Banquo's Loss Of Power In Macbeth

Macbeth's lust for power becomes blatantly obvious based upon his fears that "to be thus is nothing, but to be safely thus", prompting him to kill Banquo and make an attempt at his son, Fleance. To relieve himself of his insecurities, he manipulates two murderers to believe than Banquo is their "enemy" and the source of all of their problems, displaying his twisted nature. He does not, before the act is already committed, share news of the "deed of dreadful note" with his "dearest chuck", Lady Macbeth, proving he has made his face a "vizard to [his] heart" not only for the public, but also to his once-cohort. Macbeth's peers' opinion sinks so low that he is often merely referred to as a "tyrant" rather than by his name. He is not only a traitorous and cruel king, but the extent to which he is "unfit to govern" makes him "unfit to live" - deserving of death for how he has let down Scotland.

Page44). To Macbeth, becoming king is worthless unless his position as king is safe. He fears that Banquo’s murder will be revenged by his own murder, and it may reveal the hidden knowledge of his guilt. He uses anaphora, which is the used of a word referring to or replacing a word used earlier in a sentence, so like a repetition of a word or phrase, “to be thus… to be safely thus.” The consequence to Macbeth when he killed Banquo, would be that he would feel guilty. It was caused when Macbeth finishes his talk with one of the murderer.

His immoral decisions eventually lead him into extreme feelings of guilt and remorse later on in the tragedy. This doesn’t stop Macbeth from continuing to commit murder for his own selfish gains and to become king but in the regrets the path he has chosen.

In fact, he begins as a valiant leader only serving Duncan’s wishes to win a battle against a rebellious force. After this battle, he receives a new title which fuels his ambition and causes him to think of immoral ways to seize what he so passionately believes is his: the throne. Macbeth is then led to spin a web of lies to cover up his previous actions and ultimately becomes a deceitful tyrant. In total,, his strive for success got him very far, but it also revealed something in him that is universally human which is the desire for more power. Like Macbeth, not all of humanity is fit to serve since with great power comes incredible amounts of responsibility.

This action negatively impacts him due to the developed hatred the other characters gain towards Macbeth. His ambition has led to not just the death of Duncan and Banquo but also many others such as the Duncan’s chambermaid and Macduff’s family. This slaughter ruins Macbeth’s original image of a brave, valiant, worthy gentleman to the point that others begin to address him as tyrant. Young Siward, when Macbeth told him his name, stated that “The devil himself could not pronounce a title more hateful to mine ear.” (V. vii). This quote only further emphasizes the fact that Macbeth’s name has turned from one of bravery, as shown by the Sergent (I. ii), to one of disgrace and has been condemned.

Macbeth is firstly at fault due to his own hubris. From the start of the play we hear praise for Macbeth from the captain when he addresses Duncan, “For brave Macbeth—well he deserves that name—Disdaining fortune, with his brandished steel,Which smoked with bloody execution,Like valor’s minion carved out his passage” (1.2.16-19), this sort of praise was likely commonplace after the battle, and likely was heard by macbeth himself, and being the proud man he was may have led him to feel deserving of greater power and authority. Another way his hubris is to blame is for being convinced by his wife's scorning oh his manhood should he not kill duncan “When you durst do it, then you were a man; And to be more than what

70-74 Macbeth). Here Macbeth’s greed comes into play again as the witches’ prophecy is weighing heavily on him and he cannot bear it. He is greedy and wants stability in his kingship, so he takes power into his own hands by becoming judge, jury, and executioner, as he sends assassins after Banquo and Fleance. However, as said before, greed is a sin, and those who sin are

He is seen by Banquo as becoming evil. Banquo fears that Macbeth’s prophecy has come true due to foul play; that he murdered Duncan to become king. He suspects that Macbeth’s actions have been taken over by self-interest. Macbeth is becoming eviler because he is being guided purely by his self-interest. These quotes show that man is not purely good or evil, but rather both, but we are guided by self-interest.

“Let not light see my black and deep desires: The eye that wink at the hand; yet let that be which the eye fears,when it is done, to see” (Shakespeare 1.4 58-60). Macbeth is admitting that he has his own hidden desires and wants to become king because of his own passion and drive. He is trying to justify what he knows he will have to do in order to make himself king. He knows that he has to kill to become king and to keep his throne, and is trying to convince himself that this will all be worth it in the end when he becomes king. Some would argue that Lady Macbeth made him king, but his own desires were truly what fuelled his ambition to do whatever it took to make himself king.

When a person kills to get what they want is an example of excessive ambition. Ambition is the one of the most important themes in Macbeth. Ambition in moderation is normal, setting goals, working overtime, etc., but tremendous ambition can be destructive. Ambition led Macbeth to kill Duncan and take his throne. It led Macbeth to kill his friend, Banquo, because he was suspicious of him and he feared he would be an obstacle.