combine to contrast t

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Approximate Word count = 1006
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English