Throughout history, all countries were once ruled by a leader. In European countries, the king ruled over his land. Every European country has dealt with a good king or a bad king. Good kings rule their land with strength, wisdom, and generously. If the king does not rule with these characteristics, he rules his kingdom with greed, cruelty, and over ambition. The epic poem, Beowulf and the Shakespearean play, Macbeth provide examples of both a good king and a bad king. In the excerpt from Joseph Ellis’ Founding Brothers entitled, “The Farewell”, George Washington, America’s first president, is portrayed as having the characteristics of a good king. George Washington could be considered a “good king” as is Hrothgar, Duncan and Beowulf. Washington’s legacy in American history is immortal. His legend lives on forever as being the president of the United States. In the Anglo-Saxon era, the goal of a king was to remain immortal by being remembered. As shown in Beowulf, King Beowulf wanted to remember as a heroic leader. In his speech he stated that “[w]hen a warrior is gone, [glory] will be his best and only bulwark” (Beowulf 1389). Beowulf died honorably and his people remembered him by giving him a tower in remembrance of his heroic deeds to his country and people.Similarly George Washington is also remembered for his noble deeds toward the United States. In America, Americans recognize George Washington as both a general and the first president of the United
George Washington became the first president of the United States soon after winning the war against Great Britain, America becoming the first independent 13 colonies. Since the beginning of his presidency people trusted him, being the one who led the country to victory as the General, contributed to people having faith in him. It states in the book that he chose the Country’s well-being before his own and often made decision following his gut, “he took pains to elevate the public good over private interest and projected honesty and honor over ambition.”(Johnson) Washington took great responsibility and honor of the New build Nation, he didn’t take matters lightly choosing what was best for his country. During his presidency, he was a visionary
In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the story of an ambitious royal turns into the followings of a murderous tyrant. The Thane of Cawdor, Macbeth, is motivated by his fear that his deep desires will not come true, and his tyrant, gender role-breaking wife, Lady Macbeth, to kill off various successors to the throne. Macbeth is introduced as an ambitious heir to the the throne, but is quickly displayed as a raging king. In William E. Cain’s essay “Murderous Thinking in Macbeth”, he describes the relationship between the audience and Macbeth as “sympathetically connected.” Macbeth is seen as a vicious tyrant to the rest of the characters, but his deep desires are seen by the audience or readers. The audience is shown Macbeth’s guilt and remorse throughout the play, up until he kills Macduff’s family. Macbeth obtains the mindset of a power hungry, murderous tyrant when he kills Macduff’s family.
In William shakespeare’s Macbeth,Macbeth is a classic example of a tragic hero in shakesperean work.Macbeth display the major characteristics of a tragic hero throughout the play until his tragic end.The play potrays Macbeth as a lost cause by showing how he fell from being a honest and just man who fought for whats right, to a cruel,superstitious,ambicious dictator.In william shakespreares Macbeth,Macbeth is a tragic hero because he compromises his honor and negates his moral values in order to obtain power which results with lots of tragic events such as character deaths leading to his tragic end.
in all purity. This is mainly due to the fact that he was willing to
Society turns to powerful leaders for guidance in times of uncertainty. Especially after the American Revolution, the people needed a leader to mollify the concerns entailing their newfound independence. They needed a president who could guide them like a king without creating a power vacuum, who could lead with respect without becoming corrupt, and who could put the future of the country beyond his own desires; America’s future was reliant on a leader who had these qualities. Luckily, the first president, George Washington, acted as the “good king” America heavily needed.
George Washington born February 22,1732 was the First President of the United States of America and the Commander in Chief of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War before serving in office. He is now recognized as the "Father of His Country" along with one of the greatest leaders in American History due to the legacy he left behind not only as a President, but as a man of great personal integrity, with a deep sense of duty, honor, and patriotism. (Biography.com, Editors).
President George Washington was the military comander for the U.S. independence. He was a outstanding president because of his back ground of leadership. When he was in office, he realized how torn the country was from war. He knew he had to fix it some how
A president of the United States is at the top of the government and is under the constitution of the United States. He is the leader of not only the executive branch, but he is a leader of our great country. He is respected and known as the most intellectual political official by recognition and scholarly. Out of all of the first presidents, one left a legacy like no other, none other the Washington. George Washington had the most enduring and important legacies. He was a humane, sincere, and he selected very profound example for his country, led important wars, and set important precedents.
In Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, the main character’s goal is to become the king. Macbeth seeks to gain as much power as he possibly can and this ultimately leads to his demise. He hears the prophecy of the witches and becomes so obsessed with fulfilling the prophecy because it states that he will eventually become king. Having this information, Macbeth goes out of his way to force the prophecy to come true. He becomes so power hungry that he tries to force fate leaving him with an undeniable guilt for his actions, the loss of love from the people who once loved him, and a harsh death in the end.
In life, there are two types of people: those who do the right thing and those who don’t. In the play Macbeth, by Shakespeare, the main character Macbeth is given a prophecy by three witches that says he will become king; however, there is no descending line of kings of his own blood. With the knowledge of the Witches’ prophecy, Macbeth’s ambition, and manipulation from his wife, Lady Macbeth, Macbeth is quickly dragged into a never-ending, bloody murder rampage to obtain the crown and get rid of those who stand in the way of obtaining it as well. Macbeth constantly battles with his moral dilemmas; however, he easily falls victim to influences that go against his morals. Influences on major characters emphasize how easily one’s decision making can be negatively affected, resulting in one going against his or her morals/integrity.
Shakespeare’s ideas towards kingship can be seen throughout the play. He shows that a king should be chosen by divine right and shows the attributes of what a good king should be.
In 1789, when George Washington was elected president, he became an important figure who later impacts American history and future generations, because he symbolizes all the virtues this nation believes in and stands for. People visualize Washington as a hero for all his acts of bravery, leadership and dedication to the United States. He fought to build and expand the reputation of America. Washington’s mythology inspires America due to his morals, being highly respected and his passion for his beloved nation.
The definition of a good king may vary depending, on one's morals, and values. If a leader has some sort of mental health issue he/she might think in a very corrupt manner, even then usually there are some people that receive benefits from the position a king holds; in that context the people receiving benefits may not think the king is as corrupt as he/she is. In shakespeare's play “Macbeth”, and as well as the epic poem “Beowulf” there are examples of how a “good” or “bad” king should behave. One’s opinion of a king differs, however there is strong evidence that sets near perfect guidelines of how a king should behave. Kings/ leaders should: behave and make decisions in a way that benefits the majority of the people, not just themselves, but most of all they must have good ethics, loyalty, courage, and integrity.
The tragic hero has been a major storytelling tool in recent years that makes the audience relate to, respect, and feel sympathy for a character which is undone by the end of the story. But can this title be given to Macbeth, the titular hero of the Shakespeare play by the same name? Yes, absolutely- Shakespeare’s Macbeth follows this plot path in numerous ways. Throughout the play, we are introduced to Macbeth’s belovedness, the crushing of said established belovedness, and his own undoing.
As a virgin to The Shakespeare Theatre, I was pleasantly surprised when my recent encounter with Macbeth was a stimulating and enjoyable excursion. The two and a half hours I had predicted to be less than enchanting were filled with symbolism, and an overall attitude towards the Shakespeare classic that I had never contemplated before.