Top 5 Quotes on Power in Macbeth
Achieve Grade 8+ by mastering these key lines
Power runs through Macbeth like blood through its veins. From political ambition to psychological control, Shakespeare explores how power is gained, abused, and ultimately lost. If you're studying Macbeth for your GCSE English Literature exam, these 5 quotes are essential for unlocking the theme of power, whether you're tackling an extract question or writing a full essay.
In this post, I’ll break down each quote with analysis, a model sentence you can use, and revision prompts to test your understanding.
🔹 1. “Look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent under’t.” – Lady Macbeth (Act 1, Scene 5)
🔍 What It Shows
Lady Macbeth encourages deception as a form of power. She believes appearing innocent is essential for gaining and keeping control.
🧠 Zoom In
Shakespeare uses contrasting imagery, the flower vs the serpent, to show the tension between outer appearance and inner ambition. The serpent also has biblical connotations, linking Lady Macbeth to evil and temptation.
💬 Model Sentence
Shakespeare presents power as something that requires manipulation and disguise, shown through Lady Macbeth’s serpent metaphor, which casts her as the driving force behind Macbeth’s rise.
❓Quick Questions
What does this reveal about Lady Macbeth’s own view of power?
How does this contrast with Macbeth’s attitude later in the play?
Can you link this quote to the theme of guilt or gender?
🔹 2. “Is this a dagger which I see before me?” – Macbeth (Act 2, Scene 1)
🔍 What It Shows
This quote captures Macbeth’s descent into moral chaos as he prepares to kill Duncan. The imagined dagger represents both ambition and psychological instability.
🧠 Zoom In
The hallucination blurs the line between thought and action. Shakespeare uses rhetorical questions and fragmented syntax to reflect Macbeth’s inner turmoil, suggesting that his desire for power has begun to control him.
💬 Model Sentence
Macbeth’s vision of the dagger reveals how power corrupts his mind, turning ambition into obsession and foreshadowing the bloody consequences that follow.
❓Quick Questions
How is Macbeth’s mental state portrayed here?
What does the dagger symbolise?
Can you think of another moment where Macbeth loses control?
🔹 3. “To be thus is nothing, but to be safely thus.” – Macbeth (Act 3, Scene 1)
🔍 What It Shows
By this point, Macbeth is king, but he doesn’t feel secure. This quote shows how power without stability or legacy is meaningless to him.
🧠 Zoom In
Shakespeare uses repetition (“thus… thus”) to emphasise Macbeth’s growing paranoia. His ambition doesn’t end at the crown, it demands total control.
💬 Model Sentence
Here, Shakespeare shows that power cannot satisfy Macbeth; instead, it breeds fear and the need to destroy anyone who threatens his position.
❓Quick Questions
How does Macbeth’s idea of kingship shift from earlier in the play?
What might “safely thus” imply about Banquo?
How does this quote lead into the next part of the plot?
🔹 4. “I am in blood stepped in so far...” – Macbeth (Act 3, Scene 4)
🔍 What It Shows
This chilling metaphor reveals Macbeth’s realisation that he’s committed too many crimes to turn back. Power has trapped him in a cycle of violence.
🧠 Zoom In
Blood is a recurring motif throughout the play. Here, Macbeth uses it to visualise guilt and violence, suggesting that continuing his violent path is easier than seeking redemption.
💬 Model Sentence
Shakespeare presents Macbeth as consumed by power, using the metaphor of blood to show how far he’s fallen and how inescapable his violent rule has become.
❓Quick Questions
What does the quote suggest about Macbeth’s choices moving forward?
How does this relate to the idea of fate or free will?
Can you contrast this with Lady Macbeth’s state at this point?
🔹 5. “All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!” – The Witches (Act 1, Scene 3)
🔍 What It Shows
This prophecy sparks Macbeth’s ambition. It plants the seed of power in his mind, setting the entire tragedy into motion.
🧠 Zoom In
The witches use rhythm and prophecy to manipulate Macbeth. The future-tense “shalt be” gives a false sense of inevitability, linking power with fate and manipulation.
💬 Model Sentence
The witches’ prophecy introduces the theme of power as destiny, showing how external forces can corrupt and control through suggestion rather than force.
❓Quick Questions
What is the impact of this prophecy on Macbeth’s actions?
How do the witches represent power in the play?
Can you link this moment to the theme of supernatural influence?
✅ Quick Recap
In this post, we explored 5 essential quotes on power in Macbeth. We looked at:
Lady Macbeth’s manipulation
Macbeth’s hallucinations and paranoia
His obsessive need for control
Blood as a metaphor for guilt
The witches' role in sparking ambition
These are the kinds of ideas and quotes that will help you write top-grade responses in your exam.
💭 Try This:
Choose two quotes from this post and write a short paragraph comparing how Shakespeare presents power in each.
Use this sentence starter if helpful:
Shakespeare presents power as... in [quote 1], whereas in [quote 2]...