Today there are many popular television shows about fortune tellers and curious people seeking to discover their future. These people obviously have not read Shakespeare’s play with the three witches that speak prophecies to bring forth chaos and destruction. If they had then they would know the dangers of trying to perceive and fulfill such predictions. Shakespeare is known for his powerful plays, but this one, The Tragedy of Macbeth, surrpasses them all. The moral that every action has its consequences is taught through the main character, Macbeth, in his struggle between fortune and guilt. After receiving a so-called glimpse of his future from witches, he sets out with a false face to achieve his destiny by absolutely any means necessary. …show more content…
In the beginning of the play, loyal Macbeth brushes off the fact that the weird sisters tell him he will be king by saying, “If chance will have me king, why, / chance may crown me, / Without my stir” (1. 3. 143-144). This aside given by Macbeth leads the readers to believethat he is going to continue on with his reputable self until fate may crown him king. However, after sharing the prophecy with his wife, events begin to take a slight turn. Lady Macbeth is the one who persuades him to become king by taking the means into his own hands; therefore, it is she who feeds Macbeth’s evil ambition. After Macbeth has committed all the murders though, readers can infer Lady Macbeth regrets her decision of tempting him because she is overwhelmed with guilt and takes her own life. Macbeth’s dear friend and partner in crime, Banquo, is also a victim of Macbeth’s wicked hunger for power. Macbeth becomes so self-consumed with the prophecy as if “ it is only him who exists in his world, and he hears and sees only himself” that he forgets about those around who love him (Vince). What Macbeth thought was a positive fire in his belly, actually transformed him into a greedy king who contributed to the death of the people closest to …show more content…
The king, the servants, the best friend, the boy, and the mother are all dead, yet Macbeth does not seem to care a bit. Each time a fear arose, another person was ordered to die by Macbeth. His wife even took her own life because should could not deal with her husband’s callous deeds. In spite of all the loss around him though, Macbeth still finds the arrogance to actually believe that he is immortal, and he nonetheless continues with his evil ambition. After slaying Young Siward, he boast, “ Thou wast born of woman./ But swords smile at, weapons laugh to scorn,/ Brandished by man that’s of a woman born” (5. 7. 11-12). Acts just like this one display how cold Macbeth’s heart has become which is what turns all of his people against him -- leading him to his own death. This same idea is expressed by Alina Degunther in Good and Evil in Shakespeare’s King Leer and Macbeth when she states, “[Macbeth] becomes a victim of evil; however, he becomes a sufferer of his own ambition because he, never being deceived by human evil, alone decides to act that way, which consequently destroyed him” (22). Greed is a powerful temptation; one that overtook Macbeth and poisoned his mind increasingly everyday until it laid him to
Macbeth, the acclaimed general and thane with a loving wife, destroyed his relationships with anyone through one action based on dark ambition. This ambitious act leads to an avalanche of bloody and hateful actions. A tide of gloom overtook Macbeth, his wife, and the lives of those who at one point were his friends.The guilt and ghosts became too much for Lady Macbeth, who decided that death was a much more pleasant alternative than the endless nightmares, lack of sleep, and forever stained hands. Banquo saw the unhindered desire as assassins took his life at the command of Macbeth. “To be thus is
Throughout life, many of us will find ourselves in some of the worst situations that leave us wondering who’s to blame. The truth is that the misfortunes that befall us are due to our own actions and sometimes due to fate or bad luck. Fate is one person's destiny and it can not be understood by simple mortals but a greater power beyond human comprehension. Fate is so powerful that it can control a person's outcome on life before it happens. Many people tend to become victims of fate in which they catch a glimpse of what their future is going to look like, but do not totally take hold of the outcome. Macbeth can not fully realize the possible outcome of his fate because he is human, and therefore is a victim to his power driven
The story “The Tragedy Of Macbeth” also called The Scottish Play was written in 1606, by William Shakespeare. The story takes place in Scotland where King Duncan is in charge the country. Macbeth who is the Thames of Glamis, will go on an adventure to take leadership of the country of Scotland, while he also battles with his personal insanity along the way. Macbeth will eventually be King of Scotland and have a miserable reign due to his guilt, inadequacy and tyranny.
Power is something that some people can handle, and some people cannot, too much of it can really hurt people. It can easily change who you are and the people you associate with. The character Macbeth in the novel Macbeth by Shakespeare betrays and hurts a lot of people who thought they were close with him, why? Because of power. Macbeth was a good guy who did not want to hurt anybody until one day he lets it all get to him and it completely changes who he is.
Act 2 Scene 2 of William Shakespeare’s Macbeth introduces two different reactions from two of the main characters’ bloody hands, a symbolism of guilt. The tragic hero, Macbeth, feels remorse and shame, would rather become blind than look at his hands and is so overcome by fear that he believes not even washing his bloody hands will eliminate the evidence of his wrong doing. On the contrary, Lady Macbeth mocks her husband, presents herself as an impure woman who is stronger than her male partner and believes that water clears her and Macbeth of any wrongdoing.
Shakespeare wrote a play filled with bravery, ambition and guilt. Guilt being one of the main topics in the theme of Macbeth, Lady Macbeth is one whose attitude towards guilt changed the most. Excessive guilt can lead to overwhelming thoughts and negative consequences if not dealt with and has been bottled up inside for to long. Lady Macbeth at the beginning of the play is very brave and manipulative, willing to do anything for the success of her husband. Her guilt begins to build up showing another side of Lady Macbeth that she is trying to ignore.
