Macbeth Character Analysis

“Lesser than Macbeth, and greater. Not so happy yet much happier. Thou shalt get kings though thou be none.” said Banquo while he was directly involved with the witches, when he talked to them in person. At first he was very different than Macbeth, he was an innocent person accompanied by a guilty man, this contrast lasted until his death. Although never fully changed it slowly went away as the play goes on. Banquo is actually described as a much better person than Macbeth as a chosen one of the witches. There were other characters besides Banquo who were affected by the prophecies. Duncan being one of the primary ones. Because of the prophecies he was killed off very early in the play. The witches were the ones who caused this evil action to occur which greatly affected Duncan and Banquo.

If Macbeth didn’t know about this prophecy he would have happily took his position as Thane of Cawdor, but knowing he will be King drove him to commit murder. Macbeth was rapidly changed from an honorable general to an evil tyrant. “The witches did not tell him to commit murder; all that was necessary was for them to suggest the fact of the crown, and they could trust Macbeth to overcome the obstacles in his way just as they would have him” (Wiley, 45). This emphasizes the fact that the play is shaped by the supernatural. This lead to the murder of Duncan, then to get rid of his obstacles he kills the guards. The Witches also reveal “Thou shalt get kings, though thou be none” (1.3.67) to Banquo. This knowledge leads Macbeth to send Murderers to kill Banquo and his son. This is more evidence to show that the words of the witches construct the plays events.

After everyone has found out that the king is dead Banquo suspects Macbeth of doing something to make the witches predictions that they ways saying to become true. At that time Macbeth is king so he turns on his best friend Banquo and has him and all of his family including Fleance killed because he was the only person there when the predictions of Macbeth becoming king and also the witches said that Banquos son Fleance would become king too. So this shows that that Macbeth is getting over protective of his crown to the throne so he will do anything to stop people becoming king. So he will kill he’s best friend and his family only because the three withes said that predictions of Macbeth becoming king. So Macbeth is going into a downward spiral towards great darkness and becoming ever more evil from every action he makes and does to protect the crown.

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 written by William Shakespeare, an important character is Macbeth. The writer develops the personality of said character throughout the play using contrast, dialogue, actions, thoughts, and commentary. Through this the audience is able to observe the personality transformation Macbeth undergoes throughout the course of the play.

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

Moreover, after hearing the witches prophecy, deceit, lies, and betrayal plays an important role in the play because that's where the changes in power occur. Macbeth decided to set sail on his sacrilegious plan to kill whoever he needs to, that's in his way trying to stop him from getting to where he needs to be. Macbeth murdered his friend Banquo because of the fear of Banquo being a threat and he knows what the witches told them both. He plans his ruthless scheme

In Macbeth, the witches use foreshadowing, characterization, and the characters in Macbeth use allusions. The witches play a large part in the play. They lead Macbeth to kill the king, and they lead to his demise. They are the main factor that moves the play along as well as help Macbeth use his tragic flaw of overconfidence. Macbeth believes everything that the witches tell him and he does not think for one moment that the witches might be telling him something else that would be hidden in the predictions. They were the reason that Macbeth decided to kill the king, and the reason why he was so paranoid with everyone. He killed his best friend all because the witches told him that Banquo will be father to a line of kings. Macbeth went on and

In the beginning of the play ‘MacBeth’, MacBeth was a loyal, good man to his king Duncan then the three witches tell MacBeth that if he kills king Duncan he can become king. For example, in Act 1 scene 3 page 3 the third witch says to MacBeth ‘All hail, Macbeth, the future king!’ This quote is showsing that the witches are trying to get MacBeth to kill Duncan so that MacBeth can become king and rule. Aat first MacBeth thinks they are lying and he wouldn’t do that to his king but then stuff happens and MacBeth wants power.

Motives are a part of people’s everyday lives. People use motives to explain why they did something. William Shakespeare is a well-known play writer from the 1600s. Shakespeare is known for his tragedies like Macbeth. “Macbeth was written between 1606-1607 and published in the First Folio of 1623” (Bevington).

In all the Witches gave the main prophecy to Macbeth which incited is ambition for king along with stating Banquo’s sons to be kings influencing Macbeth to kill his friend. Telling him he was invincible later on to all men born of woman even further boosting his ambitions coupled with their final statement of saying he would not be vanquished unless a forest was moved. Furthering his resolve on the subject therefore influencing him the most out of all the characters and driving the story to the

This weakness of mind becomes more evident as MacBeth is changed so much that is ends up a monster. Ambition is a major part of why he was about to be manipulated. Even his close friendship to Banquo was not enough when he thought him a threat. 'Our fears in Banquo stick deep, and in his royalty nature reigns that which would be feared' The witches play a huge part in MacBeths change, due to their prophecies and apparitions. Their first meeting is a good example of how the three sisters make MacBeth seem very gullible. 'Stay you imperfect speakers, tell me more'. This meant that the witches had a lot of power over MacBeth's actions.

We see that most of the conversations that take place between the characters relate to the changing power structure, or the new titles individuals gain and there are many foreshadows that predict events relating to this theme as well. First, the witches foreshadow the new titles and/or positions Macbeth will acquire throughout the play, starting from the thane of Glamis, to the thane of Cawdor, and finally the future king. Following this, Macbeth realizes that he would have to put Malcom down if he rises to the position of the king, as Malcom is appointed as the new prince of Cumberland. Finally, although not specified, readers can infer that Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s plan to murder Duncan is rooted in a desire for possible power, and by killing the king, they would be able to move higher up in the ruling system, or become a more influential figure in the