ENGLISH LITERATURE (CBSE/UGC NET)

Detailed explanation-1: -When Lady Macbeth kills herself, Macbeth states, “Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more” (V.V. 19-28). In other words, Macbeth compares his existence to the condition of being a mere ghost.

Detailed explanation-2: -Out, out, brief candle! Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player, That struts and frets his hour upon the stage, And then is heard no more. Life is like a candle which burns for a short while only, so Macbeth argues that it should just be put out, since it will soon be ‘out’ anyway.

Detailed explanation-3: -William Shakespeare quote about life from Macbeth: “Life’s but a walking shadow; a poor player, that struts and frets his hour upon the stage, and then is heard no more: it is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”

Detailed explanation-4: -This soliloquy is a metaphor that compares life to an actor saying his lines on stage. ‘Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player/That struts and frets his hour upon the stage/And then is heard no more: it is a tale/Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, /Signifying nothing.

Detailed explanation-5: -“Fair is foul, and foul is fair.”