Supernatural in Shakespeare's Macbeth - Witches and Lady Macbeth Hold the Blame

Shakespeare's play Macbeth shows the roots of all evil, our own human nature. The play is centered on the coexistence of good and evil. Macbeth, unlike any other Shakespeare play has the protagonist convert to evil. In the beginning of the play, Macbeth is shown as a hero in the Scottish army, that is ironic because Macbeth defeats a traitor and he himself becomes one later. Macbeth knows his place in the world. He is fully capable of distinguishing between right and wrong. Macbeth purposely disregards his own moral judgment to rise to power which is again ironic and goes against his own beliefs. Macbeth stands as a symbol for Satan's sin of ambition. Like Satan, Macbeth's thirst for power and ambition drives him to commit evil.Contrary to

William Shakespeare’s Macbeth is a tragedy in which the main characters are obsessed by the desire for power. Macbeth’s aspiration for power blinds him to the ethical implications of his dreadful acts. The more that Shakespeare’s Macbeth represses his murderous feelings, the more he is haunted by them. By analyzing his hallucinations it is possible to trace his deteriorating mental state and the trajectory of his ultimate fall. Throughout the play Macbeth is never satisfied with himself. He feels the need to keep committing crime in order to keep what he wants most: his kingship. The harder Macbeth tries to change his fate the more he tends to run into his fate. His ambition and struggle for power was Macbeth’s tragic flaw in the play.

In the beginning of the play Macbeth crosses upon three wicked witches. Each of the witches held a prophecy that was destined for Macbeth. They tell him he will be “...Thane of Glamis, ...Thane of Cawdor, and ...shalt be king hereafter”(

The Tragedy of Macbeth details the downfall of the tragic hero, Macbeth, and is one of William Shakespeare’s most famous works of tragedy. Macbeth’s bloody murders and eventual descent into complete madness serves as a stark reminder of the dangers of uncontrolled ambitions in humanity. Macbeth may not be held responsible for the death of Duncan and Macduff’s family, but he should be for that of Banquo’s. It is definitely arguable that Macbeth is the cause behind the death of Duncan, Banquo and Macduff’s family; however, the influence of others and his mental instability greatly reshaped his persona, as such, Macbeth cannot always be held responsible for his actions.

A character’s tragic downfall is often influenced by other characters, but this is not the case in Shakespeare’s tragedy Macbeth. Macbeth conforms to the conditions of a tragic hero because in the beginning of the play, Macbeth is an honourable and trustworthy nobleman to King Duncan and all of Scotland. However, throughout the play, Macbeth commits evil deeds such betrayal, treason, and murder solely because of his ambitions to remain in power. Macbeth murders others upon hearing the witches’ prophecies and even proceeds to return to them to remain in power. Macbeth is influenced and manipulated by his wife Lady Macbeth and The Witches, but he is ultimately responsible for his own tragic downfall. Macbeth’s tragic downfall is caused by his ‘vaulting ambition’ to become king. Thus, Macbeth has no one but his ruthless, cruel, and greedy self to blame for his own tragic downfall.

Macbeth is confused as he is arguing with himself on what he should do. He states reasons not to kill Duncan, because Macbeth is his noble kinsmen and the act would bring dishonor. However, he also states reason why he should kill him, because Macbeth will then become king and fulfill the witches ' fortune. Lady Macbeth, who appears in the beginning as the driving force for the murder of King Duncan, also develops internal conflict. At first, Lady Macbeth seems to be a woman of extreme confidence and will. But, as situations become more and more unstable in the play, guilt develops inside her. For instance, she exclaims; "Wash your hands. Put on your nightgown. / Look not so pale. I tell you again, Banquo 's / Burried; he cannot come out on 's grave" (Shakespeare V, ii, 65-67). Lady Macbeth sleepwalks and frets about her evil wrongdoings because she is extremely guilty of her influence on Macbeth to commit the murder. Lady Macbeth reacts emotionally and dwells on her actions as guilt eats at her soul.

Shakespeare’s play, Macbeth demonstrates what can happen when one pursues power at the expense of everything else.   The main character, Macbeth begins the play as a strong character that is greatly admired, however as the play progresses, Macbeth's personality and actions become more and more deceitful. Macbeth’s deceit eventually leads to his destruction.

When Shakespeare wrote his play, Macbeth in 1606 a large majority of people were interested in witchcraft. This is why Shakespeare made the witches and the witches’ prophecies play a major part in the storyline of the play. In the time of Macbeth witches were not thought to be supernatural beings themselves, but supposedly gained their powers by selling their souls to Satan. There can be little doubt that most of Shakespeare’s audience would have believed in witches, and for the purpose of the play, at least, Shakespeare also accepted their reality.

