...THEMES OF GUILT – MACBETH In the story of Macbeth, guilt is an important theme due to the fact that it unstiffens Macbeth’s ambition and coldness. His brutality is balanced by his guilt, a trait that enables the audience to identify with Macbeth throughout the play despite his oppressiveness. MACBETH AND LADY MACBETH: The two main characters who experience extreme feelings of guilt throughout the play are Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Macbeth’s guilt is caused by the ghosts of those who he murdered and of the consequences that follow their murders. For example, Macbeth is visited by the ghost of Banquo, who he murdered to protect his secret. The apparition embodies Macbeth’s guilt and therefore causes Macbeth to nearly reveal the truth about King Duncan’s murder. Macbeth’s guilt prevents him from enjoying his gain of royalty but it does not stop him from committing more than 1 murders. This perhaps indicates a lack of morality, which is Macbeth’s key character flaw. Lady Macbeth on the overhand is driven crazy from the adrenaline of watching her husband commit such murders and is the force behind his actions. Unlike Macbeth’s...
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...power for their own sake. Macbeth explores many themes and ideas of the olden where people had many supernatural beliefs (e.g. withes) and other beliefs such as the kings’ power was believed to be directly given by god and therefore monarchs were answerable only to god. An important idea expressed in Macbeth is the guilt which is felt by few of the characters in the play, prominently being featured on Macbeth himself. Macbeth’s guilt is shown immediately after killing Duncan, in which Macbeth's senses are heightened and he is paranoid about being caught, which is why he jumps at every noise, 'How is't with me, when every noise appals me?'(Act 2, scene II), looking at his bloody hands, He wishes that he could take away his eyes that witnessed his crime. This quote and Duncan's blood is symbolic of Macbeth's guilt, in which Macbeth uses a metaphor, or indirect comparison, to compare his guilt for killing Duncan to blood on his hands. Another scene in the play where guilt is evident is when Lady Macbeth is sleepwalking and seems to be washing her hands, saying 'Out, damned spot! Out, I say!’(Act V scene I). These words by her clearly show her guilt coming to the surface as she sleeps and dreams. In this state, she attempts to clean Duncan's invisible blood off of her hands to banish her remorse. Both of these scenes shows that Shakespeare has represented guilt in different forms in the play and therefore guilt is one of the main idea/ theme in Macbeth. Another key idea shown throughout...
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...A broken heart can cause someone to be in a lot of pain. A person whom is broken should fill their heart with God. Only God can fill a heart wholly. The question that came to mind in this story was: Is God Good? This question filled my head with more and more questions of why or more specifically, why me? Growing up in a broken home, with a broken family, ultimately led to a broken heart. It was not until I understood that I could not go on, on my own. God showed me that it was time for me to let go and allow the Lord to start working in my life. Through all of the tough times in my life, I have come to realize that in the bad, with God behind it, blessings will come. Not only have I learned that, but I have also seen that just because you can not hear God speak directly, it does not mean God is not at work in your life. Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Bible Gateway) It may be hard for me to believe, sometimes, when all things are evil and tragic around me that God is near, but the silence of God is not proof that He is not...
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...used by Shakespeare to develop the theme of guilt in key scenes in both Macbeth and Hamlet. Guilt is defined as the remorseful awareness of having done something wrong. It was not unusual for Shakespeare to feature a lot of conflicted emotion in his plays, a favourite emotion for Shakespeare to right was guilt and therefore features heavily in his plays; Hamelt and Macbeth included. The use of guilt is often used to make the audience feel sympathy for the character or to change their perspective on the character as a whole; it is also used to drive the plot of the play and to create an atmosphere within the play. Macbeth showcases a lot of guilt to change the tone and atmosphere of the scene and to show how guilt affects religion and beliefs. For example in Act 2 Scene, after Macbeth has killed King Duncan, the audience finds him struggling with the guilt he feels. Shakespeare shows Macbeths guilt through his inability to say ‘Amen’ which would have previously come easily from him. But after killing Duncan Macbeth believes God has turned his back on him because he committed the biggest sin- Regicide- and have gone against the divine right of kings and so would no longer be under the protection of God. Furthermore, in his mini-soliloquy in Act 3 Scene 1 Macbeths says the murder of King Duncan “put rancours in the vessel of my peace”. This shows he is being tormented with a constant reminder of his crime and sins and this can be perceived as guilt coming out by the audience. Another...
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...has a reoccurring theme of embarrassment. The main character, Tim O’Brien himself, feels guilty about going to Vietnam because it contrasts all his moral standards. Though not all of the events that appear in the story are true, the story itself does convey an emotional truth. Balancing moral principles with patriotic pressures was a challenge faced by many during that summer of 1968. The short story makes it clear; no matter the person’s beliefs, the imposing threat of ridicule usually has greater influence....
