It (life) is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.

To remember this quote use the following mnemonic.

The life guard is followed by a tail (tale).

And the tail is told off by an idiot.

The idiot puts out his two arms and they have both been tattooed. One arm full of sounds and one arm full of fury.

And strangely they then signify nothing. 

"It (life) is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing." Spoken by Macbeth after learning of Lady Macbeth's death in act 5, scene 5, line 25.

Meaning

• "Life is a tale told by an idiot" - Macbeth compares life to a meaningless, chaotic story told by someone who doesn't understand it. 

• "Full of sound and fury" - Life is noisy, dramatic, and emotional - but ultimately...

• "Signifying nothing" - It means nothing. Macbeth sees life as pointless and empty. 

Exam advice 

• Overall interpretation - This speech reveals Macbeth's complete despair. He once believed in ambition and greatness, but now, after so much death and destruction, he sees life as meaningless. His power has brought him no peace or purpose. 

• Context - Macbeth has lost everything. His wife is dead, his enemies are closing in and he feels hopeless.

• Theme of meaningless and despair - Macbeth's worldview has collapsed; this line reflects his emotional and moral downfall. 

• Imagery and metaphor - Shakespeare uses the image of a chaotic foolish story to symbolize Macbeth's view of life. 

• Tone - The tone is bitter, empty and fatalistic. 

• Character development - Earlier, Macbeth was ambitious and driven. Now he's numb and broken, showing the cost of his own actions.