Murder. This treacherous act has been committed an uncountable number of times from the most trivial of affairs to the most serious of occasions, but it always has the same outcome. Blood. The gorey substance seeps out of the victim’s body and slowly invades his or her clothing only to create a stain that will never go away. This stain is not only visible on the victim’s clothing, but it is also constantly present on the conscience of the perpetrator and plagues his mind like a fast-spreading disease that cannot be stopped. It has been used as a symbol across countless literary works throughout history, and Shakespeare is no stranger to the concept. From bloody daggers to bloody hands, William Shakespeare’s tragic play Macbeth expresses …show more content…
He is tempted to take the life of King Duncan in order to become the new king himself, and against his better judgement, he commits the act and is covered with the king’s blood. At this point, the blood on Macbeth’s hands is literally there, and the crimson stain can be smelled, touched, and washed away. Even though the physical blood can be washed away, Macbeth knows it will stain his conscience for his entire life. He says with great worry and shame, “Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood / Clean from my hand?” (2.2.60-61). The blood on Macbeth’s hands symbolizes his eternal guilt he will have to suffer due to his destructive deeds. He becomes so paranoid that he is even worrying about the blood on the hands of his wife. Macbeth tells her, “And with thy bloody and invisible hand / Cancel and tear to pieces that great bond / Which keeps me paled!” (3.2.48-50). The figurative blood on Macbeth’s hands as well as hers greatens his feeling of guilt enough to cause him to fear for his own life. It now becomes obvious that blood is the focal point of the play, and it is also the most important symbol that Shakespeare depicts. Macbeth also states, “It will have blood; they say, blood will have blood” (3.4.124). This foreshadows that the play will continue to focus on blood as the main symbol until its denouement. In Kenneth Muir’s book, he says, “The Poet …show more content…
All throughout history, blood has been a common symbol used and was even portrayed in the bible in the same manner that Shakespeare used it. It says in the Old Testament, “From now on, when you lift up your hands in prayer, I will refuse to look. Even though you offer many prayers, I will not listen. For your hands are covered with the blood of you innocent victims” (Isaiah 1.15). This verse really helps express how the characters acquired blood on their hands but could not wash it away no matter hard they tried. The blood that blemishes their minds will forever be an image of their excessive wrongdoing and will be there for all eternity because “what’s done, / cannot be undone”