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...Crucible was between John Proctor and himself. Because lying is a sin and in turn causes negative effects, John Proctor is forced to face the reality and the consequences of his deceitfulness. In the play The Crucible, John Proctor, the main character, endures multiple inner conflicts. He believes his affair with Abigail Williams, another citizen of Salem, has permanently damaged him and his worthiness in the eyes of God. After scolding Elizabeth Proctor, his wife, for continuing to be suspicious of his actions with Abigail and not giving him forgiveness, Elizabeth expresses that she does not judge him, but that it is, “The magistrate sitting in [his] heart that judges [him].” Lying is a recurring theme in The Crucible and Proctor’s actions with the affair is an example of this....
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...Grief: Kite Runner The author Khaled Hosseini expresses the theme guilt with a single phrase, "But, always, my mind returned to the alley. To Hassan's brown corduroy pants lying on the bricks" (Hosseini 91). The author expresses many themes throughout the book but grief is the most common and most captivating. But the feeling of guilt after committing our actions is what evokes the need to atone for the effects we have caused like Amir not acting when a friend was in need, Amir getting Sohrab, and Baba's betrayal to his friend Ali. Amir's story begins with an incident that haunted him throughout the book and this incident involved Hassan his best friend. He watched him get rapped and did nothing about it. He began thinking of one of Hassan's dreams with a monster in the lake, "There was a monster in the lake. It had grabbed Hassan by the ankles, dragged him to the murky bottom. I was that monster" (Hosseini 86). After a few years of suffering he went back to Afghanistan to find Hassan's son to help him forgive himself for his actions inability to act when they were children. This guilt he felt drove him to make things right with himself. Amir was reluctant at first to go into Kabul but he went through it due to Rahim Khan's death wish, for him to find and care for Sohrab. Amir witness the horror of the new war torn capital and the harsh treatment of the Taliban. But he never stopped from his mission to find Sohrab and he would do anything to get him back and to...
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...Vamsi Sutram Mrs. Smith American Literature 29 November 2014 Power of Guilt In modern society, concealing guilt is often given a negative connotation, however, the implications that are associated with guilt and sins are human creations. Guilt, the result of shameful mistakes, is associated with infirmity, cowardice, and self-centeredness due to the fear of exposure. These three mesmerizing works, The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, “The Pie” by Gary Soto and, “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller, address the theme of guilt and the consequences of concealing one’s guilt. The Scarlet Letter considered one of the most famous of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel, is set in the1850s in Boston, Massachusetts. The plot revolves around a Puritan community and a woman named Hester. “The Pie”, written in Fresno, California in 1991, is an autobiographical narrative that illustrates Soto’s sin when he steals a pie from the grocery store and experiences the feeling of guilt along with a few other consequences. “The Crucible” was written in 1953 and exposes the truths about the Salem Witchcraft trials, in Massachusetts. Ultimately, through their respective protagonists’ acts of aggression and violations of boundaries, authors Hawthorne, Soto, and Miller illustrate that the guilt derived from sin itself, especially if concealed from society, can cause emotional and mental torture, leading to everlasting internal punishment...
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...Discipleship Counseling Sharon Drexler Liberty University Abstract Neil Anderson’s book, entitled Discipleship Counseling is a complete guide to teach how to help those who are hurting. This book is a useful resource to counselors, pastors, church leaders, or anyone who needs a step by step guide to biblical counseling. Dr. Anderson gives readers a very strong foundation of counseling through Christ, the work of the Holy Spirit, truth, the counselee’s faith, and the support of the church and Christian community. He discusses the encourager’s role in discipleship counseling as well as the role of the person being counseled. Anderson makes it clear that both parties must be open to the Holy Spirit and his truth if one wishes to reach the road to recovery, and the healing and peace that can only be found through Jesus Christ. The book is broken into three distinct sections to help the reader better understand how to reach these goals. The first section gives a description of mental health. In the second section Dr. Anderson describes root issues and how to counsel the spiritually oppressed and in the third section he takes the reader step-by-step through the freedom appointment and the Steps to Freedom. Discipleship Counseling Christians who choose psychology as a career are often challenged with claims that are a direct contradiction to their own worldviews, doctrines, and theology. In their search to resolve these issues and to achieve the goal of integrating...
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...is wrong. “Dulce et Decorum est” is about a World War I veteran who tells the reader about an incident where the narrators company is ambushed by mustard gas and one of his allies die gruesomely. In “Five Day Requiem for Vietnam” by Nan Braymer, the author tells the reader about the Vietnam War and how the people did not want it to occur but the government made it happen. Both “Five Day requiem for Vietnam” by Nan Braymer and “Dulce et Decorum est” by Wilfred Owen use of allusions to show the good and evil to convey the theme that human nature has many facets and complexities, but Braymer...
