Darkness, Sign of Chaos in Macbeth
Darkness, Sign of Chaos in MacbethDarkness in our society is indicative of evil. For instance, a black cat, a dark night, and a dark place are all symbolic of
diablerie. Authors use these symbols to describe an evil character or
setting. William Shakespeare employs the imagery of darkness in Act 4
of his play Macbeth to describe the agents of disorder. The witches,
Macbeth, and Scotland are all described as dark because they represent
the agents of chaos.
The witches in the first scene of Act 4 are depicted as
agents of chaos because of the dark domain around them. The
witches meet in a dark cave. The cave is an appropriate setting for
the witches because caves tend to represent the under-world and hell,
creating a feeling of evil. The witches appearance, "secret, black,
and midnight hags" also indicates their evil nature. The witches dark
meeting place and dark appearance all emphasize their destructive
nature.
Macbeth in Act 4: consulted with the witches, murdered
Macduff's family, and continued to create chaos in Scotland. Macbeth
in Act 4 is described as an agent of disorder, "untitled tyrant
bloody-sceptered". The language in Act 1 that described Macbeth has
changed from "noble" and "kind" to the diction of Act 4 witch
describes Macbeth as "black Macbeth" and a "tyrant". The Castle that
Macbeth lives in, Dunsanine is also indicative of darkness. Dunsanine
is similar...
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