Ambition In Shakespeare's 'Macbeth'

Ambition is a candle; a leading light with a willpower that guides one to the next light. Yet a wind appears in the opposite direction; making its way to the candle. The strength of the flame will not remain as the wind reflects the malicious change. Poet, William Shakespeare, in his play, “Macbeth”, portrays an intrepid man who loses his humanity and rushes his fate of becoming king; turning into the most hated man in his kingdom. Shakespeare’s purpose is to expand the consequences of leading with an egocentric mentality and depicting the limits of one’s ambition. Shakespeare presents Macbeth in a determined yet conceited tone to express the contrast of his characteristic from the beginning to the end. Therefore, Shakespeare depicts the change

Shakespeare presents the theme of ambition in Macbeth. Ambition is a strong desire to do or achieve something, ambition can also be presented in a positive and negative way. Shakespeare presents ambition in a negative way through some characters who are Macbeth, Lady Macbeth and King Duncan. The reason these characters present ambition in a negative way is because they end up dying. Ambition is also present in a positive way through some characters who are Macduff, Witches and Malcolm these are the characters who survive in the play showing that you can be ambitious but not too ambitious.

Macbeth is the Shakespearean play that features the triumphant uprise and the inevitable downfall of its main character. In this play, Macbeth’s downfall can be considered to be the loss of his moral integrity and this is achieved by ambition, despite this, Lady Macbeth and the witches work through his ambition, furthering to assist his inevitable ruin. Ambition alone is the most significant factor that led to Macbeth’s downfall. The witches are only able to influence his actions through Macbeth’s pre-existing and the three witches see that Macbeth has ambition and uses it to control his action.

Ambition and self-fulfilling prophecies two seemingly unrelated things that are actually intertwined with one another. Ambition is the thing that drives many people to do the things they love. Self-fulfilling prophecies are a direct result of ambition by the person subconsciously doing things to get their foreseen future. These things help the advancement of people’s lives. It is part of life to want to succeed and have dreams be fulfilled. Many people gain fulfillment through hard work and persistence. This is how Macbeth was at the beginning of the story. He was a brave warrior who was known and even honored by the king. Unfortunately, Macbeth’s ambition takes control and he decides that he wants more power no matter what it takes to get

In Shakespearean time and within his plays, ambition was viewed as a downfall in character and a defiance to human nature. In today’s world, ambition is viewed as a respectable attribute in both males and females. Yet, In William Shakespeare’s play, Macbeth, the destructive force of ambition transcends time. Although centuries apart, Macbeth, a noble who wants to seize the position of King, and Tonya Harding, a figure skater who wants to win an Olympic gold, are two examples of ambition, its misuses and consequences. Through Macbeth’s murderous rise to power and Tonya Harding’s shocking scandal in the figure skating world, what began as an ambitious desire to reach

Lastly, the motif of prophecy emphasizes the theme of ambition. The first prophecy from the three witches illustrates this. The witches reveal to Macbeth that he will be the thane of Cawdor and the future king of Scotland. They say to Macbeth, “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, thane of Glamis! All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, thane of Cawdor! All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!” (I, iii, 49-51) The prophecy from the three witches influences Macbeth, making him believe that he can become king of Scotland. All doubt is removed from Macbeth’s mind. He knows that the prophecy will become true; that he will eventually become king. Macbeth’s ambition is realized here, because since he now knows that his efforts to become king will not fail, he can resort to methods such as murder. Macbeth believes in the witches’ prophecies, so he asks them for a second vision. This second vision also represents Macbeth’s ambition. Macbeth asks the witches to reveal possible threats, and becomes reassured when he hears the prophecy. He says, “And take a bond of fate. Thou shalt not live, That I may tell pale-hearted fear it lies, And sleep in spite of thunder.” (IV, i, 87-89) The second prophecy symbolizes Macbeth’s desire to maintain his position as king. Macbeth knows that the witches’ prediction will come true due to his experience with the first prophecy. Nevertheless, he asks about his downfall to try and prevent it. Macbeth’s ambition to become king is so strong that he will try to twist destiny satisfy his ambition. The three witches’ prophecies strengthen Macbeth’s ambition. They remove all doubt from his mind and guarantees success, and also makes Macbeth try to change his fate to stay as

