Themes, Symbols and

Motifs

MACBETH
Ambition

The weird sisters' prophecies

spur both Macbeth and Lady By contrasting these two
He allows his ambition to
Macbeth to try to fulfill their characters with others in the
overwhelm him and becomes a
ambitions, but the witches play, such as Banquo, Duncan,
murdering, paranoid maniac.
never make Macbeth or his and Macduff.
wife do anything.
 Macbeth

Guilt Lady
Macbeth

Macduff
 Macbeth

Madness Lady
Macbeth

Nature
Gender Roles

Macbeth: Masculinity challenged by Lady Macbeth

Lady Macbeth: Rejection of gender roles

Lady Macduff: questions gender roles

Wired Sisters: Rejection of gender binary

Fate or Free Will?

the final answers are ambiguous—as fate always is

Is it real? Is action necessary to make it come to pass, or will

the prophecy come true no matter what one does?
Opposing
forces Salvation and
Virtue and evil
Damnation

Loyalty,
Reason and
honour versus
passion
regicide
Symbols

Visions Blood Sleep

Motifs

Bad
Violence Prophesy
Weather