To Kill A Mockingbird And Macbeth Comparison

“The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown” (H. P. Lovecraft). In Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird and Shakespeare’s Macbeth, many characters are shown to be primarily driven by this emotion. Characters such as Mayella Ewell in To Kill A Mockingbird or Malcolm and Donalbain in Macbeth are shown to act drastically because of fear. Actions such as Macbeth killing Banquo in fear of being exposed or Mayella accusing an innocent man, display how humans are primarily driven by fear. In Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird and Shakespeare's Macbeth, it is shown that humans are primarily driven by fear through the actions of the characters. Firstly, the characters in the book

In Macbeth, Malcolm and Donalbain decide to flee from Scotland after the death of their father because they fear the murder will attempt to kill them next. After being informed of King Duncan’s death, Malcolm and Donalbain in a conversation state: “To show an unfelt sorrow is an office/Which the false man does easy. I’ll To England./To Ireland, I:our separate fortune/Shall keep us both the safer: where we are,/There’s danger in men’s smiles: the near in blood,/The nearer bloody./This murderous shaft that’s shot/Hath not yet lighted, and our safest way/Is to avoid the aim. Therefore to horse”(II.iii.159-168). This quotation shows that Malcolm and Donalbain have chosen to flee to England and Ireland respectively because they fear they will be caught in the bloodshed that they anticipate will happen and do not want to die. Malcolm and Donalbain fear for their lives in addition to fearing everyone else because they believe someone wants to kill them. Another character who is primarily driven by fear is Mayella Ewell. In To Kill A Mockingbird, Mayella Ewell is willing to imprison Tom Robinson, who she knows is innocent, of raping her due to being afraid of her father. During the trial, this passage in the book shows the conversation between Atticus Finch and Mayella:“He does tollable, ‘cept when—’ ‘Except when?’ Mayella looked at her father, who was sitting with his chair tipped against the railing. He sat up straight and waited for her to answer. ‘Except when nothin‘,’ said Mayella. ‘I said he does tollable.’ Mr. Ewell leaned back again. ‘Except when he’s drinking?’ asked Atticus so gently that Mayella nodded” (Lee, 245). Furthermore, while Tom Robinson is being questioned he reveals: “She reached up an‘ kissed me ’side of th‘ face. She says she never kissed a grown man before an’ she might as well kiss a nigger. She says