Macbeth Character Analysis

Macbeth’s character has developed significantly up to the second act. We are first introduced to Macbeth character in a way that we view him as powerful and Nobel. We get this idea from the quote “oh valiant cousin, worthy gentleman” which is what he is described as by Duncan, who at the time is the king. From this quote Macbeth is portrayed as a loyal and heroic figure who has done much for many, however as we know this was not a smart move for Duncan to make as it makes him come across and weak and seems like Duncan should be giving Macbeth a higher title, which is what the witches had told him before. In addition, this idea of the king complementing Macbeth about all the good that he has done seems to trigger the belief that Macbeth has the ability to be king, even in the eyes of Duncan who is so ecstatic what he has done for the county.

In the play “Macbeth” the author furthers the ideas of ambition, manhood and violence throughout the play using a gender lens, mainly for masculinity in men. In the play “Macbeth” ambition plays a big role in the man characters life; Macbeth. In Act 1 scene 3, lines 125-129, “And oftentimes, to win us to our harm; The instruments of darkness tell us truth.” (Shakespeare 1.3.125-129). This quote stated by Banquo foreshadows Macbeth further into the play. Macbeth ends up killing King Duncan because he wants to be in power over the kingdom. When Banquo questions Macbeth about the killing of King Duncan, Macbeth’s ambition to kill Banquo skyrocketed. Macbeth didn’t want anybody to think or know that he ended up killing King Duncan for power. This started a cycle of death for Macbeth’s ambition to kill to stay in power. This example of ambition from “Macbeth” has a very similar motif from the movie called “The Mask You Live In”. In the movie, George Orwell states, “He wears a mask and his face grows to fit it.” The idea of the mask he wear fits his face helps us further the reason for men’s ambitions. Men’s ambitions are driven by power and dominance over people and prized possessions. For men to be able to gain power, they need to prove how masculine they are to society. In doing so they are dehumanizing their biological thoughts and feelings and turning them into artificial ones in order to be seen more powerful or dominate to the public.

Whilst the character of Macbeth is initially portrayed as a noble kinsman, his ambition and motivation, directly influenced by the witches and Lady Macbeth, ultimately transforms him into a corrupt and ruthless tyrant. William Shakespeare’s most famous tragedy “Macbeth” clearly depicts this notion of change, illustrated through Shakespeare's utilisation of literary techniques. The tragic downfall of Macbeth is mainly attributed to Macbeth’s own greed and hubris.

Throughout the book, as Macbeth continues to progress in power, it seems as though his morals fade away while dark and destructive ideas spread through him quickly. While Macbeth contemplates his first evil deed of killing Duncan, he often talk’s himself into doing it, or gets outside persuasion to gain the courage that he is lacking. After talking to Lady Macbeth about how he has to murder Duncan, he exclaims, “I am settled and bend up / Each corporal agent to this terrible feat. / Away and mock the time with the fairest show. / False face must hide what the false heart doth / know” (1.7.92-96). Later in the novel we learn that Macbeth thinks that Banquo has become a threat to his power. Macbeth then takes this problem into his own hands and assigns murderers to kill Banquo. Macbeth then says, “So is he mine; and in such bloody distance / That every minute of his being thrusts/ Against my nearest of life. And though I could / With barefaced power sweep him from my sight/ And bid my will avouch it, yet I must not, / For certain friends that are both his and mine, / Whose loves I may not drop, but wail his fall who I myself struck down. And thence it is, that I to your assistance do make love, masking the business from the common eye for sundry weighty reasons” (3.1.132-142). Macbeth is saying that if he absolutely has to do this terrible deed he will, it doesn’t mean he wants to, but he is going to do it anyways. Macbeth uses the motif of appearance versus reality when he

Macbeth’s ambition is powered by the sisters. Through the sisters he learns that he is to be king, he does not know how he is going to become king however. Ambition is the key to his downfall. Before he had this ambition he said that he would never have dreamed of killing the king to become king. The ambition drove him to kill the king, so that he could become then king.

