In William Shakespeare's play, The Tragedy of Macbeth, Shakespeare makes use of five motifs. Each motif holds a symbolic meaning within the play and changes over the progression of this tragedy. One of these motifs is blood. Perhaps the best way to show how the symbol of blood changes throughout this play is to follow the character changes in Macbeth. First he is a brave honored soldier, but as the play progresses, he becomes a treacherous person who has become identified with death and bloodshed and shows his guilt in different forms.
The first reference of blood is one of honor, and occurs when Duncan sees the injured sergeant and asks, "What bloody man is that?"(1.2.1) This is symbolic of the brave fighter who had been injured in a valiant battle for his country. In the next passage, in which the sergeant speaks, he refers to Macbeth's sword "Which smoked with bloody execution"(1.2.18). He is referring to Macbeth's bravery in which his sword is covered in the hot blood of the enemy. These few passages also describe blood as being symbolic of loyalty as Macbeth is described cutting through the enemy in defense of his country.
After these few references to honor, the symbol of blood now changes to show a theme of treachery and treason. Lady Macbeth begins this transformation when she asks the spirits to "make thick my blood"(1.5.43). What she is saying by this is that she wants to make herself insensitive and remorseless for the deeds which she and Macbeth are about to commit. Lady Macbeth knows that the evidence of blood is a treacherous symbol. .
While blood symbolizes treachery and treason, it also symbolizes a level of deceit. As Macbeth and Lady Macbeth make their seductive plans, they plan to deceive the other characters with use of blood and throw the blame to the guards: "Whom we have marked with blood those sleepy two/Of his own chamber and used their very daggers/That they have done "t?" (1.
