Read the passage from act 2, scene 3 of The Tragedy of Macbeth. [ Macbeth: ] Here lay Duncan, His silver skin lac’d with his golden blood; And his gash’d stabs look’d like a breach in nature For ruin’s wasteful entrance: there, the murderers, Steep’d in the colours of their trade, their daggers Unmannerly breech’d with gore: who could refrain, That had a heart to love, and in that heart Courage to make ’s love known? What is the purpose of the rhetorical device in the underlined text?
Answer
A
The zeugma shows that having a big heart is related to having strength and courage.
B
The antithesis contrasts Duncan’s vibrant nature and big heart with his lifeless body.
C
The rhetorical question explains that Macbeth could not control himself after seeing Duncan’s corpse.
D
The irony hides Macbeth’s true feelings about the man he murdered the night before.
Explanation
Macbeth asks, “who could refrain” from reacting after seeing Duncan’s murdered body, then describes having love and courage to show it. The rhetorical question implies that he could not control his response, which he uses to explain why he killed the guards. The correct choice is that the rhetorical question explains Macbeth’s claimed inability to control himself after seeing Duncan’s corpse.
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