Macbeth

Macbeth - Shakespeare's use of language and imagery

Carefully read Macbeth's dagger monologue from Act 2 Scene 1 ("Is this a dagger which I see before me..."). How does Shakespeare uses language and imagery to establish Macbeth's frame of mind.

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Shakespeare questions the sanity of his own senses when the dagger appears. He personifies his senses by insisting his eyes, much like his emotional state, are unbalanced. The imagery of the blood flooding out of the dagger represents the blood of Duncan and Macbeth's own gnawing guilt. The reoccurring motif of insanity and violence is evident in his soliloquy.

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