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Irony in Act 1 of Macbeth Essay

Decent Essays

Macbeth

Question – Discuss the irony in Act 1, Scene 4.

Irony is very commonly used in literature. It is when something totally different from what was happened takes place. Irony is of three main broad types-verbal irony, dramatic irony and irony of situation. Verbal irony or sarcasm refers to the situation where the character deliberately means the opposite of what he or she is saying. Irony of situation or circumstance refers to a situation when the opposite of what is expected happens. Dramatic irony is the most commonly used one in plays. It refers to a situation when the reader is aware of the truth of the situation or the significance of what the writer is saying or even the consequences but the protagonist himself is not. We …show more content…

Upon seeing Macbeth, Duncan greets the savior of his kingdom by saying ‘o worthiest cousin’ and sings his praises. Duncan says how indebted he is to Macbeth and how he can never praise Macbeth enough. Duncan adds that ‘More is thy due than more than I can ever pay’. We see what a grateful king he is. Nevertheless the audience is fully aware of how Macbeth will repay the king. Macbeth is anyways planning to usurp the throne of Scotland and dispose of Duncan. Right now Duncan has no words to thank Macbeth but soon when Macbeth begins his reign all the words to condemn him and his tyranny are going to fall short. This is the degradation of moral character. Duncan poor soul cannot see through people and lacks a little perspicacity like Banquo.

Duncan uses a sowing metaphor to talk of how he wants Macbeth to grow and achieve unprecedented success in the future. He states that he has ‘begun to plant thee (Macbeth) and will labor/ To make thee full of growing’. Little does he realize that Macbeth is going to kill him-the person who is ‘planting’ him. Macbeth is not going to be satisfied with the title of the Thane of Cawdor. He can not see anything less than the ‘golden round’. The play has several images of planting and tress and this could well be a sly reference to the royal family tree. By making Macbeth the Thane of Cawdor though Duncan had good intentions he ends up spurring Macbeth’s vaulting ambitious which now has started to device ways to

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