Daggers as symbols

1. Daggers as symbols Both Golding and Shakespeare have used symbols to present power in their texts through the characters’ language and actions. These two texts use the symbols of a knife, a sheath or a dagger, as a symbol of power but more importantly a symbol of aggressive power. Prior to killing the king, Macbeth performs his famous soliloquy, where he visualises a dagger directing him towards the king’s chamber. The soliloquy includes phrases such as, “Mine eyes are made the fools o’th’other senses, or worth all the rest.” Here, Shakespeare has made it so that Macbeth is questioning his own senses, showing us just how uncertain he is about his moral choices, and perhaps showing the pressure that he is feeling from the witches’ predictions and from his wife. In the same soliloquy he says, “There’s no such thing, it is the bloody business which informs thus to mine eyes.” It is interesting to look at the use of the adjective “bloody” here as it suggests that even Macbeth is disturbed by his own actions, and he is trying to convince himself that the symbol of the dagger that he is seeing cannot be real. Arguably this makes Macbeth seem powerless at this point in the play as is not even in control of his own mind. Shakespeare makes him seem full of doubt as an audience, we may be led to see Macbeth as a weak character, particularly in comparison to his wife. Golding has also chosen to use a blade, this time a knife, used by the character of Jack throughout the novel. Like in Macbeth, the blade is used as a symbol of power by the writer. I would suggest that Jack uses the knife as a symbol of aggressive power, as in the scene where…

2. Daggers as symbols Both Golding and Shakespeare have used symbols to present power in their texts through the characters’ language and actions. These two texts use the symbols of a knife, a sheath or a dagger, as a symbol of power but more importantly a symbol of aggressive power. Prior to killing the king, Macbeth performs his famous soliloquy, where he visualises a dagger directing him towards the king’s chamber. The soliloquy includes phrases such as, “Mine eyes are made the fools o’th’other senses, or worth all the rest.” Here, Shakespeare has made it so that Macbeth is questioning his own senses, showing us just how uncertain he is about his moral choices, and perhaps showing the pressure that he is feeling from the witches’ predictions and from his wife. In the same soliloquy he says, “There’s no such thing, it is the bloody business which informs thus to mine eyes.” It is interesting to look at the use of the adjective “bloody” here as it suggests that even Macbeth is disturbed by his own actions, and he is trying to convince himself that the symbol of the dagger that he is seeing cannot be real. Arguably this makes Macbeth seem powerless at this point in the play as is not even in control of his own mind. Shakespeare makes him seem full of doubt as an audience, we may be led to see Macbeth as a weak character, particularly in comparison to his wife. Golding has also chosen to use a blade, this time a knife, used by the character of Jack throughout the novel. Like in Macbeth, the blade is used as a symbol of power by the writer. I would suggest that Jack uses the knife as a symbol of aggressive power, as in the scene where…

3. Daggers as symbols Both Golding and Shakespeare have used symbols to present power in their texts through the characters’ language and actions. These two texts use the symbols of a knife, a sheath or a dagger, as a symbol of power but more importantly a symbol of aggressive power. Prior to killing the king, Macbeth performs his famous soliloquy, where he visualises a dagger directing him towards the king’s chamber. The soliloquy includes phrases such as, “Mine eyes are made the fools o’th’other senses, or worth all the rest.” Here, Shakespeare has made it so that Macbeth is questioning his own senses, showing us just how uncertain he is about his moral choices, and perhaps showing the pressure that he is feeling from the witches’ predictions and from his wife. In the same soliloquy he says, “There’s no such thing, it is the bloody business which informs thus to mine eyes.” It is interesting to look at the use of the adjective “bloody” here as it suggests that even Macbeth is disturbed by his own actions, and he is trying to convince himself that the symbol of the dagger that he is seeing cannot be real. Arguably this makes Macbeth seem powerless at this point in the play as is not even in control of his own mind. Shakespeare makes him seem full of doubt as an audience, we may be led to see Macbeth as a weak character, particularly in comparison to his wife. Golding has also chosen to use a blade, this time a knife, used by the character of Jack throughout the novel. Like in Macbeth, the blade is used as a symbol of power by the writer. I would suggest that Jack uses the knife as a symbol of aggressive power, as in the scene where…

