Through the play Macbeth’s mental state slowly deteriorates over time starting with being given
The task to kill Duncan that’s when his suffering begins this is the start where Macbeth begins to
Feel conflicted and whether he should go through it, he later begins to hallucinate a dagger as he
Panics more, after he successfully killed King Duncan shortly afterwards he slowly begins to be
Consume from guilt preventing him from sleeping properly. His wife continues to taunt him
Making fun of him for not being a man lowering his pride as she keeps insulting him for how
Pathetic he is further adding to his mental suffering he finally snaps when he sees the ghost of
Banquo haunting him after he sent murderers to kill him seeing Banquo
In the play Macbeth Macbeth is fueled by power and every decision he makes is to gain more power. When the witches prophesize that he will become king power is all he can think about. He begins to lose his sanity in order to gain power and control over everything. When Lady Macbeth hears of Macbeth’s meeting with the witches she begins plotting the death of Duncan in order to get her and Macbeth power. It’s easy to see power has made her think this way when she says, “ hie thee hither, that I may pour my spirits in thine ear and chastise with the valor of my tongue all that impedes thee from the golden round” (1.5.15-8). This quote shows that Lady Macbeth thinks Macbeth wants to be king, but isn’t willing to do what is necessary to get. Her
When the play first start 's Macbeth is referred to by King Duncan his “Worthiest cousin” but later on in the play Macbeth begins to show signs of mental illness perhaps due to traumatizing events such as killing Duncan, and ordering the murderers to hunt down Banquo, and his son. When Macbeth begins to see the ghosts of Banquo it shows signs of remorse or regret on his conscience, and basically it begins to ruin him. Just like Dr.P 's paintings at first they were sensible pieces of art and as the illness progressed so did his mentality.
In Shakespeare's “Macbeth” both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are crazy but the crazier one is Macbeth. Macbeth murdered innocent people, he was obsessed to become king and he believed whatever the witches said.
Lady Macbeth is a character that ends up with a ending that ended her life due to her selfishness. Lady Macbeth Is a seemly savage trying to have the power for herself and her husband as the story progresses she turns into a fragile woman realizing her mistakes.Lady Macbeth on Act I, Scene V quotes,¨Yet do I fear thy nature, It is too full o’ th’ milk of human kindness to catch the nearest way.” in this quote we can get an idea that she is wanting power. The meaning of this quote is that she is excited for power but fears that Macbeth won't eliminate the king and seize the throne.
Lady Macbeth rebelled against her gender norms because she was craving the power and was willing to do anything to get the power. Most women in that time period were very intimidated by power because they didn’t have very many rights. So the fact that she was so driven to be powerful says something about her character. Back then women didn’t expect power unless they were in the royal families so when Lady Macbeth heard from Macbeth that he was going to become king she was ready to go to extreme extents for that power and to be a royal family. She went to farther extents for power then most men do.
Fear, this moves us to do many things no matter if they are against or for our morals. In the play The Tragedy of Macbeth it was fear that was the main deciding factor that themed throughout this play. This can be proved by the other murders that happened after King Duncan's. These murders were committed, because Macbeth was scared of being caught and having to serve justice for the crimes he had committed. And as for Lady Macbeth, she washes her hands all the time trying to get the blood that is no longer on her hands off and sleepwalking, all of what she does is out of her own fear.
Hernan Blanco Professor Mclntire English Comp. 2 27 March 2024 The quote "Fair is foul, and foul is fair: Hover through the fog and filthy air" is spoken by the three witches in Act 1, Scene 1 in the story. The phrase summarizes the central theme where good and evil blur, a theme that filters throughout the play. It suggests a world where appearances are deceptive and morality is ambiguous, foreshadowing the moral chaos that unfolds as Macbeth's ambition leads to tyranny and destruction.
In the beginning of the play, Macbeth was in a great state of mind, he won the war for the people of Scotland, and was seen as a hero. On the way home from war, Macbeth meets three witches who prophesied that he will become The King of Scotland, which led to the ultimate downfall of his mental health. Throughout the rest of the play, you start to see him struggle with insomnia, hyperarousal, hallucinations, paranormal schizophrenia, and anxiety which we see throughout the play, that gradually gets worse. Just before Macbeth goes into Duncan‘s room, he envisions a bloody dagger which is one of the many psychotic episodes that he’s bound to have. Macbeth's actions, thoughts, and need to keep his masculinity in order, lead to the fall of
Macbeth shows he is weak in his hesitating determination and his dependency on Lady Macbeth’s strong determination. He is easily pushed around and pressured by Lady Macbeth to kill King Duncan. Macbeth says, “We will proceed no further in this business” (Act 1, Scene 7) to Lady Macbeth because he is having second thoughts about the murder. He feels like he should back out of the plan, but Lady Macbeth manipulates him into doing it. He has so many thoughts going through his head and just listens to Lady Macbeth and what she has to say.
