Images of birds in Shakespeare's "Macbeth" - Part 1 (2023)

This is a paper I wrote for a course on the works of Shakespeare in college. As a side note, the professor for this class was one of the best I've had. You could go to his class hating English and literature and at least come out enjoying it. His love of teaching was contagious. This assignment has given me a deeper appreciation for this magnificent piece, and I hope you will too.

Blessings to you and yours,

~ Madelyn Rose Craig

Macbethis a story about witches, murder mysteries, secrecy and superstition. Most of the story revolves around the supernatural and untouchable forces. Some of these superstitions, however, are lurking in the feathers of higher-level creatures, creatures that are frequently found on the pages of Shakespeare's play but often go unnoticed in the larger scope of the story. As Spurgeon writes of Shakespeare's animal pictures: “Of the great group of animals, the outstanding point is the large number which are of birds. … Shakespeare's tender pictures make up by far the largest part.” (48). Birds in ShakespeareMacbethplay a surprisingly important role in the nature of the piece. They are not placed as a casually mentioned description, but the birds are often used to characterize a person or add more meaning to the atmosphere of a scene.

Some of these birds are dire omens, as their presence brings the worst of calamities. Others are a sign of prosperity and peace. Besides the actual naming of birds, there are also many tangential references to them. The use of fly and flight occurs eleven times, wing three, and the word bird six times. Macbeth's last lines state that he cannot fly as if he were a captive bird (5.7.1). The imagery of the bird is used well by Shakespeare because it is both poetically beautiful and culturally significant. Yet for today's reader, these birds mean little beyond name, shape, and perhaps color if the reader is knowledgeable about bird species. It is therefore important to explain the symbolism and portents behind the birds that Shakespeare uses to understand an underlying message of the play. Shakespeare uses birds as symbols to represent the ambiance of a situation and to describe the nature of the characters in his playMacbethwhich, if they know what they symbolize, give the reader an additional deeper understanding of the piece.

throughMacbeth,There are many general references to birds. Most of these uses are related to escape, such as B. Escape from a place. The first occurrence is at the time of Banquo's assassination, when he says to his son, "Fly, good Fleance, fly, fly, fly!" (3.3.17). The next event is when Lennox tells another lord that a messenger must "fly" to England to report the evils afflicting the land (3.6.45-49). After her husband's escape, Lady Macduff Ross questions why her husband had to "fly over land," an act she calls insanity (4.2.1, 3). Macbeth, frustrated by reports of the Lords who have forsaken him, brazenly says, "Let them all fly." (5.3.1). The last use of the word fly is when Macbeth relates how trapped he is when he claims, "They tied me to a stake; I cannot fly” (5.7.1).

Flight is also used not only in reference to a person fleeing, but also to Banquo's "soul flight" to their resting place (3.1.140-141). There is also a reference to a bat fleeing to the witch Hecate to fulfill her evil duty (3.2.43-44). Duncan uses the beautiful word "wings" to express how slow the payback for good deeds is compared to how quick Macbeth does them (1.4.16-18). The crow "flies" to its home in the "Rooky Wood" and leaves the night and bad news to the owl (3.2.50-51). The scene with Lady Macduff and her son includes birds; In fact, Lady Macduff once calls her infant son a bird and twice to herself (4.2). This scene also mentions ways of catching a bird, such as nets, lime, snares, and gin (4.2.34-35). The last use of the word bird is an indirect reference to the owl as "obscure bird" and to the martlet, both of which are discussed below along with another direct designation (2.3.59; 1.6.7).

This first use of a specific aviary description occurs in the opening act of the play. The battle draws to a close, the generals confer with their king, and the success of a great man is discussed. Macbeth, a general along with Macduff and Banquo, is described by a messenger to his king as a noble bird: an eagle (1.2.34-35). The eagle is a large bird of prey, territorial and fierce in nature. Such a description fits Macbeth, who was only defending his country. The reporting messenger mentions that just as the battle was about to be won, new enemy recruits were arriving against Macbeth, Banquo, and their men. When asked whether this "dismayed" the captains, the messenger replies with a joke and says: "As the sparrows the eagles, or the hare the lion." (1.2.34-35). Obviously a lion would not be afraid of a rabbit, nor would an eagle be afraid of a tiny sparrow. Macbeth, symbolized as an eagle, is thus both noble and fierce. Macdonwald, on the other hand, is described as exactly the opposite. He is an ordinary sparrow, a tiny bird of little importance; harmless, peaceful, and more of a nuisance than a worrying creature to a man with a fighting spirit like Macbeth's.

