How Does Shakespeare Incorporate Literary Traditions Into Macbeth? Essay

In the play Macbeth Shakespe be uses a wide range of literary traditions frequently For example, ideas of tragic form are used, with aspects of both Senecan and Aristotlean concepts. The play consists of five acts, a traditional number, following the rise and fall of the tragic adept Macbeth. Elizabethan language conventions are followed, with numerous examples of rhyming couplets, imagery, personification, metaphors and similes used to project settings and aspects of characters.Macbeth follows the ideas of both Senecan and Aristotlean tragedies, using their concepts of how a tragedy should be set pop and how it should flow. The play has five acts that separate the play out into the stages of the rise and fall of Macbeth, the central character. The first act explains his rise to the position of thane of Cawdor and the beginnings of the witches influence over him. The jiffy act follows his position to its highest point it firstly sees the death of Duncan, an act carried out by Macb eth, greatly influenced at this point by the witches.In this act Macbeth is promoted to poove following the death of Duncan for which he is non suspected. Act three sees an ever increasing influence from the witches which results in a spectacular turn around of Macbeths position as he begins to break down after the banquet scene in which the ghost of Banquo is seen. This turning point signals the beginning of the downfall of Macbeth track eventually to his death in act five. The events in the banquet scene arouse suspicion of Macbeth as he cries openly in front of a figure that no one else present can see.Hence horrible shadow,unreal mockery hence(3.4.106-7)During the play Macbeth, both blank verse and prose are used in a structural way. The contrast between the flowing speech of blank verse used by the more important and intentional characters and the ordinary speech or prose used by the more lowly or uneducated characters is designed and incorporated to read the differences i n social office between them. This difference is bear witnessd well by the porter who opens the doors of the castle on the night of Duncans murder.He speaks in prose and rambles on, as he is provided a servant of Macbeths with little or no social status. Macbeth however as he is the central character in the play and a lord or Thane of high social status speaks almost entirely in rhyming verse. Iambic pentameters are used in the play to invalidate monotony as they give rhythm to a sentence and stress the more important words in it. An example of this is I have thee not and yet I see thee still (2,1,35) which is said by Macbeth as he sees the dagger before him but cannot touch it. In this sentence the more important words are obviously emphasized as shown by the underlining.Rhyming couplets are part of another literary tradition and are similarly used to give a natural and obvious conclusion to a speech, this property was used by Shakespeare as a cue for other actors as it could easily be remembered and recognised by them. Rhyming couplets are also used to indicate supernatural powers of a character in a play, as they sound unusual and ghostlike when spoken. This can be demonstrated in this speech by the weird sistersFair is foul and foul is fair lallygag through fog and filthy air.Shakespeare uses a number of examples of imagery, personification, metaphors and similes in the play. Imagery is used to project many of the themes of the play. One method of imagery used by Shakespeare is clothing, which displays the theme that appearances can be deceptive. For example in act one when Macbeth is given the title, thane of cawdor he asks, why do you dress me in borrowed robes?(1.3.108-9) as he believes that the thane of Cawdor still lives. Later in the play another reference to clothing is used inNow does he feel his titlehang clear about him, like a giants robeupon a dwarfish plunderer?(5.2.20-3)This refers to Macbeths unsuitability as king he is a dwarfish thi ef who has stolen the title of king from the true king.Another chain of images used in the play relate to stemma, which is used frequently in reports of murders and in describing people and events to demonstrate the brutality of the play and of the acts committed in it. Imagery is used vividly to describe the murdered Duncan and after the murder of Banquo Macbeth says to one of his murderers Theres blood upon thy face(3.4.12). This shows that the murder must have been particularly violent, as blood has sprayed onto the face of the murderer.Metaphors and similes are also used frequently in the play to demonstrate the deception that is used by Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. This intended deception is shown byYour hand your tongue look like thinnocent howerbut be the serpent undert.This sentence shows that the intention of Macbeth is to look innocent and pleasant on the surface in order to deceive someone into a dour sense of security in order to get rid of them by murdering them.Througho ut Macbeth Shakespeare has used a number of different literary traditions, which enhance the dramatic effect of the play for the modern day audience, and to include popular traditional values for the audience for whom it was intended.