ENGLISH LITERATURE (CBSE/UGC NET)

FAMOUS PLAYWRIGHT POET AND OTHERS

MACBETH

Question [CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
What is Macbeth saying in his “tomorrow” speech?
A
Life is full of ups and downs
B
Life is full of surprises
C
You only live once
D
Life is meaningless
Explanation: 

Detailed explanation-1: -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.

Detailed explanation-2: -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: -In this famous speech of Macbeth, he discusses the futility of life. However one tries or aspires, all, in the end, lead to the same end. Macbeth sees life as a “shadow” that is meaningless and void. Every “tomorrow” just creeps by at a slow pace without any differences to other days.

Detailed explanation-4: -In summary, Macbeth’s speech is about the futility and illusoriness of all life and everything we do: we are all bound for the grave, and life doesn’t seem to mean anything, ultimately. He is responding to the news that Lady Macbeth is dead here; it’s the beginning of the end for him.

Detailed explanation-5: -In this soliloquy Macbeth is a man for whom life has ceased to have meaning. He starts with a statement of the futility of life and of time itself with images of time – tomorrow, yesterday, day, recorded time – using a rhythm that stretches time out, making it creep.

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