As honour, love, obedience, troops of friends, / I must not look to have; but, in their stead, / Curses, not loud but deep, mouth-honour, breath, / Which the poor heart would fain deny, and dare not" (5.3.25-28).
William ShakespeareRead
Is this a dagger which I see before me, _x000D_ _x000D_ The handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee. _x000D_ _x000D_ I have thee not, and yet I see thee still. _x000D_ _x000D_ Art thou not, fatal vision, sensible _x000D_ _x000D_ To feeling as to sight? or art thou but _x000D_ _x000D_ A dagger of the mind, a false creation, _x000D_ _x000D_ Proceeding from the heat-oppressed brain?
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects the internal struggle and hallucinations faced by a troubled mind. It explores the concept of perception versus reality and the influence of one’s thoughts.
In this excerpt from Macbeth, Shakespeare delves into the psychological turmoil experienced by the character as he hallucinates a dagger that symbolizes his ambition and guilt. The imagery of the dagger represents the conflict between desire and morality, suggesting that what we perceive can often be distorted by our mind, leading to a false reality shaped by our inner fears and desires.
Themes
DaggerMindPerceptionIllusionGuiltAmbition
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used in a discussion about mental health and the power of the mind.
More from William Shakespeare
All quotes →Love bears it out even to the edge of doom.
William ShakespeareRead
Good company, good wine, good welcome, can make good people.
William ShakespeareRead
Absence doth sharpen love, presence strengthens it; the one brings fuel, the other blows it till it burns clear.
William ShakespeareRead
Lord, Lord, how this world is given to lying!
William ShakespeareRead
Give it an understanding, but no tongue.
William ShakespeareRead
Similar quotes
Born in iniquity and conceived in sin, the spirit of nationalism has never ceased to bend human institutions to the service of dissension and distress.
Thorstein VeblenRead
It ill becomes us to invoke in our daily prayers the blessings of God, the Compassionate, if we in turn will not practice elementary compassion toward our fellow creatures.
Mahatma GandhiRead
Truth is not a reward for good behaviour, nor a prize for passing some tests. It cannot be brought about. It is the primary, the unborn, the ancient source of all that is. You are eligible because you are. You need not merit truth. It is your own....Stand still, be quiet.
Sri Nisargadatta MaharajRead
Compelling a woman to wear a headscarf is against Islam, and compelling her to remove it is against human rights.
Tariq RamadanRead
Reason is a supple nymph, and slippery as a fish by nature. She had as leave give her kiss to an absurdity any day, as to syllogistic truth. The absurdity may turn out truer.
D. H. LawrenceRead
The past is a source of knowledge, and the future is a source of hope. Love of the past implies faith in the future.
Stephen AmbroseRead