macbeth: blood as a symbol

Blood as a Symbol in Macbeth          In Macbeth, many symbols are used that parallel major themes in the play. One of these symbols is blood, and the theme that it reinforces is killing, and the fear associated with killing. Many scenes in the play involving murder also have blood mentioned, although not necessarily during the murder. The use of blood as a symbol is very important when connected to the theme of killing, and is …

…events in the play, most of which are more deaths. Blood also shows Macbeth’s fear of killing because his conscience gets in the way. The theme of the fear of killing is very important, because eventually it affects Lady Macbeth so much that she kills herself because she could not control her guilty conscience. Every time this theme comes up, blood is usually mentioned and used as a symbol in one way or another.