Macbeth Character Analysis

Shakespeare's tragedy, Macbeth, is a play that transcends time due to its timeless and universal themes. The themes presented in this play are just as relevant to modern audiences as they would have been to contemporary Elizabethan audiences. The play has been able to maintain its textual integrity, withstanding the fact that it is now performed out of its original context to remain a successful play for modern audiences. The issues of heroism, abuse of power and the deceptiveness of appearances are all key within the play, conveyed through the use of dramatic and literary techniques, are issues which still resonate with contemporary audiences. Shakespeare has tested the parameters of the conventional tragedy that was extremely popular during his lifetime and in doing so has created text, which is still relevant today.

Macbeth, an ironic tragedy of the 17th century, is perhaps one of the most appraised works by renowned playwright William Shakespeare. Such fame, though, can be justified through the play’s effective utilization of themes and their evocative subtext; however, Shakespeare particularly focusses on the theme of power and has done so with intent. Macbeth visualises power in two forms, being that of divine and supernatural. The play forms a representation that, alike with the socio-cultural beliefs of the Elizabethan era, divine power should not be tampered with. Otherwise, the consequences can be detrimental, as demonstrated by the painful ends of characters Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Both individuals use the process of illegitimate power to

Shakespeare’s bloody and tragic play Macbeth, written in the seventeenth century, portrays blind ambition, appearances can be deceiving and corruption of power. It follows the reasons behind Macbeth’s downfall. The play analyzes how other outside forces can easily change the path of ones desires and decisions. The witches’ intrusion, Lady Macbeth’s manipulation and Macbeth’s dark desires all interfere and manipulate Macbeth’s decisions. He goes from being praised as a noble soldier to a traitor and corrupt king. In the play, Macbeth commits many terrible crimes; however he is solely not responsible for all of them. The outside factors manipulate his decisions and are responsible for his downfall at the end.

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 Shakespeare’s “Macbeth”, destruction is wrought when ambition goes rampant by moral constraints. “Macbeth” amplifies the fight amidst good vs evil, analyzing the psychological effects of King Duncan's murder. This tragedy concerned the plunge of a great man (King) from his position of nobility to humility on behalf of his ambitious pride. This pride causes the downfall of Macbeth that triggers a series of deaths down the line. Ambition is the driving force of the play.

The play ‘Macbeth’ by William Shakespeare, is known as one of the Four Great Tragedies of Shakespeare. Tragedy defines the protagonist of a high rank who is essentially good, plummets because of a fatal flaw and causes consequences for everyone. The protagonist Macbeth, is controlled by others and this results in him being hopeless at the end. He is strongly induced by the prophecies the witches foretells, also, Lady Macbeth exerts her will on his choices. Thus, in the end, Macbeth feels hopeless and undervalues his life as a result of being controlled by others.

The encounter of Macbeth with the witches provokes a completely different persona in him. The very person, who is praised by his king, is now plotting murder against his kinsman. His conception of killing the king is intiated after the fulfillment of one

Obsession with power makes him ruthless for he thinks only of his own welfare. No feelings of pity, hesitation or qualms of conscience are shown. Everything must now give way to his interests alone. Macbeth has travelled far from the man he was in Act I. Then, the mere thought of murder, made his heart knock against his ribs and his hair stand on end. He becomes a monstrous king causing his country to suffer ‘under the hand accursed’. Deceit, dishonour, hypocrisy, treachery and arrogant

Regarded as the darkest and most powerful work of Shakespeare, The Tragedy of Macbeth (1606), follows the corruption of high nobility and the potent consequences that come with choosing evil over good. Shakespeare tells the story of a courageous Scottish gentleman named Macbeth, the Thane of Glamis, who receives a prophecy from three witches that he will become the Thane of Cawdor and King of Scotland. Consumed by this insight and overwhelming ambition, Macbeth’s actions snowball into a plot of blood, madness, betrayal and the supernatural. Shakespeare used characterisation, symbolism and setting to successfully explore the consequences of betrayal.

Macbeth is a famous play which was written by William Shakespeare in 1606. The play explores various themes throughout its course, as it demonstrates how far a man’s aspirations can cause him to go. Undoubtedly, it is one of the bloodiest plays that Shakespeare has written, with the main character Macbeth senselessly shedding blood after blood. Clearly, it was his strong desire for power that led him to kill countless people so that he could maintain his position on the throne. His doom was made inevitable due to the self-assured personality he had developed.

The rise and fall of Macbeth as King of Scotland has captured audiences and inspired critics since Shakespeare first penned the play. In his “Shakespearean Tragedy” A.C. Bradley introduces several incorrect interpretations of the play. Bradley falsely states that Macbeth was born to rule as a king, that the murder of King Duncan would not have occurred without the pressuring of Lady Macbeth, and that Macbeth dies maintaining his native goodness and courage. The text, Clifford Davidson’s “On the Tragedy of Macbeth’s Character”, and E.A.S. Honigmann’s “On the Murder as Victim” all illustrate the fallacy and inaccurateness of Bradley’s argument.

Within William Shakespeare’s timeless play, Macbeth, he develops the intangible conflict between partial truths and insatiable ambition. Despite the conflict between the small-minded characters and their plight for the throne or their life, the thematic moral hidden behind the plots of man is embodied by these selfsame short-sighted characters. Overall, ambition is fed and sustained by fulfillments of the partial truths and in which ambition is sown to grow its deceitful fruits. Within this piece, the namesake character Macbeth is the focal point of this struggle as he inadvertently harms himself at both a tangible and intangible level.

William Shakespeare’s play Macbeth is the perfect example of the downfall of a great hero. In order to have such a fatal deposition, a character must be a tremendous warrior. In other words, the character Macbeth had many admiral traits. In addition, Aristotle’s characteristics of a tragic hero apply perfectly to Macbeth. The character Macbeth is the full embodiment of a Shakespearean tragic hero.

Macbeth is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare between 1599 and 1606. Set mainly in Scotland, the play adopts the destructive physical and psychological effects of political aspiration on those who seek power for its own sake. Macbeth is first bestowed as a mature man of established character, flourishing in certain fields of activity, and coveting a desirable reputation. One should not terminate any account that all Macbeth's actions are foreseeable. His character is made out of potentialities and his surroundings. Macbeth is impelled in his conduct by an excessive desire for worldly accolades and his self ambition lies

‘Macbeth’ is a play by William Shakespeare that shows a protagonist going from bad to worse throughout the play. Shakespeare wrote this play, taking in mind current affairs at the time of 1603-1606. This is the time when a Scottish king, James I was given the English crown. This king was obsessed with witches, so Shakespeare brought this theme strongly into the play. It also brings the theme of treachery towards the King. This pleased King James and also pleased him about showing the line of Stuart Kings, James descendants, in Act 4, Scene 1.