Motifs of Birds In Macbeth The motif of the birds in William Shakespeare's THE TRAGEDY OF MACBETH illlustrates the nature of several characters. Shakespeare mentions several birds in the play but three birds are especially symbolic. The raven is the first bird mentioned in the play. Lady Macbeth says that the raven welcomes the good king Duncan into her home. "The raven himself is hoarse/That croaks the fatal entance of Duncan/Under my battlements. Come you spirits/ that tend on motal thoughts, unsex me here and fill me from the crown to the toe,top-full/Of direst cruelty!" The raven is a black scavenger.This is a p