Macbeth is the lead of the play starts of as a hero but is corrupted by the abuse of power and morphed into the villain. He starts off as the play coming back to war, after he successfully helped the country of Scotland, but shortly tempted by glory and kills King Duncan. While Macbeth is a criminal and continues to resolve his issues with violence, his conscious guilt is clear through out the play make him a realistic character. Much of the reason why Macbeth goes forth with the Murder of King Duncan is the influence of Lady Macbeth. Lady Macbeth uses seduction, and force to pursued Macbeth into the murder. While she her lust for power is one of the driving forces to the plot in the beginning, her view on power flips and she becomes more passive to the violence as the guilt of the murders seep into her mind. Her ruthless behavior morphed into a deep madness. Additionally, the three witches provide a supernatural eeriness so Macbeth’s temptations seem devilish. The characters in Macbeth are wonderfully complex making them interesting.

Shakespeare’s Macbeth portrays evil as a perversion of human nature through Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s betrayal of Duncan and the repercussions of their actions. Murdering Duncan is not the best way for Macbeth to gain the power promised to him, he and his wife fall into a downward spiral that ends in death.

The play examines the effects of evil on Macbeth’s character and on his subsequent moral behavior. The later murders flow naturally out of the first. Evil breeds evil because Macbeth, to protect himself and consolidate his position, is forced to murder again (Harbage, 1963). Successively, he kills Banquo, attempts to murder Fleance, and brutally exterminates Macduff’s family. As his crimes increase, Macbeth’s freedom seems to decrease, but his moral responsibility does not. His actions become more cold-blooded as his options disappear. Shakespeare does not allow Macbeth any moral excuses. The dramatist is aware of the notion that any action performed makes it more likely that the person will perform other such actions. The operation of this phenomenon is apparent as Macbeth finds it increasingly easier to rise to the gruesome occasion. However, the dominant inclination never becomes a total determinant of behavior, so Macbeth does not have the excuse of loss of free will. It does however become ever more difficult to break the chain of events that are rushing him toward moral and physical destruction.

The play Macbeth, centers around the main character, Macbeth, a courageous man who fights loyally for King Duncan, but whose attitude and loyalty starts to change, after a prophecy by the three witches, that promise him the crown. Macbeth begins to puts his needs first and becomes obsessed with power. In this selfish state of mind, where all he can focus on is his own thoughts and desires, he begins killing people. Towards the end of the play one can't help but feel disgust for Macbeth, due to his self-absorbed ways and murderous deeds.

Macbeth's evil is a dynamic character trait. He begins the play as a celebrated hero, loyal to his friends and dedicated to his king. He is strong and noble, a man to be admired by his audience. Macbeth and Banquo are visited by the three witches, who promise him that he will be king. This veiled intimation ignites a secret ambition within Macbeth. Evil has dawned within him, but at this early stage of his

Macbeth fears Banquo and is threatened by his being because of the witches prophecy that although Banquo will not be king, but his sons will we king. (Act 3, Scene 1, Lines 47-56). Macbeth is fearful and is becoming convincing just like his wife when he convinced the murders that Banquo has committed a crime and should be punished by death along with his son Fleance. In scene 2 both Macbeth and his wife are uneasy at the murder which began to affect their relationship causing them to become distant towards one another. After the Murders find Banquo and kill him Fleance escapes which suggest that Macbeth’s luck has ran out and the prophecy that Banquo’s sons will become king might come true. In scene 4 at the party that Banquo is not attending Macbeth sees Banquo’s ghost which is a representation of Macbeth’s fear and guilty. He begins talking to himself which unsettles those around him, Lady Macbeth remains calm, but becomes angry with her husband. She supports him by lying and saying this is normal for him but in private she bullies him into being strong not weak. In (Act 3, Scene 4, Lines 135-140) the speech Macbeth gives it reveals a change in Macbeth attitude from how he has felt in the past about it deeds he realizes he has done horrible things, this causes him to feel trap because he knows he is in to deep. In (Scene

In William Shakespeare’s timeless classic “Macbeth” he tells a story of a man corrupted by ambition and greed and how it destroys him and those he loves. The main character Macbeth changes throughout the play leading up to his death in the final act. Macbeth’s character transforms from a honorable and humble man to an insane, lustful for power, and cut-throat tyrant.