Making poor choices and treating others with disrespect can affect you in the long run and can easily contribute to a downfall. Macbeth was fully aware of the choices he made with the inhumane torture and disrespect he had on the citizens of Scotland. Being a tragic hero is when one experiences an immense tragedy which leads to a downfall, but Macbeth never had a tragedy because his death originated from the choices he made and reactions he had while he had authority as king. Macbeth being selfish and only caring about himself creates an undeserving and improper image as king which brought chaos into the land of Scotland. In Macbeth, by William Shakespeare, Macbeth does not fit the formula for a tragic hero because he is not a moral

Lady Macbeth’s and Macbeth’s ambition for power is driven by greed. However, Macbeth is more ambitious as he has a stronger desire to be king. Macbeth starts to have a strong desire to be king due to the prophecies given to him by the witches. Macbeth’s need to become king leads him to even consider murder.

Macbeth truly wants to become a king and he is determined to do so. “The Prince of Cumberland! That is a step On which I must fall down, or else o'erleap, For in my way it lies. Stars, hide your fires; Let not light see my black and deep desires. The eye wink at the hand; yet let that be Which the eye fears,

He learnt that the last prophecy is the greatest, so he tried to make that one come true. Macbeth was greedy for more after becoming the ‘Thane of Cawdor’. He wanted to become the King, an almighty and a powerful dictator. First to show how avaricious he was for more, him and his wife plotted out a way to kill the king. They wanted to do something that would give them both pleasures, but this wasn’t what they wanted.

At the start of the script Macbeth was heroic, never intending on killing King Duncan, but his own powerful ambition for power over ruled his heroic behaviours. Macbeth received a taste of power after being exposed to the witch’s prophecy, rapidly increasing his ambitions for power. He was weak to be persuaded and controlled by his ambitions and desires, he became a victim to himself. However, it could be argued that Macbeth’s own ambition did make him into a villain as once he had the taste of power he was willing to kill anyone who tried to take the throne away from him (Macbeth Theme of Ambition , 2015). Shakespeare has demonstrated that ambition can be a dangerous quality. Macbeth doesn’t get the opportunity to enjoy what he has achieved or become. Shakespeare is suggesting that it’s greater to achieve your ambitions fairly rather than achieve then through corruption (Jamieson, 2015). Macbeths own ambitions have gained the sympathy from the audience. Because have you ever done something evil to get what you want? His own ambitions have controlled and persuaded him to do things he regrets, positioning the audience to view Macbeth as a tragic figure who is a victim of his own ambitions and

she would have to push him into it. This shows that Macbeth was decent, but not

This quote shows Macbeth’s compulsive ambition is the only reason he would want to take the throne byforce. These quotes also show that Macbeth’s desire is enough to help him plot for murder but he can not bring himself to do it. However Lady Macbeth will take her husband on a path that is shrouded in darkness that leads to their inevitable fate.

Macbeth’s blind ambition also influenced his declining character. His ambitions alone had not been strong enough to carry King Duncan’s death. However, his ambitions along with the provoking of his wife lead him to take a violent and bloody path to the throne. Macbeth’s ambitions influenced the cause of his new character. This new character contained violence and power hunger. Macbeth was crowned King of Scotland, which led to extreme

Conversely, as the play begins to progress due to Macbeth’s over ambition for power; we start to view how Macbeth chooses to segregate/isolate himself from his wife; in order to justify on his own behaviour in relation to the witches’ prophecy. This specific moment in time is where Macbeth’s behaviour starts to perilously change; this is established through the manner in which he seeks council from the witches rather than his subjects. Therefore his behaviour and actions have substantially been altered as he now does not approach circumstances in the just way, but rather clandestinely; "She would have died hereafter; There would have been a time for such a word..." (V.v) His isolation from his wife results in Macbeth’s private ambitions to be made clear through his soliloquies.

William Shakespeare’s Macbeth is a tragedy about Macbeth’s vaulting ambition. Macbeth is an honorable general in Scotland’s military, the Thane of Glamis, and the Thane of Cawdor. The three witches give Macbeth and Banquo a prophecy saying Macbeth will be the King hereafter and Banquo will be the father of Kings. Taking what the witches said into consideration, Macbeth’s vaulting ambition consumes his mind and Lady Macbeth creates a master plan to murder King Duncan. Macbeth begins to regret what he has done, and is soon filled with paranoia. He feels like everyone is out to kill him; therefore, he kills everyone who suspects that he is the murderer of King Duncan. Macbeth’s attitude and motivations change drastically from the murder of King Duncan, and the murder of his friend Banquo. Macbeth attitude changes from regretful to unrepentant; his motivations alternate from needing to murder King Duncan because he is a bad king to murdering three guards and Banquo because they all suspect he murdered King Duncan.