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Sleep in Macbeth

Sleep in Macbeth

It is natural to want to sleep after working hard. If something goes wrong or if the conscience feels guilt, the body will not let the person rest. The conscience keeps the person awake to think about his sins and keep torturing him until he confesses. In the play Macbeth, William Shakespeare uses images of sleep to show the guilt of Macbeth's and Lady Macbeth's conscious. When the idea of the first murder enters their heads, things begin to go wrong. They no longer have the natural healthy, normal sleep. Their sleep is made up of nightmares and other disturbances. Only the admission of guilt or death can save them.
Strange things begin happening in Macbeth's mind when he decides to go through with the murder of Duncan. He sees the image of the dagger floating in front of him(53). This is his inner thoughts warning him on how unnatural this act is. When he goes to Duncan's chamber, he hears warnings from his conscious. At this po...

Posted by: William Katz

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