The castle of Macduff I will surprise; / Seize upon Fife; give to th' edge o' th' sword / His wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls / That trace him in his line.
Act IV, Scene 1 · Macbeth
Context
Macbeth declares he will immediately attack Macduff's castle and kill everyone in Macduff's family, including his wife and children.
Analysis
The phrase 'give to th' edge o' th' sword' is a euphemism that distances Macbeth from the act—he does not say 'I will kill' but instead makes the sword the grammatical agent, as if the weapon acts on its own. Yet he cannot maintain this evasion: he lists the victims explicitly ('His wife, his babes') in order of vulnerability, showing he knows exactly whom he is targeting, which makes the euphemism sound like a failure of language to conceal what he has become.
Essay Tip
Support a thesis that Macbeth's language in Act 4 reveals his attempt—and failure—to hide from his own monstrosity. The euphemism 'give to th' edge o' th' sword' tries to obscure agency, but listing 'wife' and 'babes' forces both him and the audience to confront the specific horror of killing the innocent.