Soon after this first use, the sparrow is mentioned again and described as having a similarly harmless character. King Duncan, approaching the castle with Banquo, comments on the "pleasant air" that surrounds it. Likewise, Banquo observes the calm scene around him and comments on how warm and full of little birds called martlets (1.6.3-8). These little birds are a sparrow species and, as mentioned, harmless. In fact, Banquo notes that they "haunt temples," i. H. Birds that live in temples, perhaps alluding to the psalmist who says that swallows and sparrows build their nests in God's temple, and the air around the house praises peacefully, for these birds nest only where "the air is delicate is” (Holy Bible: NIV, Psa. 1.3; 1.6.3-8). This sighting of the peacefully nesting bird announces at the entrance to Macbeth's castle that this place is a place of safety and life. Also, the air Duncan mentions could also be a reference to their birds filling them, which he recommends "nimble and sweet" (1.6.2). These birds are used as a symbol of peace and security in this apartment. They even symbolize life itself, since the bird only sets up its "birth cradle" where the air is harmless (1.6.8).

But life will not be found here, and the presence of these martlets, like many other characters in the play, can be deceptive. Another name for Martlet is Martin, which in the "sixteenth and seventeenth centuries was a sort of slang term for a 'dupe' 'Martin'" (Spurgeon 188-9). Thus Shakespeare probably intended his readers to overlook the bird's innocent nature and foresee the deception to come (Spurgeon 188). Just lines before the reference to the Martin, a messenger of death came to this place and foretold the death of these men who are speaking. Lady Macbeth, who has just read her husband's message, is informed by a servant that King Duncan will soon be at her house to rest. The bird she names the messenger is a raven (1.5.38-40). According to Hazlitt in his bookbeliefs and folklore of the British Isles,The raven is a harbinger of terrible things, an ill omen, and a harbinger of death (Hazlitt 507). He quotes another when he says: "By ravens both public and private disasters and death were heralded" (Hazlitt 507). Again he says, "Private men were warned of their death by ravens . . . a messenger of death," and names one such man who was forewarned as Cicero (Hazlitt 507). Hazlitt even goes so far as to say that "the croaking of a raven" is counted among the "omens" and that if one hears "a raven croaking from the nearest roof, he should immediately make his will" (Hazlitt 508).

So this raven inMacbeth, croaking his hoarse message to his beloved, brings the news of death to the king. The mere presence of a raven is itself a warning that great misfortune is about to happen, and in just words, the Lady Macbeth, having gained knowledge of her enemy's impending arrival, devises a plan that will bring about the downfall of her king (1.5) . Shakespeare shows his knowledge of the superstitions of the time by using such symbols in his writings. People would have known that this bird was a messenger of death. And as the play unfolds, that omen proves true.

A different but smaller bird of prey is also used by Shakespeare: a kite. This bird is a type of hawk - a small, swift bird. Macbeth first mentions it when speaking to the spirit of Banquo when he says, "Our graves must send back / Those we bury our monuments / Shall be Dragon's Maw" (1.7.71-72). These lines show the carnivorous nature of a dragon, with Macbeth even going so far as to say that they will eat the flesh of men, their bellies becoming the graves of men. But later in the play, Macduff uses a dragon to represent the character of Macbeth. Dismayed by the death of his wife and children, he calls Macbeth a "hell dragon" (4.3.218). Although no such bird actually exists, the use of Hell verbally exaggerates Macduff's anger at Macbeth and reinforces Macbeth's destructive nature. Macduff says shortly after Macbeth was renamed that this "hell dragon" murdered his family "in one fell swoop" (4.3.220). Such formulations create the image of a large bird of prey swooping down on its great wings and moving swiftly to capture an unsuspecting creature for it to feast upon. Once again this refers to Macbeth's use of dragons saying that "our monuments shall be / dragon's maw" for the graves of the Macduffs shall be wherever the mouth of Macbeth proclaims them (3.4.71-72).

Before the revelation of his family's death, Macduff's wife appears on stage while talking to their son, whom she calls a bird (4.2). She currently feels, and rightly so, abandoned by her master. She describes herself as a wren who, although a tiny bird, "will fight" (4.2.8-11). The wren, as described in Hazlitt's books, was known by the Greeks and Spanish respectively as the "little king" or simply "king" (Hazlitt 665-6). The Latins, Danes, and Italians also referred to the bird as "king," "chicken king," and "little king" (Hazlitt 665-6). Therefore, Macduff must be regal by nature, or at least noble, to be a wren's mate. Hazlitt also mentions that the wren "though so small molests the eagle, which rules over all other birds" (Hazlitt 665-6). Many other cultures also entitle this little bird with royal statues, and even the Druids, the native people of the islands, regard the little wren as "king of all birds" (Hazlitt 665-66).

Originally, Macbeth was described as a great eagle unperturbed by small birds such as sparrows. But here it is shown that some small birds are culturally a nuisance to what is normally regarded as the ruler of birds. The cultural references show the reality of the game situation. This eagle seems more than a little excited by such a small bird as it rushes off to kill her. Also, Macbeth's character bird changes from an eagle to an owl, the bird Lady Macduff entitles him to and will soon fight (4.2.11). As Macduff later finds out, all of his "pretty hens and their mother" were killed by Macbeth (4.3.219-220). Apparently, some small birds get caught in the "net" and "lime" (4.2.34).

continued inPart 2