Macbeth is waiting on the castle wall for Macduff and Malcolm, who have invaded him and hopes they die of hunger before they are able to go through his barrier. However, Macbeth’s wife is murdered and the news is broken to him, and he is drifted into a life of futility and remorsefulness. Macbeth engages himself in a soliloquy where he describes life-trend based on his feeling. Mac’s response to this information is “She should have died hereafter” – the time of the death occurrence was not the right time. This implied his unreadiness of acceptance of the information based on the time of occurrence. Furthermore, it shows his view about the time of death was unfair and if only by then his wife could have been alive, any other time would be more appropriate for her death. This also shows Mac’s love towards his wife by yearning for at least some little time to with her. “There would have been time for such a word” – something went untold. This shows Mac’s wishes of having more time to talk to his wife and tell her something good before she dies. This shows how Mac’s sadness from the loss of his precious lady.
“Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow,” – shows how time in one’s life is repetitious. It is a running clock that cannot be changed of how one starts a day, ends it and get into another similar day. This is like a mechanical procedure of one’s way of living. This shows how tedious the life redundancy to the character is with a rhythmic repetitiveness that leads one to the grave. “Creeps in” – portrays how life is unpredictable or immeasurable. It is hard to know when it starts and when it will end. It comes in without any alarm and lives in the same manner. It enters gradually bringing with it harmfulness in a crafty manner. This also shows how life is dishonest as the promises it give are always futile. Life is like a hidden secret where you know what have happened but not what will happen. This enables it to catch-up people unaware and by-pass them unknowingly. “Last syllable of recorded time,” – this brings out life as a statement or a speech. As long as the speech is on progress, life is likened to exist but as there comes the last syllable at the speeches end, life in the same way comes to an end. As in speech every word said bring the speech closer to its end, every day lived leads us to our deaths.
“And all our yesterdays” – shows the past in man’s life: history. This includes all the achievements, famous, glories and brightness of mankind collective past. Use of “yesterday” shows how life is short. Likening ones whole past to just a view of one gone day shows how short lived time has been. It also shows how little accomplishment in one’s life was. One day-‘yesterday’- give no much time to achieve or accomplish one’s dreams and with it gone, unaccomplished wishes goes to the grave together with the wisher. “Have lighted fools” – shows how the past gives irrational minds expectations of dreams and magnificence of brighter future to come. This shows that basing ones future on his/her yesterday’s glory is foolishness. “The way to dusty death” – the truth of what lies ahead is what one becomes after dying, that is, dust. This indicates that what one’s yesterday does is only providing him/her with needed light that will lead them on their path toward the grave.
“Out, out brief candle!” – This shows how soon one’s life can be over. The repetition shows none-stop the process towards one’s life end is. As long as the candle keeps burning, there is nothing to stop its burning out. Likewise, as an individual keeps on living, the wink of life keeps on burning towards it base where the life’s light become extinguished. “Life’s but a walking shadow” – with no light anymore, the shadow is there no more. As the candle frame nears its burn out point, so the shadow nears its non-existence stage. “Maybe, the flame is like the soul or the spirit of the person and the shadow casted by it is the person’s life.”
“A poor player” – men are actors on the world-stage. Everything that one does is nothing but acting, however when the play is over the one’s reality is revealed. The alliteration here is used to bring out the humbleness of the actor. “That struts and frets his hour upon the stage” – indicates how this person becomes exited by his moment while in the stage. He is proud of the environment and he walks in a pompous manner like he is dominating the whole play. He carries himself out with an attitude of high importance in a very serious way. However, worry has its good hold on the person pertaining unimportant details and unnecessary worries. This brings out the true nature of man, concerning his egotism and pride. “And then is heard no more” – shows that no matter how famous the person becomes in life, no matter how important he carried himself out on the ‘stage’ all these moment of glory are quickly forgotten and his fame is no more remembered. Life’s end marks the end of one’s praises and a beginning of another, is like a candle, which goes off too soon. In addition, just like an actor on the stage full of fame and glory, and when the play is over, no one remember the actor is the life.
““It is a tale” – life turns out to be a story,” not something to be seen or witnessed but something to be narrated of its once existence. However, “Told by an idiot” – the story becomes unpleasing as the teller lacks intelligence turning a once wonderful event to a boring narration. “Full of sound and fury” – involved in the story are unnecessary lots of action, noise and emotions incorporated by the uninformed teller. “Signifying nothing” – all these are worthless and the energy given to them is of waste since at the end, life still lacks meaning. This picture of Life being an idiotic story and meaningless brings out Macbeth’s feelings from the death of his beloved wife. His views show that life totally lacks meaning, implying that one’s life does not have significant influence on the mankind. Malcolm’s, Siward, and Macduff troops finally succeed to penetrate into the castle waging their assault on the royal palace. Regarding every man as a woman-born, Macbeth had hope for winning possibilities. However, his soliloquy turns true to his life on scene 8 when he resigned himself to death.