Both Uses of
gall
in
Macbeth
- Come to my woman's breasts,
And take my milk for gall, your murdering ministers,
Wherever in your sightless substances
You wait on nature's mischief!†p. 33.7 *
- Scale of dragon, tooth of wolf,
Witch's mummy, maw and gulf
Of the ravined salt-sea shark,
Root of hemlock digged i' the dark,
Liver of blaspheming Jew,
Gall of goat, and slips of yew
Slivered in the moon's eclipse,
Nose of Turk, and Tartar's lips,
Finger of birth-strangled babe
Ditch-delivered by a drab,—
Make the gruel thick and slab:
Add thereto a tiger's chaudron,
For the ingredients of our caldron.†p. 121.3
Definitions:
-
(1)
(gall as in: had the gall to) boldness and rudeness to say or do things that are not acceptable to others
-
(2)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) Less commonly today, but commonly in classic literature, gall may refer to a feeling of deep bitterness, anger, or frustration as in "nothing is more galling than..." It also has a specialized meaning referencing a swollen part of a tree, or a skin sore that is caused by rubbing. Finally, in medicine, gall can reference bile from the gallbladder.