Is Macbeth Selfish Or Greedy

Greed for power has always been evil and even made a saint turn into a demon. As the quote goes “All power tends to corrupt and an absolute power corrupts absolutely” (unquote), which is true not only in the fictitious stories but also in real life and Shakespeare, th9e greatest writer ever known, has always been in habit of making fictitious character come alive and Macbeth is no exception to the rule. The character of Macbeth has two sides, one which is wholesome while other been dubious. He symbolized great ambition but went overboard and in the process not only became corrupt but also became a killer. Macbeth reflects great strength but within he has his own weakness and thus good over took evil resulting in its downfall and finally his own death. His wife, Lady Macbeth, was the most influential person as far as Macbeth was concerned and any decision of his would have trademark of his wife, Lady Macbeth. The greed of Macbeth for more power led him to commit monstrous acts however

4 of the most important themes in Macbeth are death, ambition, greed, and power, almost all the killings in Macbeth is from the man himself to keep his power. Macbeth’s greed shaped him into a monster, killing Banquo, Macduff’s family, all in order to keep his throne, this greed is what led Macbeth to his coffin, ultimately getting him killed by Macduff and Malcolm taking the throne. As for power Macbeth has become the king of Scotland, the king is the pinnacle of the mortal level in the great chain of being, this power has led Macbeth to do countless crimes in order to keep it, this was all Macbeth’s ambition but when he got engulfed in it it was the beginning of his downfall.

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.

Macbeth’s greed with his power gets the best of him; he puts himself and others in danger. Macbeth chooses to kill the king and take his place. Donalbain (son of Duncan) chooses to flee with his brother for their own safety. He tells his brother“there’s daggers in men’s smiles.” (2.3.165-166) After seeing their father killed, the sons fear they are the next targets. Macbeth selfishly makes everyone in the palace feel in danger. He puts others at risk to reach his goal, making his greed a negative trait. Also, Macbeth puts the three murderers in danger when he chooses to kill Banquo and his son. Macbeth tells the murderers to “know banquo [is] your enemy” (3.1.130), making them long for revenge. He knew the blame would be pinned on the three murderers and taken off himself. If caught, the 3 men would be killed; and, it was them who had the blood from crime stained on their hands. So, when Macbeth comes face to face with Banquo’s ghost, he tells it, “thou canst not say I did it” (3.4.62) and he is free of his crime. Due to his greed, he salvaged himself

Macbeth, throughout the play, is presented in an eminent position in society with major flaws, and, as such, fulfills the basic requirements of a tragic hero. Shakespeare introduces him as a brave general, an intelligent resolute man of action whose major flaw of ambition for power leads him to his last battle of death. Because Macbeth was such a strong character in the opening of the play, every perfect hero, has a dark side. The Thane of Cawdor, who later becomes King, is categorized in three sections: bravery, ambition and guilt- and to many, Macbeth, is a true tragic hero.

Macbeth, by William Shakespeare, is a tragic story about man’s faults. While fictional, Macbeth shows many true aspects of man, such as pride and corruption. Pride is shown in almost every act of Macbeth. It shows that even men whom are considered the best, most loyal men, can fall folly to the pride of life. Shakespeare uses Macbeth to show how pride is destructive, sin corrupts the mind, and that not all counsel should be taken.

Greed for power leads corrupt leaders to pursue power through ruthless and violent ways, putting their countries in an unstable state.

“Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood clean from my hand? No, this my hand will rather the multitudinous seas incarnadine, making the green one red.” (Act II, Scene II) Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare in the 1600’s, is the shortest of Shakespearian tragedies. The main character, Macbeth, receives a prophecy that he will become King of Scotland. Ambition takes over him and he commits many murders to keep the throne. Consequently, a war breaks out and takes Macbeth and his wife. Macbeth is considered a tragic hero because of his excessive pride, reversal of fate when Fleance escapes, and his tragic flaw ambition.

The mention of power reveals how quickly people become corrupted as their selfish greed overpowers them. It can be seen that excessive selfishness in individual goals to become superior over others negatively impacts the way a person acts. In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the protagonist who was once a loyal kinsman to the king of Scotland betrays his king under the influence of greed and gradually becomes an unmerciful leader. The character Macbeth is a perfect example of how quickly people change due to greed for power. Over the course of the play, power causes Macbeth to go from faithful to malicious which leads to his corruption.

William Shakespeare's Macbeth is a play in which Macbeth is has an internal battle with himself on whether or not to stay loyal to the king or succumb to his dark desires of seizing the crown. Greed affects Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, and Banquo differently, which leads to a power struggle in Scotland. The primary example of Lady Macbeth exemplifying greed comes when she is trying to convince Macbeth to kill king Duncan by stating “chastise with the valor of my tongue All that impedes thee from the golden crown” (Shakespeare 1:5:17-18). The idea of being in control entices Lady Macbeth enough to convince her husband to kill king Duncan. Lady Macbeth’s greed in her pursuit of power leads her to go as far as framing the guards for

In William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the classic story of greed; the literary representation of a conflict we all face in our everyday lives. This can often be seen in a positive or negative way. In both ways, there will be change. Change often occurs first within oneself. After this change occurs, it then changes everything around their life. We all want things that other people have, but how far will we go to get them? Those desires turn to ambition that is all too often characterized by selfishness. Both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth were filled with tons of selfish ambition. The actions they took reflected their true motives of pure greed. Their envy drove them to take extreme measures to get what they wanted. Macbeth, though, proves to have been

As a human race, we have all had instances where we have been experienced greed, the intense and selfish desire for something, especially wealth, power, or food. It is extremely unlikely, even impossible, that there is a person in the entire world that goes their entire life without a single thought of greed, no matter if it is significant or not. The best the average person does in response to their greed is mask it with exaggerated generosity to “cancel out” their greedy thoughts. There are many examples in literature that help convey the effects that greed can have on a person, one of the most well-portrayed ones being the main character in William Shakespeare 's well-known play, Macbeth.

Macbeth seems like the easiest person to choose when it comes to who is the most tragic hero in the play Macbeth, and that is simply because he is. Macbeth, the main character of the play, is absolutely the most tragic hero in William Shakespeare’s Macbeth. Firstly, Macbeth starts his journey into peril with one key hamartia that was at several times reinforced by his wife. Ambition would be the fatal flaw of Macbeth. Secondly, at the beginning of the story Macbeth is shown on another level than any of his contemporaries and was praised by king Duncan for his bravery. He continues to climb the ranks through his hamartia and soon reaches king status. Macbeth was already on a higher level than his peers, but soon became head and shoulders above the rest when he becomes king. Finally, the last reason for why Macbeth is the most tragic hero is because at first he is pretty content with himself and his role. However, he soon becomes too ambitious

Tragedy of Macbeth is a story written by William Shakespeare about a man who is power hungry to become king. This story is called a tragedy, a tragedy is a type of story that doesn 't have a happy ending. A tragedy will end up with the protagonist dieing or making a great sacrifice. Shakespeare has made many tragedies such a Romeo and Juliet for example. In every Tragedy there must be a tragic hero and in this story it shows that Macbeth is the tragic hero, is a round character, and also a very dynamic character.

Macbeth is Foul, Macbeth is Fair: An Analysis of Macbeth as a Tragic Shakespearean Hero