�PAGE � �PAGE �1� López
Pablo López
Professor Andrés Navarrete
Shakespeare LET 1746
3 October, 2011
How ignorance leads Macbeth to his evildoing
In order to introduce the topic, we need to understand that the origin of Macbeth 's evildoing can have many possibilities at the moment of interpreting this character. However, I am going to focus mainly on the role of ignorance as the element which triggers his evil, inner side. In addition, I will analyse the external features which influenced this behaviour in Macbeth 's mind and I will show how his conduct was not something at random but Macbeth had a sense of ambition which was guided by his wrongdoing.
First of all, according to the Cambridge Dictionary Online, ignorance is a lack
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In this sense, Macbeth needed some type of guidance in order to make what he had been thinking long time ago, even before the moment in which the witches influences Macbeth 's ambition. Additionally, the quotation indicates that Macbeth had a sense of guilty and fear, and the reason of this is not because he had to kill innocent people, but how his surroundings could not comprehend that he had to murder if he wanted to make the prophecy come true and have power. Therefore, this is another proof of his ignorance since he believes that a supernatural force from darkness can be the answer of all the atrocities that he had in mind, but he was blinded due to this because the real answer was that he was tempted only by himself.
Another point to consider is when Macbeth wanted to know more information about his future. At the moment that he knew that everybody was against him and they knew that he had been the responsible for the death of several people, he wanted to know how not to be defeated and needed the help of the witches. This is another instance in which Macbeth showed his ignorance, according to Knight:
They promise him success in terms of natural law; no man 'of woman born ' shall hurt him, he shall not be vanquished till Birnam Wood come against him. He, based firmly in the unreal, yet thinks to build his future on the laws of reality. He forgets that he is trafficking with things of nightmare fantasy, whose truth is falsehood, falsehood truth. So,
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.
Lady Macbeth in William Shakespeare’s play ‘Macbeth’ is a character who suffers greatly in because of her human weakness, which is her vaulting ambition. This ambition is not for her, but for her husband. This woman, who seemed so in control at the beginning of the okay, only cared for her husband and his success, later becomes so consumed with guilt and remorse that it results in her tragic death. Through the discussion of characterisation and lkey scenes, I shall reveal that Lady Macbeth’s human flaw is not only a major contributor to the ruthlessness of her husband but creates a huge influence in how the play unfolds.
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