Macbeth As A System That Ranks Social Status

In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, Macbeth’s visions and hallucinations play a significant role and contribute to the development of his character. In the play Macbeth, a man is driven to murder his king and his companions after receiving a fairly ambiguous prophecy told by three witches. Although the witches triggered the series of events that later aid Macbeth’s descent into complete insanity, Macbeth is portrayed from the very beginning as a fierce and violent soldier. As the play goes on, several internal conflicts inside of Macbeth become clear. After he performs several bloody tasks, the madness inside of Macbeth is unmistakably visible to everyone around him. As a result of this insanity, he sees visions and hallucinations. Each time Macbeth

In today's world, there are clear political and societal issues that can be compared to Macbeth, which is hundreds of years old. Americans, for example, are challenged to this day over the same political issues that arose during the time Macbeth was written: Macbeth rises and becomes a Tyrant, Lady Macbeth being an influence on Macbeth’s decision making, and even the Weird Sisters can all be compared to modern day issues. Several of the issues America faces today includes fake news, family troubles, and foreign dilemmas. Even though the play Macbeth was written hundreds of years ago, it seems as if history will repeat itself, and throughout lifetimes people will experience the same troubles.

About four hundred years have passed since William Shakespeare composed his last play. However his writing, plots and characters are as alive today as they were when the plays were initially produced throughout the late sixteenth and mid seventeenth centuries. Despite the fact that Shakespearian plays are over centuries old, the themes and morals portrayed are still relevant in our society, as they are used in media today, betrayal being the main focus of this essay. In life all relationships are formed on the basis of trust, making it the foundation for all friendships and partnerships. Although it may be one of the most basic instincts we may possess as human beings, we still manage to trust the wrong people, or get taken advantage of by others, which usually results in physical or emotional pain, sadness, anger, and ultimately betrayal. Many similarities can be drawn between Macbeth, a play written by Shakespeare in 1606, and The Social Network (2003), directed by David Fincher. Macbeth is a tragedy about a loyal and once trusted noble of Scotland who, after some influence, becomes ambitious and plans the murder of the king, which involves gaining trust in some, and deceiving others. After doing so and claiming the throne, he faces the wrath of external forces, along with his internal struggles that lead him to his ultimate fate. The Social Network gives an insight on the formation and revolution of communication, Facebook

In society the purpose of gender roles is to group people into two opposite categories, men and women. These categories however, encourage toxic masculinity and gender inequality. In movies or books characters tend to fall into one category, when in reality most people don’t fit into just one. Shakespeare explores the idea of conformity and categorization in Macbeth. In Macbeth, the characters conformity to gender roles are the root of all their problems.

In Macbeth many questions about humanity get brought up throughout the first two acts, whether they are asked directly or indirectly. Over the first two acts there was an obvious physiological shift in Macbeth’s behaviour, and I think it was brought about by the witches telling him he’s destined to be king. When Macbeth was given this information, he felt entitled to the position of king, therefore justifying his actions to get there. His mind was so convinced that he deserved the position of king, that he went insane, losing himself as a person, and hallucinating a dagger to further persuade himself to steal the position of king from Duncan’s lifeless body. This is why entitlement is a problem in our society today. This issue is shown in

Shakespeare uses vivid and powerful forms of imagery to let the audience visualize the setting. Lady Macbeth is portrayed as a strong woman who is attracted to power and would do anything to be in control; she is anything but an elegant and sensitive woman. After the bloodshed begins, however, Lady Macbeth falls an easy prey to insanity and guilt. Her soliloquy (5.1.24-30) shows her decline into madness when she says,“out damned spot...”

It is also noted that the presence of the witches' in every scene, is often accompanied by thunder and dark skies, as though Nature is disturbed and troubled by their presence and supernatural forces. The disorder and disturbance of Nature in the presence of the witches' supernatural forces could also reflect the disorder portrayed in the play as soon as the Great Chain of Being was violated when Macbeth murdered King Duncan and assumed the throne.

“Shakespeare’s plays contain themes that are still relevant today. Macbeth is no exception”. Discuss with reference to at least 2 themes form Macbeth.

Within the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare there are different social groups but most are of royalty. Although most of the characters are royalty, there are different levels of royalty within the hierarchy. For example, there is a king and a queen, the children of the king and queen, and then the nobles. The nobles are typically knights or warriors who have devoted themselves to the king or queen of a certain kingdom or country. In the play Macbeth, the nobles not only are characters that help tell the story but they also seem to represent the concept of bravery. William Shakespeare purposefully placed this representation on the nobles to teach an important life lesson as well. The nobles were specifically represented in this way throughout Macbeth.

In Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, the main character’s goal is to become the king. Macbeth seeks to gain as much power as he possibly can and this ultimately leads to his demise. He hears the prophecy of the witches and becomes so obsessed with fulfilling the prophecy because it states that he will eventually become king. Having this information, Macbeth goes out of his way to force the prophecy to come true. He becomes so power hungry that he tries to force fate leaving him with an undeniable guilt for his actions, the loss of love from the people who once loved him, and a harsh death in the end.

In The Tragedy of Macbeth, the most prevailing theme is the shift in power in the relationships of the central character. The main character of the play, Macbeth, experiences a shift in control of his relationships as he gains more power.

Macbeth is a tragedy of a Scottish general who dramatically “transforms” from being a noble and dutiful soldier to a ruthless butcher. This is a direct consequence of the supernatural world, his wife’s manipulation and persuasion, and Macbeth’s own ambition.

The Human Nature of an individual is the leading force of choice, where a right or wrong path is chosen. This can ultimately be influenced by personal ambitions and moral decisions which could cause conflict due to the excessiveness of power. This is explored through the play Macbeth, where Shakespeare portrays the downfall of characters through complex representations of human nature, discovered through the plot of play. The concepts of power and ambition causing a destruction to the greater chain of being is a constant reflection of their downfall and the lead up to guilt which consequently has an eternal effect on the rest of their lives, leading to their destructive ends. The subversion of gender roles in the Macbeth family are seen through the character construction of both characters, typically for Lady Macbeth as her characteristics converse heavily with women during the Elizabethan period. Shakespeare continually uses the motif of blood, to represent the concept of guilt, in order to preview the complexity of the Macbeth family’s character.

As a virgin to The Shakespeare Theatre, I was pleasantly surprised when my recent encounter with Macbeth was a stimulating and enjoyable excursion. The two and a half hours I had predicted to be less than enchanting were filled with symbolism, and an overall attitude towards the Shakespeare classic that I had never contemplated before.

The importance of continuing to read Macbeth in our modern society is to educate readers on valuable lessons in life. The significance of gaining power appropriately, the fact that there are consequences for every action and the importance of justice are a few of the many life lessons that are relevant in Shakespeare 's tragedy, Macbeth.