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
In William Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, Macbeth begins as a man of integrity and is a noble man. Infact he was one of the king’s favorite fighters and subjects. But over time Macbeth becomes corrupt once the power and the crown are his. Macbeth first becomes power thirsty when he and Banquo were given a prophecy by the three weird sisters. The theme ambition shows up frequently in the character Macbeth, especially when it has some relation to murder and the throne, to get the throne to begin with, some examples are when he killed King Duncan, Macduff’s family and Banquo, to keep the throne.
Almost everybody wants to have a lot of power, but when a person gets told that they are going to be something they want to make that something come by even faster so that they do not have to wait. In the story Macbeth by Shakespeare it shows how two men will achieve their destinies, but one of them is told that he will be king and the other is told that his descendants will be king. It shows how one man will do anything just cause he wants him and his wife to be king and queen, plus they will not let fate make them king and queen they will make themselves do that.
Even he admits to it: “I have no spur. To prick the sides of my intent, but only. Vaulting ambition, which overleaps itself. And falls on the other.” (Shakespeare I.vii.25-27) What Macbeth essentially says here is that his only motivation for killing King Duncan is his ambition. Many would argue that it was not Macbeth’s ambition that caused him to kill King Duncan but instead was his wife using her femininity in order to charm Macbeth into doing as she says . However, Macbeth’s hunger for power was already seen when King Duncan gives Malcolm the title of Prince of Cumberland. Macbeth tells himself that he must not reveal his true intentions: “Stars, hide your fires! Let not light see my black and deep desires.” (Shakespeare I.iv.58-59) This shows Macbeth has the intention of claiming the crown for himself before he even talks to Lady Macbeth about what they should do when Duncan arrives at their castle. Furthermore, Shakespeare displays Macbeth's ambitions even earlier in the play while fighting against the rebels. The manner in which he fights against the rebels described by the Sergeant shows how passionate he is to fight on behalf of his king and drive the rebels back. Macbeth evidently has a very ambitious personality, but the way he uses the ambition is changed after hearing the “prophecies” of the
Macbeth shows that he is willing to kill King Duncan because he is interested in the witches prophecy, after they tell him that he will become ‘Thane of Cawdor’ and then the King.
How far are you willing to go for someone’s respect? Would you commit a murder of someone close to you? In William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the character Macbeth goes to great lengths to become King of Scotland despite the great risks of the job. Macbeth murders King Duncan, which he was once opposed to because his reputation was at risk. Macbeth sees himself as ambitious and gets offended if anyone suggests that he is anything other than a good man. He cares gravely about the opinions of his wife Lady Macbeth, who wants to see him as king, those of the king himself, and those of his companions’. Macbeth wants to be king because he wants the approval of others.
The theme of ambition is clearly seen from the several hallucinations that Macbeth experiences throughout the play. Moments before the murder of King Duncan, Macbeth imagines a bloody dagger with the handle pointing towards his hand, and said dagger guides him into Duncan’s room before vanishing. While following the dagger, Macbeth says to himself, “I see thee yet, in form as palpable /As this which now I draw. /Thou marshall’st me the way that I was going; /And such an instrument I was to use.” (2.1.47-50) The dagger strengthens Macbeth’s conviction to murder the king. The dagger prompts Macbeth to hold its handle, guides him to Duncan’s room, and splotches of blood materialize to confirm that the king will die. Therefore, the actions
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
In Shakespeare's Macbeth the main character Macbeth goes to battle against his country's enemy, three witches appear who tell him that he will soon become Thane of Cawdor and then one day king of Scotland. His best friend Banquo is told from the witches as well that his sons will be king one day after Macbeth. When Lady Macbeth gets word of this she becomes manipulative and greedy, she can’t wait to be in power, she comes up with a plan to kill king Duncan. Macbeth doesn’t agree with this plan so Lady Macbeth manipulates him into killing King Duncan. After Macbeth kills Duncan he becomes king and sets out to kill Banquo and his son Fleance so they, he kills Banquo but Fleance escapes. Macbeth becomes hated by his people and ends up fighting
Motivation to attain goals plays an important role in an individual’s life. It is instinctive to put effort for the accomplishment of one’s target. If an individual put genuine effort and enough motivation to fulfill one's objectives, it will result in success. Nonetheless, the urge to fulfill one's goal keeps individual to focus on its mission until it has been achieved. In William Shakespeare’s tragedy, Macbeth, the character of Macbeth uses motivation in order to achieve his ambition of becoming the King of Scotland. Shakespeare also conveyed the idea that, individuals use motivation to achieve their goals, but it can also lead one to destruction and keep him away from accomplishing his goal. However, with the use of false motivation by
In the play of Macbeth, there are some characters that could be responsible for Duncan’s death. I personally think Lady Macbeth is the cause of Duncan's murder. She is the most ambitious to kill the king in the beginning of the play, pressuring Macbeth. Lady Macbeth was persuasive of driving Macbeth to commit the murder. She manipulates him to go through with the murder even though he was very doubtful about it. Despite of the fact other characters may have partially play a part to the murder of King Duncan such as the three witches and Macbeth himself, she was the main motivator of the execution as her role was the most prominent. Without her arousing Macbeth into committing the murder of Duncan, this killing would not have happened.
The difficulty humans experience when trying to resist resorting to violence is remarkable. From noble disputes to trivia night bar fights, violence is an alluring tool. In William Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, the titular Macbeth is unable to resist the seductive nature of darker impulses. Spurred on by a trio of witches and his wife, Macbeth murders his liege, King Duncan, and becomes King of Scotland. He rules as a tyrant and his paranoia and bloodlust lead him further into evil. Eventually, the lords of Scotland rise up against him and he is deposed by the deceased king’s son, Malcolm. Macbeth refuses to yield and is killed in battle. The blame for Macbeth’s demise rests entirely on his own shoulders,
Macbeth knows that if he kills Duncan, he gets the satisfaction in being king. Once Macbeth receives the position of “Thane of Cawdor” for his bravery so easily. “If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me without my sir”(1.3.143-144). So he begins to think that since he received this higher position with doing nothing, then maybe doing nothing can crown him king. Although he was a very nice person, down deep he wanted to become king. Through his own ambition in wanting to become king, he made the final decision in killing
In Act 2 Scene 3, Macbeth attempts to shift the blame for the crime away from himself. He had just murdered Duncan the night before, and he was desperate to avoid suspicion on himself, saying some things that would raise questions normally. Macbeth’s actions start fairly mundane, with him acting as if he didn’t know the murder occurred, saying, “What’s the matter?” (2.3.75). Macbeth acts as if he had no idea about Duncan’s death, which is a logical step to cover up his involvement in the murder. In fact, he does very well here, as no one suspects him yet. He further goes on to grieve Duncan’s death, lamenting, “Had I died an hour before this chance, / I had lived in a blesséd time;” (2.3.107-108). All of his sadness and outbursts seem normal
Macbeth knows that if he wants to become king then King Duncan must die, as he is the main person preventing this from occuring. This quote foreshadows the murder of King Duncan which ultimately results in Macbeth being crowned king since Duncan's sons flee the scene for protection, in order to prevent getting murdered themselves since they're next in line for the throne. This shows Macbeth's ambition because he is willing to do anything to get to the throne and become king even if it means murder. Macbeth even realizes that he is beginning to have “black and deep desires” in Act 1, Scene 4, and this shows his ambitious thoughts to murder the