Essay on The Downfall of Macbeth

From this decision arises obvious internal conflict- he has love for his king and has proved this in battle. However, his ambition is decidedly the prevailing emotion and he decides he must kill his king. The scene before the murder takes place Macbeth imagines a dagger before him. He says,

The greatest factor to Macbeth’s downfall should be attributed to his blind, uncontrollable ambition. This factor is first seen with the second appearance of the witches, upon which they meet Macbeth. Macbeth’s first thought to the prophecy “All hail, Macbeth, thou shalt be king hereafter!” (1.3.63) is he must murder the king. This thought provides the groundwork in which Macbeth can seed his

Macbeth and Banquo’s reaction to the prophecy told to them by the witch’s gave way for two opposing opinions on both the validity and manifesting of the prophecy. Although their opinions throughout the unveiling of the prophecy were opposing throughout, at all times they both rendered the prophecy in contrastive ways, whether they contemplated on its benefit or hindrance towards their gleaming future.

Initially, Macbeth is viewed as a brave and loyal soldier, with Duncan praising him by expressing that “More is thy due than more than all can pay” (1.4.21). At this point, he has not been influenced by the three witches. Yet, by Duncan implying his importance, Macbeth gains a sense of self-worth and this arouses power within. His clear desire to be titled Thane of Cawdor while then having a growing temptation to commit regicide clearly demonstrate the early stages of his corruption and forms a basis for utilizing illegitimate power.

In William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the main character, Macbeth, is a brave and loyal subject to the King of Scotland, but as the play progresses, his character begins to change drastically. Evil and unnatural powers, as well as his own passion to become king, take over his better half and eventually lead to his downfall. The three main factors that intertwine with one another that contribute to Macbeth’s tragic end are the prophecies told by the three witches, Lady Macbeth’s influence, and finally, Macbeth’s excessive passion and ambition which drove his desire to become king to the utmost extreme. The prophecy told by the three witches was what triggers the other factors that contribute to Macbeth s downfall. In the first act, the witches

After hearing the prophecy that he will become king, Macbeth resolves to leave his future up to fate proving his pride and prestige are very important to him. Once he is told of Malcolm being named successor to the throne, Macbeth decides that if he is going to reach his goal he cannot leave it up to luck. Again Macbeth’s resolve to murder Duncan wavers when he leaves the grand banquet to assess his situation and decide whether he wants to proceed. His arguments include wishing to keep his honor and not kill Duncan for Duncan is there ‘in double trust’. Thus, Macbeth is shown to be clinging to his honor. Finally, Macbeth must stand his ground one last time against his wife who uses tact to emasculate Macbeth. In his final attempt to stop the whole ordeal before it can start Macbeth tells Lady Macbeth that he does not want to ‘cast aside’ the honor he has just recently received. Unfortunately, Lady Macbeth will have none of what her husband is saying and so convinces Macbeth to follow through with his plan of murdering King Duncan. Hence, the audience is given the first example of how powerful selfish motives are and how quickly they can spread to others along with cause them to perform unthinkable

But in order to further clarify this "thing that thinks,” he admits that there is always the possibility that he may be dreaming or deceived by an evil demon, since he is something that also imagines and senses seen. (13,15). He elaborates on this idea that if he is after

Throughout the play “Macbeth” Shakespeare uses multiple examples of strong diction, paradox, metaphors, and imagery to demonstrate the theme that fate is inevitable. These examples also help emphasize that the witches are in control of Macbeth's severe and hostile actions throughout the tragic play. Without the witches prophecies the idea of murder would have never crossed Macbeth’s mind. After the witches informed Macbeth that he would soon become king he was willed to do anything to make sure this bizarre prophecy would come true.

The reveal of Macbeth’s fate confuses his moral compass, creating an internal battle between his thirst for power and his righteous beliefs. Once the witches unveil his future, Macbeth’s mind starts turning. Despite the prophecy’s seemingly glorious outlook, Macbeth quickly recognizes its bloody implications. In an aside, he reveals that the prospect of killing the king makes his, “...heart knock at [his] ribs,/ Against the use of nature…”

We see in the play Macbeth that when the motivation to succeed in life becomes overpowering, other people may easily influence one and elements and one may decide on wrongful actions to achieve a goal. Some of the influences on Macbeth include the witches and the apparitions, Lady Macbeth, and lastly Macbeth's own insecurities and misguided attempts to control his future.

As the witches give Macbeth his predictions, he is distraught because he knows the evil deeds he must do to make the predictions come true. Banquo, not as ill minded as Macbeth, confides in him saying “Good sir, why do you start and seem to fear/Things that do sound so fair?” (1.3.52-53). The predictions the witches gave Macbeth were grand,

Shakespeare begins Macbeth’s soliloquy with the idea that Macbeth has sufficient flexibility over his thoughts and ideas; but ends with the idea that he has subsequently fallen into the lust of power and greed. Macbeth goes on to state, “I see the yet in form of palpable/ As this which I now draw.” Shakespeare emphasizes the capability for Macbeth to free his mind and have him draw out his next

In the opening act of this play Macbeth is a solider who has just returned from war. The captains are speaking highly of Macbeth’s valor, courage, and bravery. Suddenly Macbeth meets up with three witches. These witches tell him, “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, thane of Glamis, thane of Cawdor, that shalt be king

Macbeth’s good nature is increasingly defeated by one of his major flaws-ambition. His ambition and desire to become king leads

Initially, Macbeth is introduced to the play as a noble war hero with endless talent as a tactician, a truly admirable character. In an early scene of the play, the sergeant speaks very highly of Macbeth despite not knowing him very well personally. Dying from a fatal wound and explaining what happened, he says “For brave Macbeth (well he deserves that name)/… fix’d [the enemy’s] head on our battlements!” (I.ii.15-23). This shows Macbeth has a strong following filled with admirers despite the fact many have probably not even met him. Demonstrating morality, innocence, and a lack of malicious intent, upon hearing the prophecy for the first time from the three witches, Macbeth questions it at first. Speaking aside to Banquo, Macbeth says “This supernatural soliciting/Cannot be ill; cannot be good: if ill/Why hath it given me earnest of success.../If good, why do I yield to that suggestion/Whose horrid image doth unfix my hair” (I.iii.130-135). By questioning the witches’ prophecy