Skip to main content

To what disease is Macbeth referring? How is this ironic?

In Act 5, scene 3, Macbeth gets a report about his wife's apparent illness from her physician. The doctor says that she is "troubled with thick-coming fancies / That keep her from her rest" (5.3.47-48). There is nothing physically wrong with her; her illness is in her mind. Macbeth's response is somewhat insensitive. He says,


Cure her of that. Canst thou not minister to a mind diseased, Pluck from the memory a rooted sorrow,Raze...

In Act 5, scene 3, Macbeth gets a report about his wife's apparent illness from her physician. The doctor says that she is "troubled with thick-coming fancies / That keep her from her rest" (5.3.47-48). There is nothing physically wrong with her; her illness is in her mind. Macbeth's response is somewhat insensitive. He says,



Cure her of that.
Canst thou not minister to a mind diseased,
Pluck from the memory a rooted sorrow,
Raze out the written troubles of the brain,
And with some sweet, oblivious antidote
Cleanse the stuffed bosom of that perilous stuff
Which weighs upon the heart?  (5.2.49-55)



In other words, Macbeth expects a doctor of the body to do something to Lady Macbeth's body in order to change something happening in her mind. He wants the physician to somehow "minister" to his wife, to somehow extract the terrible memory she keeps reliving, to destroy her mental troubles, or perhaps give her something that will make her forget whatever it is that so weighs on her. His expectations are ironic given the nature of Lady Macbeth's ailment: she feels guilty, and there is no medical cure for guilt.


Macbeth's response is ironic, as well, because he sounds as callous as his wife once did in regard to guilt. Immediately after the murder, she scolded him for dwelling on his guilt, saying, "These deeds must not be thought / After these ways; so, it will make us mad" (2.2.45-46). Now she has actually been driven mad as a result of her guilt, and her once-weak husband is the one who acts as though it is so easy to simply put one's guilt behind them. We would likely not expect such a reversal in attitude.

Labels

Labels:

Popular posts from this blog

In chapter one of The Great Gatsby, what advice does Nick's father give him? How does this make him a good person to tell this story?

Nick says that his father advised him that, before "criticizing anyone," he "remember that all the people in this world haven't had the same advantages" as Nick.  As a result, Nick claims that he is "inclined to reserve all judgments," presenting himself to the reader as a fair and dispassionate arbiter of character, and thus, a reliable narrator.   The problem is that Nick immediately reveals himself as anything but reliable, as he then launches... Nick says that his father advised him that, before "criticizing anyone," he "remember that all the people in this world haven't had the same advantages" as Nick.  As a result, Nick claims that he is "inclined to reserve all judgments," presenting himself to the reader as a fair and dispassionate arbiter of character, and thus, a reliable narrator.   The problem is that Nick immediately reveals himself as anything but reliable, as he then launches into a discussion of how pe...
Post a Comment
Read more

How did the United States become an imperial power?

"Imperial power" is a bit of a vague label. It tends to mean several things at once, so let's unpack it. In the sense of "this country was built on conquest by force," the "imperial power" part of America actually predates the United States proper. The territories that would become the United States were imperial colonies, established by the great European empires of the 17th and 18th centuries. Much of the US Constitution and American governance generally goes back to England, history's largest and most successful imperial power, but vital aspects of American culture come from other imperial powers, such as France and Spain. Much of American culture comes from sources other than the old empires, but they were key influences on what the United States became. In the sense of "this country treats conquest by force as a fundamental component of its culture, economy and politics," the United States has always been an imperial power. Even earl...
Post a Comment
Read more

How and why does James Gatz become Jay Gatsby? Describe the young Gatsby/Gatz.

James Gatz, a poor Midwestern boy of probable Jewish lineage, becomes Jay Gatsby, a presumed WASP and wealthy socialite, when he moves to New York City and acquires his fortune. It is wealth that has allowed Gatz to transform himself into Gatsby. However, those who know his background (e.g., Daisy and Tom Buchanan) never allow him to forget that he is nouveau riche -- that is, an upstart who has just recently made his fortune,... James Gatz, a poor Midwestern boy of probable Jewish lineage, becomes Jay Gatsby, a presumed WASP and wealthy socialite, when he moves to New York City and acquires his fortune. It is wealth that has allowed Gatz to transform himself into Gatsby. However, those who know his background (e.g., Daisy and Tom Buchanan) never allow him to forget that he is nouveau riche -- that is, an upstart who has just recently made his fortune, whereas they arose from well-to-do families. Gatz became Gatsby through determination and discipline. At the end of the novel, the narr...
Post a Comment
Read more