Imagery of Snakes in Macbeth Essay examples -- European Literature

In the biblical check of Genesis, eve is tempted by a serpent to commit an ungodly guess of eating a forbidden fruit. As a result of the snakes temptation, Eve eats the fruit, resulting in the presence of worldwide sin and the downf altogether of perfection. From this novel of Adam and Eve, the figure of the snake has become generally associated with temptation, evil, and cynicism. William Shakespeargon employs this symbolic mental imagery of snakes in Macbeth, to conjure the story of the rise and fall of Macbeths power. For poetic and playwright purposes, Shakespeare uses serpentine imagery to reveal the malevolence of char get alongers, and portray the threatening spot of the thr i, all while provoking a heightened emotion of fear and calamity from the audience.The first image of the snake is revealed during the initial arrival of evil. In act one, scene five, Lady Macbeth cries out for evil to fulfill her, so that she usher out posses the power to commit acts of trea son. She describes this process as unsexing herself. Come to my womans breasts and take my take out for gall, you murdring ministers (1.5.48-49). In ancient history it was believed that the venom of serpents was produced from their gall1. The process of unsexing herself could, as a result, be perceived as a metaphorical transformation into a snakelike creature. The unsexing process is an important part of the evil and complexity that Shakespeare was attempting to explain throughout the story, in order to invoke emotion from the audience. This unsexing process non only brings about a theme of witchcraft, but it also introduces a complex situation that the character must face whether or not to give up good and loyalty for personal ambition. This decision is one that p... ...ke. The imagery of snakes throughout the story of Macbeth contributes to the mood and poetic prose of Shakespeare. Yet much importantly, the snake is a symbolic figure for malevolence and treachery. S hakespeare uses the snake to enhance the quality of his characters, and provide insight into their malevolence. The serpentine image also provokes emotion. As the story of Macbeth is a tragedy, the snake images provide a dark contrastive mood to the play, designed to heighten the sense of fear from the audience. People are generally afraid snakes, and Shakespeare uses this object as a tool to uphold certain fears of the characters to the audience. Shakespeare is able to develop his characters while capturing the emotion of his audience all by his use of serpentine imagery. Works cited1. Oxford English Dictionary. Search gall.