Imagery in Macbeth William Shakespeare’s play, (if indeed he did write it) Macbeth is rife with killing, and is probably only second in bloodiness to his earlier play, Titus Andronicus. Not only is blood a key part of the plot for obvious reasons, it is also an example of imagery, representing several different symbols throughout the play. In the beginning, blood represents honor. Later, blood seems to show treachery. A the end of the play Shakespeare uses blood to show Macbeth’s guilt for all his evil and greedy acts. The first reference of blood occurs when Duncan sees the injured sergeant and says, "What bloody man is that?"