In Act 3 of Shakespeare’s play, Macbeth, more of Lady Macbeth’s humane side is shown as her role as the ruthless conspirator behind the murder plot is replaced by Macbeth himself. Driven mad by his desire for power and the witches’ predictions, Macbeth plots the murder of Banquo and his son Fleance after hearing that “the seeds of Banquo kings,” (3.1.70) would soon evict him from the throne. Macbeth feels threatened and thus explains his plan to his wife who says, “you must leave this now!” (3.2.) Rather than egging Macbeth on as she did in Acts 1 and 2, Lady Macbeth attempts to convince not to go through with his plan, showing that she holds remorse for her actions.
In William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the character of Macbeth is portrayed as a loyal, patriotic and heroic soldier who cares deeply for his country. However, as the play continues, Macbeth develops a strong ambition and exhibits dangerous feelings towards his King and his country. In ACT 1 SCENE 7, ACT 1 SCENE 4 and in ACT 3 SCENE 1, Macbeth displays many different types of emotions, including those of guilt, doubt and fear which all culminate to drastically amend his character from how it appeared at the beginning of the play.
The author of the epic tragedy Macbeth, William Shakespeare, depicts the life and downfall of Macbeth, a former King of Scotland. The story narrates the evolution of guilt that Macbeth places on himself and is haunted with due to the serial murders that his hand commands of his close and trusted. His mind is corrupted by the events and the people around him, forcing him into a state of madness to pursue his goals. All of the deaths are on his hands, and they are forever stained with blood. Driven to a mad state by being influenced by his own wife and witches hands, Macbeth tries to accomplish his unreachable goal of resisting fate by using his hands to commit murder on innocent people, and commanding the hands of murderers as his guilt engulfs
Soon after, Macbeth gave in to ambition and is also encouraged by a prophecy and Lady Macbeth, which he murders the King to take his throne. Macbeth’s betrayal throws himself into a bad state of being guilty and full of fear. Now that he is guilty and fearful, he murders again and again to satisfy his phobia. Macbeth has now became a very evil tyrant and will rightfully kill for his crimes over and over again. "For brave Macbeth well he deserves that name, Disdaining Fortune, with his brandish'd steel, Which smoked with bloody execution, Like valour's minion carved out his passage, Till he faced the slave." (1.2. 16-20).
For Banquo’s issue I have filed my mind” (3.1.62, 66). Had Macbeth not been so selfish in his desire for power, he would not have called for the murder of Banquo, his former friend. Furthermore, it is Banquo’s death that begins to dehumanize Macbeth and numb him to his morality. Once Banquo is finished, he begins to fear others taking the throne and so continually kills other thanes and
In William Shakespeare’s tragic play, Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, and Macbeth are two main characters that deal with guilt of their actions and fear of other characters and consequences. The one parallel in these reactions, however, is the effects on a character’s portrayal. Whether it is Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s paranoia towards the murders committed, or Macbeth’s consistent fear of having his position of king taken away. Macbeth’s respectful and gracious persona is altered to a malignant and emotionless one. In contrast, Lady Macbeth’s depiction as a vicious, strong, and narrow-minded character is portrayed as a dependent, regretful, and delusional woman.
If a human is told about their future they would expect it to be handed to them, but if any sudden obstacle crosses their path, humans decide to take fate into their own hands. In William Shakespeare’s play, The Tragedy of Macbeth, Shakespeare writes about a Scottish soldier who strives for power, and the fall of the king. When Macbeth is told the prophecy that he is going to become king he allows fate to guide and takes no action. But the king does not announce him his successor, then Macbeth and his wife act in foul ways to capture the throne. Shakespeare uses the main character of his play and the two forces that pull apart Macbeth's mind; the policy of his loyalty and the influences of evil deeds tear that him apart, to publicize how
Macbeth is a play full of ambition, appearance vs. reality, good vs. evil and last but not least guilt and conscience. In the play Macbeth once spoke with the three witches who told him his future. Even though it may have not been the truth, the witches told Macbeth a fortune they knew wouldn’t sit well with him. When the three witches told Macbeth he would not be king he was furious.
Macbeth fears Banquo and is threatened by his being because of the witches prophecy that although Banquo will not be king, but his sons will we king. (Act 3, Scene 1, Lines 47-56). Macbeth is fearful and is becoming convincing just like his wife when he convinced the murders that Banquo has committed a crime and should be punished by death along with his son Fleance. In scene 2 both Macbeth and his wife are uneasy at the murder which began to affect their relationship causing them to become distant towards one another. After the Murders find Banquo and kill him Fleance escapes which suggest that Macbeth’s luck has ran out and the prophecy that Banquo’s sons will become king might come true. In scene 4 at the party that Banquo is not attending Macbeth sees Banquo’s ghost which is a representation of Macbeth’s fear and guilty. He begins talking to himself which unsettles those around him, Lady Macbeth remains calm, but becomes angry with her husband. She supports him by lying and saying this is normal for him but in private she bullies him into being strong not weak. In (Act 3, Scene 4, Lines 135-140) the speech Macbeth gives it reveals a change in Macbeth attitude from how he has felt in the past about it deeds he realizes he has done horrible things, this causes him to feel trap because he knows he is in to deep. In (Scene