Thursday 16 March 2017

How has Macbeth murdered sleep in act 2 of Macbeth?

In Act 2 of Macbeth, Macbeth recounts his act in murdering Duncan and explains: 


Methought I heard a voice cry “Sleep no more!/Macbeth does murder sleep”—the innocent sleep,/ Sleep that knits up the raveled sleave of care,/ The death of each day’s life, sore labor’s bath,/ Balm of hurt minds, great nature’s second course,/ Chief nourisher in life’s feast.


In this quotation we can take sleep to mean two things.  First, the act of committing...

In Act 2 of Macbeth, Macbeth recounts his act in murdering Duncan and explains: 



Methought I heard a voice cry “Sleep no more!/Macbeth does murder sleep”—the innocent sleep,/ Sleep that knits up the raveled sleave of care,/ The death of each day’s life, sore labor’s bath,/ Balm of hurt minds, great nature’s second course,/ Chief nourisher in life’s feast.



In this quotation we can take sleep to mean two things.  First, the act of committing murder is ultimately putting someone to sleep permanently.  Here sleep is portrayed as "innocent," a "cleave of care," and a "bath" as well as a "balm."  All of these things highlight the nourishing and healing powers of sleep, which Macbeth has ultimately corrupted for his own purposing in committing murder.  In this way, Macbeth has robbed Duncan of this healing power by murdering him in his sleep.  Moreover, Macbeth continues in the act saying: 



Still it cried “Sleep no more!” to all the house. “Glamis hath murdered sleep, and therefore Cawdor Shall sleep no more. Macbeth shall sleep no more.”



In this instance, Macbeth is exclaiming that all of his territories and all of those in his house will sleep no more.  And ultimately he will not be able to sleep any longer.  In this sense of the term we see that Macbeth will "lose sleep" over the heinous act that he has committed. In this way, Macbeth has murdered his own sleep because he will never be able to rest given the terrible things that he has done and the resulting remorse that he feels. Given these two quotations taken together, Macbeth has murdered sleep because one cannot rest in his presence (given that he is a dangerous person) and Macbeth will not be able to sleep given the remorse and guilt that he feels from the murder that he has committed.   

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