Question

Tragedy of Macbeth, Act I

(b) Analyze the impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone,
including language that is particularly fresh, engaging, or beautiful.
Identify a word or phrase in Act III, Scene ii, that Macbeth uses to describe a
vivid image that conveys his tone or emotions. What main emotion does the
image help convey?

Answer 1

In Act III, Scene ii of Macbeth, Macbeth uses the phrase 'a dagger of the mind' to create a vivid image of a phantom dagger. This image conveys Macbeth's tone of paranoia and helps evoke the main emotion of fear.

Step-by-step explanation:

In Act III, Scene ii of Shakespeare's tragedy Macbeth, Macbeth uses the phrase 'a dagger of the mind.' This phrase creates a vivid image of a phantom dagger that only exists in Macbeth's thoughts. The word 'dagger' and the image it evokes conveys Macbeth's tone of paranoia and his inner turmoil. The main emotion conveyed by this image is fear, as Macbeth is being driven to commit heinous acts out of fear and ambition.

Learn more about Macbeth's use of language in Act III, Scene ii to convey tone and emotion