Macbeth Character Analysis

His ambition does not become overbearing until it is fueled by Lady Macbeth's own ambition. Macbeth's ambition is in sharp contrast to Banquo. Banquo comes across as much more hesitant to accept the witches prophesy. This contrast was created for a specific reason - to highlight Macbeth's tragic flaw. "One critical perspective views Banquo's function as essentially symbolic: he is portrayed as a man who, like Macbeth, has the capacity for both God's grace and sin; but unlike the protagonist, he puts little stock in the Weird Sisters, prophecies and does not succumb to their temptations. Banquo's reluctance to dwell on the witchs' predictions therefore underscores, by contrast, the nature of Macbeth's descent into evil." (Scott; 238) Banquo does not have the same overbearing ambition as Macbeth and therefor is able to reason with the situation. Banquo's logic is most prevalently seen in the following quote:

Macbeth is involved with many different people including those whom he ends up having murdered. Macbeth and Banquo, for example, have a good and strong military relationship and friendship. The fact that they are cousins makes their relationship extremely unique in many ways. When the Witches are there to tell Macbeth about his future, Banquo keeps a steady head almost to the point where he is starting to become more worried about his own future and powers, not what is being told to Macbeth. Banquo then proceeds to ask the witches about his own future to which they respond by telling him “ Thou shalt get kings, though thou be none”(I,iii,67). This reveals that Banquo might not exactly become king, but his children will, which angers Macbeth later on. Once Macbeth becomes king and Banquo has suspicions about how he obtained power, Macbeth then changes the relationship between the two by going after Banquo and his son Fleance with hired murderers. This again allows for the Witches to change how those in the relationship act and turn against one another shocking many. It is believed that Macbeth and Banquo are good friends until shortly after the

He fought bravely for his king and his country, and soon after fighting Macbeth encounters the three witches.The witches give Macbeth prophecies on how he will be king and how Banquo’s descendants will be kings.The moment Macbeth learns he will be king he ponders over committing regicide to take the throne for himself. He wavers on the line to kill King Duncan but in the end decides to go along with the plan to kill the king. He immediately regrets his decision and after a while though that regret gets suppressed deep down inside and he begins to feel nothing when he kills the king. Professor Stanley Rachman states that, “The effects of betrayal include shock, loss and grief, morbid pre-occupation, damaged self-esteem, self-doubting, anger.”(Stanley Rachman), when Macbeth commits an act of betrayal against the king Duncan, he turns to a violent individual with no regard for his actions and displays all of the previous qualities that professor Rachman had stated. Macbeth even goes as far as to feel nothing when he kills innocent women and children. This contrasts his earlier ways of murdering people and regretting his actions to him being cold hearted to these matters. When hearing of an opportunity to gain power, Macbeth loses his previous morals and resorts to acting in barbarous manners to try and seize the huge amount of power at stake. Another example of this theme occurs when Macbeth’s friendship with Banquo is shattered. At first in the play, Macbeth and Banquo are showcased as best friends, they fight alongside each other for the glory of their country and people. Banquo even betrays his own ethics for his friendship with Macbeth, but that is a topic that will be brought up later in the text. Macbeth hires assassins to murder his best friend and this is all because the Witches foretold that Banquo’s descendants will be kings. Out of fear of losing the throne Macbeth betrays his friendship

One would not think that committing murder, or persuading someone to commit murder, would necessarily increase your masculinity. Yet, in William Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Macbeth, failure to commit murder reduces a man to the status of a woman, by definition, a non-masculine person. Being a man puts one at a higher status, proving one’s manliness is beyond important. It is common to take advantage of someone by challenging their bravery, therefore putting them in a vulnerable state of mind. Vigor, strength, and leadership are three qualities that were extremely important for men to have. Committing murder is one way of showing a man possesses these qualities. Proving masculinity by committing murder, or influencing someone to commit murder,

William Shakespeare, Macbeth incorporates speech and action to uncover Banquo as a character. The purpose of Banquo in the play is to act as a contrast to Macbeth. He represents the path that Macbeth strays from, a path not illustrated by betrayal and murder. Banquo shows caution and ambition when meeting with the witches. He is also loyal towards Macbeth, yet also suspicious. Speech is the dialogue and language the person uses, whilst action is what the person does to make him the person he is.

