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Macbeth, By William Shakespeare Essay

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Throughout the play Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare, there is a constant theme of questioning what quantifies a good leader and what qualifies someone to lead. These questions, however, are more easily posed than answered because they change immensely depending upon the individual responding. Some follow the school of thought that a king should be selected based on divine inheritance while others focus more holistically on a king who possesses good qualities that would make them a worthy ruler. In Macbeth there are not many examples of decent leadership that the reader can clearly grasp due to the political instability of the setting of the play: Scotland. King Duncan, while presented in a more favorable light than Macbeth, was no angelic being or exemplary ruler. On the other side of the sword, however, King Macbeth was presented as a bloody tyrant hell-bent on putting his wishes above the desires and needs of the people of Scotland. When presented with the few rulers that are shown throughout the play, King Duncan was a better ruler with his mild temperament and placement of his country above self. While choosing what quantifies a respectable king is arduous, it is simple to see that Macbeth was not a good ruler. In fact, he was quite the opposite. Thus, based on contradicting Macbeth’s faults, a good ruler is the physical embodiment of God, maintains command over the nobles, and favors the interest of the country over their own. The notion of leaders of

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