Irony in Macbeth

The witches manipulate Macbeth into becoming a murdering, power-hungry evil being, by telling him, “someday you’ll be king.” “I'll drain him dry as hay. Sleep shall neither night nor day Hang upon his penthouse lid. He shall live a man forbid. Weary sev'n nights, nine times nine, Shall he dwindle, peak, and pine.” (I,i) The witches use the two other prophecies to get in the mind of Macbeth. They say that Macbeth will be Thane of Cawdor, and Banquo will be the father of future generations of kings. Though his bark cannot be lost, Yet it shall be tempest-tossed.They give Macbeth a false sense of security with the visions they perceive. These influential women are the ones that instill the idea of murdering the king. Macbeth lets greed get the best of him. The witches sway Macbeth into killing Duncan for the throne. “Fair is foul, and foul is fair.” (I,i) The Witches intend to turn Macbeth from his good ways, into something evil. As the only character that understands their cruelty, the witches want Macbeth dead. The witches give Macbeth the temptation to kill the king by telling him their prophecies. In the end,

Irony, a key element to a tragic play like Macbeth, has the ability to make the tragic hero appear more villainous or the down-fall seem even more tragic.

William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is a tragic story about two lovers who are from two disputing families, and their eventual suicides. Shakespeare uses dramatic irony throughout the play to create tension for the audience and foreshadow the ending. Dramatic irony is when the words or actions of characters in a story have a different meaning to the reader than to the characters. This is because the reader knows something that the characters do not. Romeo and Juliet’s death could have been prevented if the characters in the story weren’t so ignorant of their situations, and often times the reader recognizes this.

Macbeth's feels that his destiny is to become King and rule with all the power that goes with kingship. The three witches on his way back to the kingdom, prophesied that he would rise to kingship. They said "All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, thane of Glamis" (I, 3, 48), and then as the thane of Cawdor "All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, thane of Cawdor" (I, 3, 49). At this point in the play Macbeth had just become thane of Glamis, and the thane of Cawdor is still alive. Then, the witches greeted Macbeth as the King of Scotland saying "All hail, Macbeth! That shalt be King hereafter" (I, 3, 50). This is the point in the tragedy where Macbeth starts to think as a villain. If the witches had never greeted him as King on Scotland, then he would probably never have contemplated killing Duncan in the first place. At first, he believes that he will need to kill King Duncan. Though at the end of Act 1, Scene 3, he thinks that perhaps he doesn't need to do anything to become the king saying "If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me without my stir.", showing he is a man of honor and morals. Then, Lady Macbeth hears of the prophecy in his letters and decides immediately for him that King Duncan must die, showing Macbeth's doubt. An

"... Nought 's had, all 's spent, where our desire is not without content: 'tis safer to be that which we destroy, than by destruction dwell in doubtful joy." (3.2.4). When she has become Queen through the murder of Duncan, she portrays for a moment something like disappointment, something like disillusionment. Her mind begins to become warped and distorts her ambition, driving her insane in the process. "The Weird Sisters assured Macbeth that he himself should be king, but to Banquo they promised that his children should succeed to the crown. Macbeth is incensed by this decree of destiny. He is not content with the satisfaction of his own ambition. He wants to found a dynasty -- not to have murdered for the benefit of strangers." (Freud). This act alone of the witches will ensure a conflict between Macbeth and Banquo. Macbeth not wanting Banquo 's children to have the throne, believing they did not earn it. This lead to Macbeth hiring men to kill Banquo. Thus ensuring that Macbeth and his family will rule Scotland, or so he thought. Conflict is a main theme of any story and Macbeth is no different. Yet, some conflict can be lead to by even the slightest foreshadowing.

An important question every serious reader of Macbeth will probably ask himself at one point is, would Macbeth have killed Duncan and become king if the witches hadn’t tell him he would? Even though we do not get to know Macbeth before he is revealed such crucial prophecy we have no indication to think that he had serious aspirations to the throne before that. Yet it seems as if “The Sisters of Destiny” knew that if they made Macbeth aware of his fate he would by instinct seek for the throne. This means their prophecy cannot be considered a true, complete one, as it needs its own existence to be fulfilled. If we try to look, once again, for the motive of the witches’ revelation we reach a dead end. Apparently the witches do so without an aim or reason at all, fact which adds to the great

Furthermore tragic irony is shown when Macbeth arrogantly says, ?Then Live Macduff what need I fear of thee?? ( , , 82) This is tragic irony because Macbeth acts very hubris. He thinks that he is invincible, but eventually he realizes that he should have been more careful because Banquo ironically ends up killing him. Further, it develops the theme of appearance versus reality because to Macbeth it seems that he does not need to be afraid of Macduff because the witches trick him into thinking that he is immortal when in reality he is not. As has been noted dramatic, thematic, and tragic irony aid in the development of characters and with it help expand the theme of appearance versus reality.

