How Does Macbeths Character Change? Essay

like herself. "Yet I do fear thy nature/It is too full o' the milk of

     In Shakespeare’s classic tragedy of Macbeth the main character Macbeth is driven from his status as a well respected warrior and lord of not one, but two Scottish regions to a dishonest, unloyal murderer. Macbeth gets caught in a web of lies and vile acts of murder in which he brings about his own demise. His criminal actions lead up to his tragic ending of life. ‘ They have tied me to a stake; I cannot fly, But bearlike I must fight the course.’ His great ambition and gullibility of the witches predictions are two of the biggest factors of his downfall;however, Lady Macbeth was probably the biggest influence in the whole tragedy.

Through the soliloquy, the audience gains insight into Macbeth’s innermost thoughts. He names multiple reasons as to why he should not kill King Duncan, noting that Duncan is his guest, kinsman and a good king. He also admits that the only motive he has is the “Vaulting ambition” residing inside of him. Here he names his own hamartia, his fatal flaw, and acknowledges that to give in and commit such a deed, would result in his “deep damnation”. While still undecided on the matter, Lady Macbeth enters, and, seeing his indecision she decides to manipulate him into the decision that suits her; for after all, she is almost if not as ambitious as her husband. By questioning his manhood, his bravery, even their marriage, she successfully leads him to make the choice to kill the king. We now must realise that although the witches’ prophecies and Lady Macbeth’s taunts were a catalyst for Macbeth’s treachery, they never force him to make these errors in judgement; it must have been something that was already inside of him that caused him to decide this. There must have been some inherent evil already a part of his character.

Macbeth is very faithful and honorable general in the beginning of the play. However, once he rebels to king due to three witches plot, his character and personality changes completely. He becomes an atrocious and tyrannical ruler. Furthermore, his understanding of kingly rule is exposed in his words in act 4 scene 1: “Time, thou anticipatest my dread exploits: / The flighty purpose never is o'ertook / Unless the deed go with it; from this moment / The very firstlings of my heart shall be / The firstlings of my hand.” (Shakespeare 4.1.162-166). His evil character, which changed after becoming a king, matches with his understanding of kingly rule – he believes that king can do anything even though it is a dread exploit.

Macbeth first shows signs of change when he becomes Thane of Cawdor. While Macbeth first meets the witches they tell him he will be king and he wishes to know more. “Why/upon this blasted heath you stop our way/ with such a prophetic greeting? Speak I charge you.” (1.3.77-78) When Macbeth hears he will be king he becomes instantly curious and sparks a interest on the prospect of becoming king. This is when he first begins to show the signs of his greed. This is shown even further when Macbeth is told he was Thane of Cawdor and acts hopeful, “If chance will have me king,/ why chance may crown me” (1.3.143-144) Knowing the witches said he would soon become Thane of Cawdor now Macbeth has a purpose and a drive knowing what’s next in store for him. This is shown within his letter to Macbeth “that though might’ve not lose the dues of rejoicing, by being integral of what greatness is sponsored thee/” (1.5.8-9) Here he states to lady macbeth he doesn’t want to waste his chance and lose out on the greatness of becoming king. All of these quotes show Macbeth slip to the side of darkness by wanting to become king.

Sometimes there are experiences that can completely change a person. A person comes in one way and comes out completely different, usually in their head. This happens a lot, even way back to the early 1600’s in the tragedy-based play Macbeth by William Shakespeare, where Macbeth develops and changes as a character over the course of the play in terms of his mentality. At the beginning of the play, Macbeth is motivated by the witches predictions, can not control his thoughts, and lets his emotions get in the way of what he wants. Towards the end of the play, Macbeth is motivated by his need to survive, can control his thoughts better and limits the effect emotions have on him. These are three key components that change

"This dead butcher and his fiend like queen"(V.viii.80) is the way Malcolm describes Macbeth and Lady Macbeth.  The characters of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth changed considerably during the course of the play, Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare.  In the beginning of the play, Macbeth is seen as a courageous soldier who is loyal to the King.  As the play progresses, Macbeth is corrupted by the witches’ prophecies and by his and Lady Macbeth’s ambition. Because of the weakness of Macbeth’s character and the strength of Lady Macbeth’s character, Lady Macbeth is able to easily influence him.  Lady Macbeth pushes Macbeth toward evil at first, but after he realizes what he has done, it is his decision to

Macbeth and Lady Macbeth as they both in turn take on the role of the

“Macbeth” a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, portrays, how the main character Macbeth, transforms from a war hero, to a murdering villain. Macbeth starts out as the thane of Glamis and steadily rises to become King of Scotland. The higher Macbeth rose on his road of power the more corrupt and evil he became. The character change of Macbeth ignites the whole theme of the play.

The relationship among Macbeth and Lady Macbeth alters throughout the play Macbeth as they both in turn take on the role of the more dominant character. Their attitude to each other constantly changes throughout the play, although events in the play certainly draw Macbeth and Lady Macbeth apart their love for one another is evident throughout the play. Macbeth shows his love by saying a few compassionate words in his letter to Lady Macbeth about the meeting with the three weird sisters. Lady Macbeth shows that she cares for him by planning the murder of King Duncan so Macbeth can become king. By the end of the play Macbeth doesn’t care about his wife’s health that much, when she dies his taught was she was bound to die one day.

The “Tragedy of Macbeth” by William Shakespeare tells a tale of deceit, murder, and ambition, beginning with a cutthroat rise to power, followed by calamitous downfall. At the start of the play, Macbeth is a brave and loyal captain in King Duncan’s army, but after three witches prophesize that he himself will become the king of Scotland, and that those born of a friend, Banquo, will be king after him, Macbeth is overtaken by ambition and gluttony. Instigated by his wife and his own lust for power, he murders Duncan, assumes the throne, and subsequently sends mercenaries to kill Banquo’s sons. While awaiting battle, Macbeth addresses the death of his wife in Act V, scene 5. Throughout the

In this essay I shall be looking at the way evil is portrayed in Shakespeare's play, Macbeth. I will be concentrating on the characters in the play that contribute to the evil themes of the play. It is clear from the start of the play that the witches are the main source of evil.

It is human nature to be intrigued by all things mystical and dangerous. We fear the unknown but seek it nonetheless out of greed. Most of Shakespeare’s works hold an element of the supernatural and the play Macbeth is no exception. In this play we see a contemporary morality that warns of the dangers of trafficking with instruments of darkness; the witches in the play prophesize of Macbeths future as king, and Macbeth blinded by his hunger for power fails to recognize that the witches prophecies are luring him to evil . In act 1 scène 3 we see the effect that the excitement of the prophecies has had on his imagination as he begins to contemplate murdering the king. As Macbeth gets closer to

How Macbeth's Character Changes throughout the Play In this essay I would be looking at Macbeth’s character on how he changes throughout the play and to base this evidence on weather he was a tyrant or a tragic hero. The play focuses on the changing character of Macbeth and his increasing greed for power. Many factors contribute to the changes to Macbeth throughout the play which cause the character to deteriorate from a man with nobility and good intentions to one who is ruled by ambition and greed.

     In the tragedy Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare, many character traits are portrayed through the various characters throughout the play. Macbeth was one of Shakespeare’s greatest tragedies. It was completed in 1606 and was most likely first performed before King James I and his royal family at Hampton Court. King James I is believed to be a direct descendent of the character Banquo. Probably the most potent character trait expressed in Macbeth would be integrity or the lack there of. Integrity could be defined as doing the right thing at all costs no matter what the consequences or what would be in the persons best interest. In this play the person that displays the most