Lady Macbeth's ambitious nature was a large part of the play. Lady Macbeth often brought Macbeth's manhood into question whenever he was weary of going through with something, even something as atrocious as murder. For example, “Yet do I fear thy nature; / It is too full o' th' milk of human kindness / To catch the nearest way”(1.5.14-16). In this quote she basically says that he is too much of a wuss to follow through with their plan to elevate their social status. Lady Macbeth was also the one who planted the daggers on the guards when Macbeth couldn't follow through with it. If she hadn't have done that there is a good chance that they could have been caught. She asks “Why did you bring these daggers from the place? / They must lie there:
Macbeth’s sense of self seems to diminish as he comes to reality with what he has done and who he has hurt. This leads to him to not being able to sleep because he has “murdered and therefore/Cawdor/Shall sleep no more. Macbeth shall sleep no more” (2.2.55-57). By him not sleeping it shows that he is going crazy, and is not ok with what has happened. Losing his sense of self is also slowly killing his mental state. His conscience is guilty which makes him think less of himself. When Banquo’s ghost appears it makes Macbeth feel as if he were dead. Wanting Banquo to “Take any shape but that,” because he wants him to “be alive again/And dare [him] to the desert with thy sword” (3.4.124-126). When Macbeth’s fears are confirmed about the line of kings all in the image of Banquo his future is shaken. Once being trusted friends this also helps to twist his mental state; and not for the good. Also by him not being stable Macbeth starts hallucinating and feels tempted to grasp what he sees and use it. These visions are a
Macbeth’s corrupted state of mind which prompted the change in his character, is now displayed to be causing him misery because to his recently developed paranoia and greed for preserving his power. His mental suffering causes him to envy the dead since he compares his own pitiful state to that of the dead, mainly Duncan who, being dead, has nothing that can harm him further as he says “ nor steel nor poison, Malice domestic, foreign levy, nothing Can touch him further”. Macbeth talks about his mind being in a continuous frenzy and torture due to his nightmares and guilt harboring him when he insinuates “Than on the torture of the mind to lie In restless ecstasy”. Shakespeare uses irony to describe Macbeth’s situation when he talks about
So he kills many more people who he believes suspect him of murder. He becomes suspicious and insecure. He is scared of what he has done and fearful of deeds to follow. One of the main pieces of evidence that portrays a breakdown within the person is Macbeth's inability to sleep. This comes forward in Act two Scene 2 "I heard a voice cry `Sleep no more! Macbeth does murder sleep'" (lines 33-34). Sleep was seen as the natural end to the day and it was unnatural to not be able to sleep. Macbeth lost the ability to restore himself within his mind and his body, therefore becoming abnormal. The fact that Banquo's ghost appeared to him at the banquet shows his troubled conscience - his murderous deeds are playing on his mind. The vision of the ghost also represents the fact that after Macbeth killed Banquo, he entered into the world of the supernatural at a level that he had never stooped to before. All the evidence above portrays a steadily growing breakdown within the person - within Macbeth.
In Medieval times women were viewed as innocent beings who must be controlled by the men in their family; however, in Shakespeare’s Macbeth a woman is the mastermind behind the start of several horrendous deeds. Lady Macbeth was a woman with determination. When it was prophesized that Macbeth would be king, Lady Macbeth wished that her husband would immediately be at her side so she “may pour [her] spirits in [his] ear” (1. 5. 25). Lady Macbeth wanted nothing less that Macbeth to be king. In order for Macbeth to ascend to the throne, it needed to be emptied of King Duncan. Macbeth was an ambitious man but he was not evil, he would not commit murder to gain the throne; therefore, Lady Macbeth took it upon herself to see her husband crowned king. By making Lady Macbeth the mastermind behind a murder, Shakespeare disputed the typical role of women which labeled them as innocent and harmless beings.
Macbeth’s mental and moral deterioration throughout the play engages the audience illustrating how guilt overwhelms his conscience He believes he hears voices crying “Macbeth has murdered sleep” this demonstrates how he is battling against his morals and his ambition. His good qualities are battling his bad thoughts and this is the main reason for his mental downfall which makes for a deeply engaging plot. Macbeth goes from being a man of bravery, strength, honour yet he slowly loses these qualities. He once believed that killing a good man was an evil, un-worthy thing to do yet by the end of the play he is killing the people he once had close relationships with to get himself out of the mess that was dragging him deeper into despair and tragedy. This process is enthralling for the audience who cannot resist watching him go to any length to save himself as his morals go into deep decline. Ambition has completely taken over him in the soliloquy in which he states; “I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only Vaulting ambition, which o’erleap itself and falls on the other.” In this instance Macbeth is interesting because he realises that the only thing that is making him want to kill Duncan is