Theme Ambition In Macbeth

Human nature, the dictation of an individual’s actions, is controlled by two majors force of loyalty and ambition. The play Macbeth, a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, revolves around the story of Macbeth and his rise from the thane of Cawdor to the King of Scotland through multiple bloody murders. His malevolent acts lead him to be hated by many, prompting a revolt that ends his reign. Initially, Macbeth was shown to be loyal follower, never thinking to do anything that would contrast his allegiance to the king. Upon hearing a prophecy of his future to become king, a spark of ambition ignited within Macbeth that drove him to commit foul acts in order to gain kingship. Macbeth’s loyal characteristics and ambitions could not coexist, and as one fought for control against the other, Macbeth delved further into darkness culminating in his fall and death. Throughout the play of Macbeth, Shakespeare depicts that it is human nature to struggle with the balance of one’s own obligations as well as the desires and ambitions that drives them; he presents this struggle as impossible to overcome, with it eventually leading one’s self to the brink of insanity.

Ambition is often the driving force in one’s life. It can have an extremely dominant impact on not only yourself, but also many people in your surroundings. You have the ability to control if the outcomes either have a lasting negative or positive effect. When a goal requires determination and hard work to complete, personal morals often take a back seat to the aspiration of accomplishing the goal. In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, it is clear that like many other great leaders, Macbeth exemplifies the necessary leadership virtue of ambition. Macbeth’s ambition does not just drive him to do great things. It in fact controls him. The playwright explores the idea of how an individual’s ambition can cause them to deceive others, make irrational

There are many different themes displayed in Shakespeare's famous play Macbeth. Many of these themes play with nature, the supernatural, and fate. From ghosts to horses eating each other the play uses symbolism, language, and characters to portray these themes. During the play the audience learns of several themes such as ambition, guilt, fate versus free will, nature versus the unnatural, and how things are not always as they seem.

We have all made mistakes in our lives, things we cannot reverse. I personally have never made such a bad mistake its life-changing but we see this happen in MacBeth, a play written by William Shakespeare. It has many themes and insinuates several different messages.

The cast of Hamilton: The Musical once sang “ambition is my folly”. This quote, sung by Alexander Hamilton himself, was showing that having too much ambition will lead to your downfall in life. One character that comes to mind when hearing the word, ambition, is Macbeth from the Shakespearean play Macbeth by non other than William Shakespeare. Macbeth follows the story of a former general named Macbeth who goes crazy with greed and power and does anything to remain king, even murder. Although Macbeth's journey to becoming king may seem simple, it was full of not only emotional but physical triumphs. Throughout the book, Macbeth’s ambition is driven by numerous factors including: the prophecy of the witches, Lady Macbeth, and wanting to stay king.

The Tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare recounts Macbeth's meteoric rise as a soldier and promising future leader whose megalomaniacal ambition led to his tragic downfall. In addition to Macbeth's ambitions, which initially enable him to be strong leader and soldier, he is influenced heavily by his wife, Lady Macbeth, and the three witches that prophesize his ascent to the throne, as well as warn him of his eventual demise. It can be argued that it is Macbeth's ambition that allows him to succeed in his endeavors, however the goals to which he is working toward influence the results of his hard work. Macbeth's ambitions help him to become a war hero, and as his goals change, his ambitions drive him to become a tyrannical villain.

For instance, Macbeth was ambitious about killing Duncan and becoming king. In Act I, scene vii, Macbeth drives to kill Duncan because he wants to be king. His ambition to have a better, more prosperous life drove him to stab Duncan. This kind of ambition can also be seen in some current events. For example, a vegan activist named Myriam made a harsh comment on Facebook

Consequences such as the dreading constant thought of guilt can significantly impact a person’s life mentally, emotionally and physically. Guilt most often occurs due to a morally wrong act which one commits. The play Macbeth by William Shakespeare effectively demonstrates this statement since the protagonist, Macbeth, provides a good example as his tragic flaw damages him overall. The text establishes the theme that a selfish desire can destroy one’s conscience and morals due to over ambition. He advertises this life lesson towards the audience through usage of imagery and symbols to show universality. Shakespeare explores the theme by constructing obstacles, which develop distinct characteristics of the main characters,

After Macbeth said that he sent three murders to kill Banquo. He did this because he thought that Banquo would be a potential problem for him when he would have the throne. Macbeth does not want to Banquo to interfere by exposing the witches’ prediction about him being king to the public. This is what drove him to commit the murder of Banquo. In conclusion, this scene illustrates that Macbeth’s ambition would make him do anything to get the throne.

Is one’s life already fleshed out, predetermined in every detail? In Macbeth, William Shakespeare develops the idea that the outcome of one’s life is predetermined, but one has the choice to decide how it comes to pass; the knowledge of one’s fate affects the lives of others by causing the personal development of negative traits, obsessive ambition, and isolation. Once the three witches tell Macbeth of his fate, some of his more negative traits begin to develop. He becomes more focused on maintaining the titles he has gained, as well as ensuring that the last prophecy, “...that shalt be king hereafter!”, shows true (I, iii, 52).

Many Shakespearian dramas, like Macbeth, are inspired by the ancient Greek notion of tragedy and the fall of man; much of which is powered by one’s lust for greater gains. Correspondingly, the play reveals how ambition creates the capability of deteriorating a man’s morality and world. This is presented through the titular character and his “dearest partner of greatness” (P. 23) and the consequences of their actions.

W.H Auden’s analysis of Macbeth really hit the nail on the head. Unlike many others, I morally indicted Macbeth and Lady Macbeth from the start for their actions, and I didn’t love them because of their evil doings “without malice.” Yet I still felt that neither Macbeths were evil people or malicious. This endeared me to the story. The Macbeths ambition for the throne, power, and possibly even love overwhelmed any possible inhibitions that they would have towards the evil deeds that they did. Yet their “streak of goodness,” as Auden writes, ate their thoughts alive. Lady Macbeth’s overt ambition compels her to incite Macbeth into murder, and her subconscious goodness consequently incites her into madness. Macbeth’s actions help him to feel

Many hardworking people have ambition. Ambition is the desire to achieve success through determination. People with ambition sometimes commit crimes that they later regret in order to achieve their goal. This leads to guilt. Guilt is the bad feeling one has when one has done something wrong.

Tragic Ambition As we all know Shakespeare is a very emotional writer. For example; Romeo and Juliet is a love story ending in death, Hamlet, in order to get the crown everybody died, and then we have Macbeth, a man with great ambition, challenged everyone to get the crown, just to end up alone and decapitated. Macbeth is a really dark story of how one man’s ambition got him everything, but was not able to really enjoy it. In Macbeth there are symbols that contribute the main theme of ambition. These symbols are; the three witches, blood and hands, sleep, light,darkness, and women.

Shakespeare’s 17th century play Macbeth, is a timeless tale of fate, power, and the consequences of ambition. Despite vastly different interpretations across the centuries due to different cultural and historical contexts, the story remains powerful and relevant today because of its universal themes. Since the play was essentially written for King James I, Shakespeare heavily reinforces the king’s own beliefs and values. Although we do not follow these doctrines in the present day, the literary techniques used throughout Macbeth transcend cultural and historical barriers and touch on the fundamentals of human nature, and ambition’s role in society.