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...Spilled salt – sprogrettelser The worst thing a parent can experience is when your own child commits a crime. Should parents forgive their own flesh and blood no matter what, and if so, what is unforgiveable? In what way can religion help the parent to forgive such a crime as rape or is it even possible? These dilemmas are mentioned in the short story “Spilled Salt”, written by Barbara Neely, published in 1990. Kenny is the son of Myrna. He is a former prisoner, because of rape of a girl named Crystal Roberts. Kenny only confessed the crime after the police found evidence for the incident, which shows his lack of honesty and therefore a problem for some to trust him. His childhood was tough, in that he grew up in a poor neighbourhood with a violent father. This can maybe be an indication to his actions later on. After Kenny has come home he tries to make up for his actions and acts like nothing has happened. This he do by making Myrna breakfast like he did in the past. For that reason Kenny seems to be carefree, he goes out to see his friends, which pulls him down into his old neighbourhood. This also concerns Myrna, “Tears slid down her face and salted the drink”(p.4, l.99). Kenny goes through a development; he develops from being Myrna’s son to a criminal with no honest relationship to his own mother. The protagonist of the story is Myrna, Kenny’s mother, who has a hard time accepting the crime Kenny has committed. After Kenny comes home from jail she starts to worry,...
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...Antezana Written Assignment April 23rd, 2012 Word Count: 1222 What significance does the theme of innocence versus guilty play in the novel, The Assualt, by Harry Mulisch? The novel, The Assault, is told against the backdrop of shifting Dutch post-war society, centered around significant points in that history. Mulisch paints a canvas of the difficulties of Dutch society in coming to terms with the events of the war. Mulisch faces significant questions of guilt and innocence when writing the novel thus leading to the hand of fate lurking strongly in the novel. The Assault becomes a morality play with much difficulty in determining and judging what right and wrong is, and guilty from innocence becomes a central theme throughout the novel in the lives of Anton Steenwijk, Fake Ploeg’s son, Cor Take and Karin Korteweg and Mr. Korteweg. Anton Steenwijk is the central protagonist in the novel and has been plagued with the murdering of his family at a very young age. Anton struggles to understand and comprehend the events that happened that very night which ultimately leads to his apathy for the subject. Anton’s apathy and attempts of forgetfulness toward the killings makes him guilty in the novel; however, the fact that Anton’s only mechanism for coping with the tragedy is detachment and forgetting gives him the characteristic of innocence thus raising important questions of guilt and innocence in his character. Anton’s apathetic characteristic can be seen when he gains the...
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...their life. Hester Prynne, Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, and Roger Chillingworth from Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter are no exception. These wrongdoings contribute to an overall theme of the novel. This theme is sin. There are many symbols in the novel that draw attention to this theme, such as color and the scarlet letter. There is more symbols that are present in the novel and have high importance, however these two stand out significantly. Through instances involving Hester, Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth, color and the mark of the scarlet letter drive the theme of sin within the novel. Hester’s relationship with her scarlet letter is a distinct example of how the symbol of the...
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...Orestes said, “Dear god, my father degraded so! Oh she’ll pay, she’ll pay by the gods and these bare hands- just let me take her life and die!” (Aeschylus, 196). However, one factor that differentiated Orestes’ reasoning to murder his mother was that the gods were commanding him to do so. Orestes said, “I can still hear the god...unless I hunt my father’s murderers, cut them down in their own style…’Gore them like a bull! He called, ‘or pay the debt with your own life, one long career of grief” (Aeschylus, 191). Throughout Libation Bearers, Orestes continually expresses his love and duty towards his family. Orestes said, “Send us justice, fight for all you love, or help us pin them grip for grip.They threw you- don’t you long to throw them down in return? “ (Aeschylus, 199). As readers, we see that Orestes was committed to being loyal to his father not only to show his love, but also to serve justice. Just as Clytemnestra...
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...Macbeth is one of William Shakespeare’s most famous plays. The theme is about how one’s ambition can lead to their fall if they let it get out of hand. Lady Macbeth is one of the most aggressive and ambitious characters of Shakespeare’s plays. Much of the fame of Macbeth should be credited to her because it was her ruthless and almost man-like nature that set her apart from other women in Shakespeare’s plays. She is a round and dynamic character in this play because she changes and develops as the story’s proceedings unfold and conflicts emerge. Throughout the play, Lady Macbeth gradually changes from being driven nearly entirely by ambition, to being manipulative of her husband to get her ways, and finally to becoming the complete opposite of her once strong-willed self. Lady Macbeth is seen as a woman of ambition in the beginning of Macbeth. Upon her discovery of Macbeth’s prophecies to become king, she immediately started to think about how to fulfill them. As her ambitious and cold nature overcame her conscience, she mapped out the murder of King Duncan with Macbeth. She came off as being very strong in the opening of the play. Shakespeare’s indirect characterization of her makes her unique from other female characters in his works, which is what sets Macbeth apart from the rest. Lady Macbeth has just as much ambition driving her as Macbeth has, if not more. Lynn M. Zott writes that Lady Macbeth’s ambition may be more aimed towards Macbeth’s successes and not solely hers...
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