4. Daggers as symbols Both Golding and Shakespeare have used symbols to present power in their texts through the characters’ language and actions. These two texts use the symbols of a knife, a sheath or a dagger, as a symbol of power but more importantly a symbol of aggressive power. Prior to killing the king, Macbeth performs his famous soliloquy, where he visualises a dagger directing him towards the king’s chamber. The soliloquy includes phrases such as, “Mine eyes are made the fools o’th’other senses, or worth all the rest.” Here, Shakespeare has made it so that Macbeth is questioning his own senses, showing us just how uncertain he is about his moral choices, and perhaps showing the pressure that he is feeling from the witches’ predictions and from his wife. In the same soliloquy he says, “There’s no such thing, it is the bloody business which informs thus to mine eyes.” It is interesting to look at the use of the adjective “bloody” here as it suggests that even Macbeth is disturbed by his own actions, and he is trying to convince himself that the symbol of the dagger that he is seeing cannot be real. Arguably this makes Macbeth seem powerless at this point in the play as is not even in control of his own mind. Shakespeare makes him seem full of doubt as an audience, we may be led to see Macbeth as a weak character, particularly in comparison to his wife. Golding has also chosen to use a blade, this time a knife, used by the character of Jack throughout the novel. Like in Macbeth, the blade is used as a symbol of power by the writer. I would suggest that Jack uses the knife as a symbol of aggressive power, as in the scene where…

5. Daggers as symbols Both Golding and Shakespeare have used symbols to present power in their texts through the characters’ language and actions. These two texts use the symbols of a knife, a sheath or a dagger, as a symbol of power but more importantly a symbol of aggressive power. Prior to killing the king, Macbeth performs his famous soliloquy, where he visualises a dagger directing him towards the king’s chamber. The soliloquy includes phrases such as, “Mine eyes are made the fools o’th’other senses, or worth all the rest.” Here, Shakespeare has made it so that Macbeth is questioning his own senses, showing us just how uncertain he is about his moral choices, and perhaps showing the pressure that he is feeling from the witches’ predictions and from his wife. In the same soliloquy he says, “There’s no such thing, it is the bloody business which informs thus to mine eyes.” It is interesting to look at the use of the adjective “bloody” here as it suggests that even Macbeth is disturbed by his own actions, and he is trying to convince himself that the symbol of the dagger that he is seeing cannot be real. Arguably this makes Macbeth seem powerless at this point in the play as is not even in control of his own mind. Shakespeare makes him seem full of doubt as an audience, we may be led to see Macbeth as a weak character, particularly in comparison to his wife. Golding has also chosen to use a blade, this time a knife, used by the character of Jack throughout the novel. Like in Macbeth, the blade is used as a symbol of power by the writer. I would suggest that Jack uses the knife as a symbol of aggressive power, as in the scene where…

6. Daggers as symbols Both Golding and Shakespeare have used symbols to present power in their texts through the characters’ language and actions. These two texts use the symbols of a knife, a sheath or a dagger, as a symbol of power but more importantly a symbol of aggressive power. Prior to killing the king, Macbeth performs his famous soliloquy, where he visualises a dagger directing him towards the king’s chamber. The soliloquy includes phrases such as, “Mine eyes are made the fools o’th’other senses, or worth all the rest.” Here, Shakespeare has made it so that Macbeth is questioning his own senses, showing us just how uncertain he is about his moral choices, and perhaps showing the pressure that he is feeling from the witches’ predictions and from his wife. In the same soliloquy he says, “There’s no such thing, it is the bloody business which informs thus to mine eyes.” It is interesting to look at the use of the adjective “bloody” here as it suggests that even Macbeth is disturbed by his own actions, and he is trying to convince himself that the symbol of the dagger that he is seeing cannot be real. Arguably this makes Macbeth seem powerless at this point in the play as is not even in control of his own mind. Shakespeare makes him seem full of doubt as an audience, we may be led to see Macbeth as a weak character, particularly in comparison to his wife. Golding has also chosen to use a blade, this time a knife, used by the character of Jack throughout the novel. Like in Macbeth, the blade is used as a symbol of power by the writer. I would suggest that Jack uses the knife as a symbol of aggressive power, as in the scene where…