Question

Health and disease have been used as ongoing metaphors in the play. For most of the play, who or what is the disease? Who or what is the disease to Macbeth in 5.4.63-64.

Answer 1

In 'Macbeth,' the 'disease' metaphor initially refers to Macbeth's ambition and its corrupting influence, but by Act 5.4, Macbeth perceives Malcolm's army as a disease threatening his power.

Step-by-step explanation:

In Shakespeare's Macbeth, the metaphor of health and disease pervades the play, depicting moral corruption and the breakdown of order. Throughout most of the play, the 'disease' can be seen as Macbeth's own ambition and the resulting moral decay within himself and the kingdom he controls. By Act 5, Scene 4, lines 63-64, the disease to Macbeth has shifted to the forces that oppose him, particularly as Malcolm's army advances. Macbeth views Malcolm and his supporters, who are actually coming to purge Scotland of the 'disease' that is Macbeth's tyrannical rule, as a disease threatening his reign.