Within Shakespeare's play, Macbeth, the character Banquo appears as a figment of Macbeth’s imagination. Macbeth was responsible for Banquo’s murder. This all began when Banquo became a threat to Macbeth keeping his wealth and power, so the king hired murderers to kill Banquo and his son. Banquo’s son escaped, so the murderers only got to kill Banquo. Banquo wasn't as ambitious as Macbeth; Banquo waned to simply live his life, do his job of serving his king, and spend time with his family. Specifically, when the murders attacked both Banquo and his son, Fleance, Banquo shouts at Fleance to get away from the murderers, remembering the prophecy that his descendants will be kings. Within the dinner scene, Banquo doesn't speak at all, he just appears

Macbeth realizes that Banquo can stop him from being king, so he decides to remove him and his son, Fleance, from the picture. Even though Banquo is one of his closest friends, Macbeth does not think twice about killing him which shows that he is starting to become more fierce and dominant. “So is he mine; and in such bloody distance/ That every minute of his being thrusts/ Against my near’st of life. (III.I). For the first time in the play, Macbeth shows his disgust for someone and shows it with lots of passion.

For Banquo’s issue I have filed my mind” (3.1.62, 66). Had Macbeth not been so selfish in his desire for power, he would not have called for the murder of Banquo, his former friend. Furthermore, it is Banquo’s death that begins to dehumanize Macbeth and numb him to his morality. Once Banquo is finished, he begins to fear others taking the throne and so continually kills other thanes and

“Manhood coerced into sensitivity is no manhood at all.” - Camille Paglia. Manhood is the epic fury brought up inside every true man, a fury that drives all decisions and diminishes all odds. It is the drive and fuel to every gruesome operation that can only be destroyed by killing the captive of the soul. Macbeth, Banquo, and Macduff, though different in many obvious ways, share one major thing, and that is their manhood. Without their manhood they are nothing but a mere weakling, with their manhood, they are their true persons. The effects of Manhood in the play Macbeth are most apparently noticed in acts I through IV, through the characters of Lady Macbeth, Macduff, Banquo, Lady Macduff, Duncan and Macbeth himself.

He says ‘but that myself should be the root and father of many kings. If there come truth from them’ Banquo repeats what the witches has said and is now getting excited to see what happens to Macbeth and him. Banquo has also realised in his soliloquy that something bad must happen to him for him to not be king, ‘may they not be my oracles as well and set me up in hope’, he fears that Macbeth killed the king, so he would easily be prepared to kill a

It is inevitable that society has made a stereotype for the definition on what it means to be a man or a woman, it was stated and believed a long time ago and has just moved through life, generation after generation. Society believes that men are the workers and providers and essentially the strength of the family, and women take more of a nurturing and caring role. From this, a man’s physical strength is portrayed as being strong and brave at superior and horrific times, yet through literature like Shakespeare’s Macbeth, it shows that they can end up weak. There are many times in William Shakespeare’s play, Macbeth, where the acts of “reverse-gender roles” are being detected in terms of what

Banquo, a noble and honest man, was also killed at the orders of Macbeth. Although, the depth of Macduff’s loyalty to Banquo is not very clear, Banquo’s murder is part of the reason he fought vehemently against Macbeth. Macbeth saw Banquo as the man “which would be feared” (Shakespeare 88) for he seems to be faultless. Banquo is inquisitive, brave, honorable, willing to take risks or “dares” but also knows when to play things safe. A seemingly perfect person like Banquo is undoubtedly troublesome to a flawed being like Macbeth, for they bring righteousness with them which signals the flawed one’s downfall. Macbeth says to the murders that Banquo’s existence “thrusts/Against my near’st of life”(Shakespeare 92). Banquo’s existence proves to be

Banquo’s warning is lost on Macbeth and Macbeth becomes so caught up in the contemplation of his own future, he loses consciousness of what is right and what his wrong. His beliefs, and his morals seem to be in all the wrong places. Macbeth’s thoughts turn to how the witches’ prophecies can be made good; he wants to give fate a little push. Only murder, he realizes will help him gain the crown and sit on the throne. To kill Duncan would have to be the only way and at first this thought seems horrible to him.

Banquo is a character in William Shakespeare's 1606 play Macbeth. In the play, he is at first an ally to Macbeth and they are together when they meet the Three Witches. After prophesying that Macbeth will become king, the witches tell Banquo that he will not be king himself, but that his descendants will be. Later, Macbeth in his lust for power sees Banquo as a threat and has him murdered; Banquo's son, Fleance, escapes. Banquo's ghost returns in a later scene, causing Macbeth to react with alarm during a public feast.

A white room stained with royal blood. On the night of July 17th of 1918 in Yekaterinburg, Russia, Yakov Yurovsky and his troops stabbed and shot to death the Russian Romanov family. He did this because he desired recognition and power. Power corrupts people’s minds. It makes people stop seeing what it is and only see what they want. A character who draws attention to this topic is Macbeth. In the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare, Macbeth is a well recognized war fighter. Macbeth is also Thane of Glamis. He and his close friend, Banquo, stumble upon three witches who reveal their destinies. Macbeth accomplishes malevolent actions to make his prophecy true. The vicious actions Macbeth has effectuated are the cause of his death. Macbeth is the most ambitious character out of anyone in the play.