ENGLISH LITERATURE (CBSE/UGC NET)

FAMOUS PLAYWRIGHT POET AND OTHERS

MACBETH

Question [CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
What does Macbeth say about life by using a metaphor for theater?
A
Life is like a haunting story that may be told by an idiot but is full of emotion and meaning.
B
Life is like an actor who presents us with his/her problems and we remember them forever.
C
Life is like an actor who frets over his lines but ultimately does a great job on stage.
D
Life is nothing more than an illusion and is devoid of meaning.
Explanation: 

Detailed explanation-1: -This quote, spoken by Macbeth, means that life is brief and meaningless. In comparing life to an actor who “struts” for only an hour upon the stage and then “is heard no more, ” Macbeth is commenting on the fleeting nature of life.

Detailed explanation-2: -In Macbeth, Shakespeare uses an extended metaphor in the final act to compare life to a shadow. Macbeth proclaims, ‘’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-3: -The metaphors Shakespeare uses, comparing life to a “walking shadow” and man to “a poor player” emphasize the fleeting nature of life. Shadows are gone as soon as they appear, and actors only assume their character: the people they represent have no true meaning.

Detailed explanation-4: -’O, full of scorpions is my mind, dear wife! ‘ Macbeth uses a metaphor to explain that his guilty conscience is attacking and stinging him.

Detailed explanation-5: -His speech insists that there is no meaning or purpose in life. Rather, life “is a tale / Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, / Signifying nothing.” One can easily understand how, with his wife dead and armies marching against him, Macbeth succumbs to such pessimism.

There is 1 question to complete.