Ambition has a major role in the play Macbeth. One of the main things for a character such as Macbeth. Ambition lead him to commit the murder of Duncan, and losing Everything he had. In the beginning of the play Macbeth celebrated as he was brave soldier as he rewarded. He becomes the thane of Coward, as predicted by the three witches. Since Macbeth has got his prophecies of getting all the power, which that lead him a striving man. The three witches (the weird sisters) had gave him the prophecies which turned Macbeth into a single- minded and ruthless man. An encounter with the three witches’ changes everything to Macbeth, Macbeth premonition said “shalt be king hereafter,” (Shakespeare 1.4 22-24) Which triggers ambition and murderous consequences. Which saying everything will come

Helen Keller once said “character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.” People inspired by ambition can accomplish great things. However, when tempted by their desires, people can destroy themselves as well. These desires can simply be too much for any one person or two to overcome. In William Shakespeare’s dramatic tragedy ‘Macbeth’, ambition is portrayed throughout and Macbeth, a Scottish Noblemen is overcome by his desires. His downfall and destruction was caused by his blind ambition leading to his fatal flaw.

What is ambition? Ambition is the determination to achieve one’s goals. In the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare the protagonist, Macbeth, possesses ambition, which led to his downfall. In the play Macbeth’s ambition is driven by prophecies from witches and his wife’s aspiration. Ambition caused Macbeth to commit multiple homicides and after those wrongdoings Macbeth is left with nothing. At the end of the play, Macbeth’s ambition caused him to lose Lady Macbeth to suicide and to no longer have moral sense. Ambition led to Macbeth’s downfall because Lady Macbeth and the witches caused him to make brainless decisions that caused his collapse.

The play “Macbeth”, by William Shakespeare illustrates many themes through the characters from the beginning to the end of the story. But the main central theme introduced is Ambition and Greed. As the play goes on we read how Macbeth permits his Ambition and Greed to dictate the outcomes and tragedy’s that occur to himself and others. The main examples of Ambition and Greed is seen through Duncan, Banquo, and Macduff.

Ambition is a natural part of human existence, every person has it at least a little. It is when ambition grows too large and takes control of us that it becomes dangerous. It becomes obsessive and soon nothing will stop the person obsessed. Just by looking around at our world today, one can clearly see the results of unchecked ambition. Unchecked ambition can be destructive to a society and cause the society's downfall. One clear example of unchecked ambition can be found in The Tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare. Shakespeare uses a few characters to display the dangerous nature of unchecked ambition throughout the acts of the play. However, the main character, Macbeth, clearly shows the most. Although Macbeth begins as a courageous,

Macbeth started off as a valiant and courageous soldier, who would do anything for the king. By the end of the play, Macbeth was a tyrant and a horrible leader who killed those who trusted him to maintain the throne. It takes many factors to take a strong man and transform him into an evil monster. Macbeth’s downfall was caused by the deception and temptation of the witches and their prophecies, Lady Macbeth’s greed and aspirations for her husband to be king, and Macbeth’s own greed, jealousy and ambition.

Is it not weird how ambition for power corrupts one corrupt and leads them to their destiny? Ambition for power is lust which tempts one to be corruptive to acquire and protect it. However, in William Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, it is evident that ambition for power ultimately leads to corruption when Macbeth’s ambition for power causes the assassination of King Duncan, when Macbeth’s ambition for power compels him to execute those who obstruct his inheritance to the Scottish Throne, and finally, when Lady Macbeth persuades Macbeth to assassinate the people who impede his Kingship of Scotland out of lust for power.

Often times in literature, the downfall of a character arises due to both external and internal forces. In Macbeth, William Shakespeare demonstrates that the downfall of Macbeth arises due to both internal and external forces, but among the two, internal forces have a greater influence on the outcome. The forces of Macbeth’s own nature, the supernatural and Lady Macbeth all contribute to his downfall but the true deciding factors are the forces within.

The road to a fatal outcome can be observed through many different qualities but excessive ambition is one of the main downfalls for most of us in society. Evil motivation due to uncontrollable and unnecessarily high ambition produces difficult obstacles in our lives. We could also become blind to making the right and moral decisions when our ambition is unrestrained. Additionally, all of the paths and routes for immoderate ambition leads to destruction and disorder. Another important note to keep in mind is that chaos and complications will be rooted from not only extravagant ambition but also poor decision making. The choices we make reflect ourselves and represents what we have been through with our lives and what experiences we have with certain areas in life. In the play Macbeth, William Shakespeare uses the concept of ambition to explore its impact on Macbeth’s personality and thoughts.