Free Macbeth Essays: The Value of Sleep :: Macbeth essays

 The Value of Sleep in Macbeth   Im sure you know what it is like to not have a good iniquity pause for a day or two, or maybe even a whole week, but imagine not being able to calmness through the night for an entire year. Macbeth grows to know this feeling all too well in Shakespeares Macbeth. Every time that Macbeth is involved in murdering his so-called friends, his wake hours grow longer and longer. He almost goes crazy the night that he kills King Duncan, and he can never get over this because he at one time has to kill again in order to protect himself Each of these killings causes Macbeth to sleep less and eventually leads to his insanity. It all starts when Macbeth and Lady Macbeth agree that it will be the surpass for both of their futures if Macbeth sneaks into the kings chamber and slaughters the king in cold blood. Here, he gets just a small glimpse of whats to come. He begins to already hear voices in his head. They avow to him, Sleep no more than Macbet h does murder sleep, and the innocent sleep . . . Macbeth shall sleep no more (II.ii.38-46).And he does not really sleep much more after this night. Macbeth kills innocence when he kills the sleeping Duncan. There is no possible way that Duncan can defend himself. He is only helpless and innocent, but Macbeth kills him anyhow. Finally, in that respect is no choice for Macbeth but to kill his best friend Banquo in order to destroy any thoughts that Macbeth is actually Duncans murderer, Macbeth has lost countless amount of sleep due to his conscience. He can not even think straight. For him to even consider killing his friend is demented enough, but to follow through with his plans is completely insane. How can you kill the man you have told everything to, and who you have spent most of your fun times with. Macbeth shows even greater weakness when he claims to see Banquos shadow at the dinner table the evening of the murder. He acts so insanely that his wife has to stand up and say , Sit worthy friends. My lord is often thus, And hath been from his youth. request you, keep seat (III.iv.53-54). Macbeths own wife has to stand up and lie for him because Macbeth has gotten so little sleep that he actually thinks this ghost is real, even though he knows that Banquo is dead.