"Be lion-mettl'd, proud, and take no care who chafes, who frets, or where conspirers are. Macbeth shall never vanquish'd be until Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane Hill shall come against him." (IV.i.89-93)
I created all the images using a website called Polyvore which lets you cut, combine, and edit images. This is one of the three riddles the witches tell Macbeth in Act 4. What this riddle means is that Macbeth doesn't need to pay attention to his enemies, or people who conspire against him, because he won't be defeated until the forest comes to Dunsinane hill (where his castle is). Macbeth, who doesn't pay close attention to meanings or symbolism, takes it as a sign that he will never be defeated. How can a wood move? He thinks very logistically not creatively, and this leads him to be overconfident and egotistical, believing he can never lose. I wanted to show how the riddle actually plays out in the story, and used tarot cards to represent Macbeth (as the fool who believes he is invincible), and the army (which is the force). Tarot cards are used in fortune telling and predictions, and seeing as this riddle was a prophecy I though they would be a good thing to include.
"Be bloody, bold, and resolute; laugh to scorn the power of man, for none of woman born shall harm Macbeth." (IV.i.78-80)
This riddle is quite simple, again saying that Macbeth has nothing to fear and can laugh at his enemies, because no one born from a woman can harm Macbeth. Again, Macbeth really hears what he wants to hear, and thinks he's invincible. Who isn't born from a woman? At that time, there were no other options, no technology or test tube babies. However Macbeth doesn't think outside the box or examine the riddle too closely, which as you'll see later leads to a problem for him. Because it's a simple riddle I stuck with a simple image, no baby born from a woman, and Macbeth looking powerful because of his supposed "invincibility".
"Macbeth, Macbeth, Macbeth: beware Macduff, beware the Thane of Fife. Dismiss me. Enough." (IV.i. 70-71)
All of these riddles are quite simple but can be interpreted different ways. This is probably the simplest prophecy of all- The apparition (spirit, ghost, image) is warned Macbeth that he should be wary of Macduff, who is his strongest enemy. Macbeth ends up arranging the murder of Macduff's family, which only fuels his hatred of Macbeth, and his wish to defeat him. I decided to do a simple image of Macduff with a sword, and Macbeth looking wary.
I also decided to do an image of Lady Macbeth. She has a desperate ambition to be Queen, and will go to any lengths to get what she wants. Her relationship with her husband, while being close is very controlling (hence the puppet strings) and she talks him into murdering Duncan, though he is against it. She has an interesting line in Act 2: "My hands are of your colour, but I shame to wear a heart so white.". Like Macbeth she also has bloody hands, but she accuses him of having a innocent heart (white, pure, bloodless). I found that interesting because when I think of a bloodless heart, I think of someone who has no feelings or reactions, someone who has no heart is emotionless. So I gave her a heart without substance, a heart without feeling.
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