One of the most important themes in the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare comes from one of the last lines in Act 1, Scene 1 of the play. The three witches speak this simple line ‘Fair is foul, and foul is fair,’ shortly before they disperse and it becomes a prophecy and an underlying warning for the rest of the play. The connotations of this one line becomes significant as the play unfolds beginning even with Macbeth’s opinions at the beginning of the story and lasting throughout the play with the constant recurring themes of deception, doing evil in the name of good,

William Shakespeare wrote in his play Macbeth, "If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me.” In many ways throughout this play, Shakespeare was giving the warning of ambition to the audience. In the beginning of the play, Macbeth was a simple man. Respectful and obedient to his King, Macbeth wanted nothing but to please. When three witches came to him and his good friend, Banquo, and told them their destinies, this began something ghastly. Mysteriously, they informed Macbeth he was to be king. This sparks something in Macbeth that is dangerous and eventually leads to his demise, ambition. Wickedly, Macbeth and his wife plan to murder the king during the night so that Macbeth may be crowned sooner. The driving force of this accord

When dealing with scene II act II from Macbeth, we can’t miss Shakespeare’s mastery in stagecraft. This story of crime and punishment culminates here in a climax of horror and terror, which exposes to the 17th century spectator the features of the two plotters of Duncan’s murder. Thus, the audience are invited to attend the inevitable and tragic downfall of these protagonists.

In the beginning of the play, the witches make three prophecies. First, that Macbeth will become the Thane of Cawdor. The second part of the prophecy is that Macbeth will become King. The third prophecy being that Banquo will be father to future kings. When Macbeth first hears the prophecy, Duncan holds the position as king. King duncan is also a very loved king by his people. Macbeth and Duncan even have a good relationship. Macbeth is Duncan’s greatest war hero and because of Macbeth’s great success in battle, Duncan rewards him by promoting him to the position of Thane of Cawdor. With this promotion, Macbeth realizes that the witches first prophecy was true. With this realization, Macbeth’s head begins to fill with thoughts of killing King Duncan to speed up the process so that he can become king. When he tells his wife of the prophecies and his promotion, she becomes extremely

Over the course of the tragedy of Macbeth, Shakespeare uses various literary devices to bring to attention the importance of his diction, as well as relate the speech to the common theme of death and life’s worthlessness. Beyond the figurative language mentioned above, there are elements that are significant on their own, specifically foreshadowing, metaphors, repetition and alliteration. Shakespeare hints at an important upcoming event using Macbeth’s boastful attitude when he describes the walls surrounding his main character. This element of foreshadowing allows for the reader to predict that something tragic and significant will soon take place. As the speech progresses, the author continues to emphasize Macbeth’s idea that life is brief

-Dramatic Irony is when the words and actions of the characters in a work of literature are known to the audience or reader, but they are not known to certain characters in the story. The reader or audience has a greater knowledge of many of the characters themselves.

24-29). When Macbeth decides not to continue with their plan to murder Duncan, his wife urges him to act on his desires or he will think of himself as a coward. She says, "Art thou afeard / To be the same in thine own act and valour / As thou art in desire?" (I, vii. 42-44). She then makes sure he will perform the deed by taking an active role in preparing for the murder. "his two chamberlains / Will I with wine and wassel so convince," (I, vii. 70-71) and cleaning up afterwards, "Give me the daggers: the sleeping, and the dead / Are but as pictures; 'tis the eye of childhood / That fears a painted devil. If he do bleed, / I'll gild the faces of the grooms withal, / For it must seem their guilt." (II, ii. 69-73).

If the prophecy had not been shared with Macbeth, there would be no chance of him becoming a killer. The position of king could have fallen upon Macbeth instead of him expecting that fate and going the extra mile in making sure it would happen. He would not have been forced to kill Banquo, Duncan, Macduff’s wife and son, or anybody else because he would not have even been exposed to the idea that he must kill in order to receive his title. “But ’tis strange. And oftentimes, to win us to our harm, The instruments of darkness tell us truths, Win us with honest trifles, to betray’s In deepest consequence.” (Act 1. Scene 3. Lines 134-138.) Even Banquo understands that the dark spirits will tell you things to change your way of being, to win the harm of those around you and even yourself. In telling Macbeth the truth that he will become king, it forced wickedness upon him and allowed him to betray Duncan’s loyalty. “If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me Without my stir.” (Act 1. Scene 4. Lines 157-159.) This quote shows off how Macbeth originally believed that if he was to become the king, it would happen without him changing anything about his lifestyle. The witches when they turn Lady Macbeth into a barbarous woman, they bring Macbeth along with her and he joins into the uncivilized ways of the evil spirits. Once the play is over,