Grade 9 Analysis- Rhythm and Meter in Macbeth

Iambic Pentameter (Nobles)

What is it? Shakespeare's sonnets are written predominantly in a meter called iambic pentameter, a rhyme scheme in which each sonnet line consists of ten syllables. The syllables are divided into five pairs called iambs or iambic feet. An iamb is a metrical unit made up of one unstressed syllable followed by one stressed syllable. An example of an iamb would be good BYE. A line of iambic pentameter flows like this: baBOOM / baBOOM / baBOOM / baBOOM / baBOOM.

Why does Shakespeare use it? When Shakespeare's characters speak in verse (iambic pentameter), they are usually the noble (aristocratic) characters, and their speech represents their high culture and position in society. It gives the play a structured consistency, and when this is changed in instances of prose such as when Macbeth writes to Lady Macbeth and when Lady Macduff talks with her son, these are normally instances where a situation is abnormal e.g. when the Porter babbles in his drunken haze.

Trochaic Tetrameter (Witches)

What is it? Trochaic tetrameter is a rapid meter of poetry consisting of four feet of trochees. A trochee is made up of one stressed syllable followed by one unstressed syllable (the opposite of an iamb). Here is the flow of a line of trochaic tetrameter:

BAboom / BAboom / BAboom / BAboom. Why does Shakespeare use it? The witches’ speech patterns create a spooky mood from the start of the scene. Beginning with the second line, they speak in rhyming couplets of trochaic tetrameter. The falling rhythm and insistent rhyme emphasize the witchcraft they practice while they speak—boiling some sort of potion in a cauldron. The refrain “Double, double toil and trouble, / Fire burn and cauldron bubble” (10- 11), which they chant a total of three times, makes their incantation even darker: the circular pattern prevents the reader from escaping the frightening spell.

Prose (Commoners)

Shakespeare uses prose in several scenes, most notably in the letter to Lady Macbeth (I.5), the Porter scene (II.3), the murder of Lady Macduff and her son (IV.2) and the sleep walking of Lady Macbeth (V.1). In each case prose seems entirely appropriate for the task in hand. The letter to Lady Macbeth is concise yet interesting for what it omits to say. The Porter scene leads to the general observation that Shakespeare frequently used prose when dealing with characters of a lower social standing. Blank verse is more 'noble' or elevated and so more appropriate for nobler characters. Thus, there almost seems a pattern in its use in Macbeth: namely, it does seem to indicate a falling away from nobility or perfection. Lady Macbeth reads the letter and immediately calls on demons and plans murder. Later, she speaks prose when she is mentally disorientated. Lady Macduff begins by speaking in blank verse but as the pressure on her increases prose takes over. She regains the power of blank verse – and so dignity – as she confronts the murderers. As for the Porter, his speech is quite overtly obscene as well as being an ordinary person's commentary on the 'hell' (II.3.1) of a place he is in.

Blank verse

Most characters speak in blank verse (unrhymed iambic pentameter – where there are ten syllables in each line, and each unstressed syllable is followed by a stressed one). When this pattern changes, it is often because of high emotion.