Macbeth: Image of BloodThe tragedy of Macbeth, by William Shakespeare, includes many images, the most notable of which is blood. The recurring image of blood seems to be a vessel through which the audience learns more about the character of the main characters, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Lady Macbeth is particularly affected by the image of blood; she started referring to it even before Duncan's murder. In her supplication to the spirits, Lady Macbeth prays: “Make my blood thick” (IV43) so that she will feel no “remorse” for the course of action she is considering for her husband and herself. Lady Macbeth sees his thin blood as a weakness in his character and wishes for him to be richer (thicker) with the qualities of courage, bravery, and even emotional strength, the strength of a man. For a time, these requests seemed to have been genuinely answered. Even after the murder of Duncan or Banquo, she does not lose her composure. In fact, Lady Macbeth stops her husband from losing his mind! Eventually, however, his granted desire seems to fade and his naturally thin blood once again replaces the tainted blood flowing through his veins, figuratively speaking. Then the pressure of her guilty conscience drives her crazy. In a sleepwalking state, Lady Macbeth expresses her feelings of guilt: Out, the damn place! Outside I say! One: Two: why, then it's time not to do it. Hell is murky. Fi, my lord, fi! A soldier and scared? What do we need to fear who knows, when no one can call our power... middle of paper ... risk cannot be ignored. The word "blood" simply wouldn't be used in such unlikely places as "bleed Scotland", for example, without a specific purpose. Perhaps Shakespeare was trying to show us the fine line between life and death, both of which can be signified by the image of blood! WORKS CITED Jorgensen, Paul A. William Shakespeare: The Tragedies. Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1985. Kott, January. Shakespeare Our Contemporary. Garden City: Doubleday & Company, 1994. Rackin, Phyllis. Shakespeare's tragedies. New York: Frederick Ungar Publishing Company, 1988. Waith, Eugene M. Shakespeare The Stories. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1985.Webster, Margaret. Shakespeare without tears. Greenwich: Fawcett Publications, Inc., 1996. Wells, Stanley. SHAKESPEARE The writer and his work. New York: Charles Scribner's sons, 1988.