The idea of fate or free will is something that is often linked to human nature and is reflected in many pieces of writing. They poke and prod the reader of these two beliefs, and allow them to determine the reasoning behind each character’s actions. Examples would include the play Macbeth, Oedipus and the film The Adjustment Bureau, as the main characters make decisions based with or against the newfound knowledge. Overall, it is considered that fate often dictates the influential choices, while free will consists of everyday life activities.
Macbeth only becomes Thane of Cawdor, because of a traitor, but he himself later becomes a traitor. In the beginning it was easy for Macbeth to fight for his king and to honor the name of the man who ruled his land, but once he finds out his future, his entire mindset changes. Macbeth fights and wins a battle in favor for Scotland and king Duncan. A few hours after the battle, the Weird Sisters tell Macbeth what his future looks like. He becomes obsessed with the idea of becoming king and one can sense his thirst for power.
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 alone is displayed throughout the play to be the most significant cause for Macbeth’s downfall.
”(Document E) Macbeth is saying that this is how his life has been determined to end, so he will still fight despite the undeniable outcome. Macbeth here exhibits control over not much but the end of his life, he controls the fact that he knows that he will die yet he fights anyways, he is in control of his final
The Thane of King Duncan, Macbeth hears a prophecy that he himself will become king later on in the future after King Duncan. This then leads to Macbeth being overcome by greed. Since Macbeth greeds to be king so bad, he murders King Duncan and takes his place of the throne. Macbeth starts to live with so much guilt and fear that he commits even more murders to have his power safe. Macbeth is so confident in the prophecies that his life comes to a downfall and he gets killed by the people he did wrong.
“Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow” (Act 5. Scene 5. Line 19). Shakespeare utilizes the element to allude that life is repetitive and continues hopelessly. Macbeth at this point is more likely to distance his efforts into being king away from the future that awaits him.
Macbeth’s mental condition begins to dwindle as time goes on, starting with the murder of Duncan. At first, Macbeth is seen as a soldier that everyone aspires to be, strong, brave, and compassionate about his duties to the king. In act one scene two, Captain says, “...For brave Macbeth-well he deserves that name-...” This shows that he is a likeable person who has only the objective of serving his king. After meeting with the witches and hearing his prophecy, Macbeth starts to think about what it would be like to be king of Scotland.
Act 2, scene 2 is quite an important scene in Macbeth, since it marks the changes of the characters, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Their thoughts and emotions are presented in this particular scene. It shows the different roles that they play and how much they have been influenced by the witches’ prophecies. Lady Macbeth claims to be courageous in the beginning of the scene, by saying ‘that which hath made them drunk made me bold’. She seems to be very keen about this murder and very confident, and the fact that she was alone on stage emphasises it.
In the soliloquy in Act three Scene 1 of Macbeth by Shakespeare, Macbeth talks to himself about the problems of being a king and he is afraid of what might happen to him. Macbeth also talks about how Banquo was his friend and how Banquo is the only person he fears. Macbeth’s predicament in the soliloquy is that he is afraid of losing his crown and that Banquo will get in his way. This is important because Macbeth does not trust anyone anyone because he does not feel safe and is convinced that the wrong thing are actually good. Through the literary devices of metaphor and personification, it will help us demonstrate Macbeth’s predicament.
The fact that Macbeth believes the witches’ prophecies are not evil nor good foreshadows how he will go on to kill any other person standing in his way to more power. His ambition blinds his mind to make him even think about ruthlessly committing a murder. This forceful way of gaining power will only lead Macbeth to become a “tyrant” in Scotland and his “fantastical” desires of killing Duncan and receiving the crown will lead Scotland to failure. Under Macbeth’s rule, Scotland seems to be in a terrible condition. With distrust among the people, there is tension all within the country, as Macbeth’s totalitarian regime had rendered the prosperity of Scotland.
1-28. Here, we see Macbeth struggle internally, as he must decide if he will put his morals aside and kill King Duncan for the power of being king himself. Initially, Macbeth starts planning the murder and creating detailed solutions to problems that may arise during it. We see this when he says, “If it were done when ‘tis done, then ‘twere well, It were done quickly.” (Act I Scene VII, ll.1-2.)
Macbeth’s soliloquy in Act 5 Scene 5 may be Shakespeare’s way of telling the audience that no matter how we choose to live our destiny, fate could not be changed and nothing would matter in the end. Macbeth says “Tomorrow, and tomorrow and tomorrow/ Creeps in this petty pace from day to day/ To the last syllable of recorded time” (Act 5 Scene 5 lines 19-21) and “All our yesterdays have lighted fools/ The way to dusty death” (Act 5 Scene 5 lines 22-23). The imagery of all the “tomorrows” and “yesterdays” in the soliloquy tells the audience that we should not pursue our own desires without recognizing our insignificance and triviality. The soliloquy writes “to the last syllable of recorded time;/ And all our yesterdays have lighted fools/ The way to dusty death” (Act 5 Scene 5 lines 21-23), meaning the past acts as a guide on the path to death. It implies that since time is displaced into “broken syllables” and the past is disconnected into fragments.
Macbeth realizes that the Witches evil plan have only helped him in his destruction. At the end, his fate led him to his
Macbeth is a play written during the 16th century by William Shakespeare. As similar to other plays written by Shakespeare, the play is not totally original. They came from facts and events that are happening during the time it was written (“Background to Macbeth”). Macbeth can be seen as a dark play as it portrays the idea of evilness through characterization and have events like murder happening throughout the story. Throughout the play, Shakespeare inserted various features to make his writing more powerful.
Macbeth’s state of mind changes dramatically throughout the play. This is revealed through his soliloquy. In his soliloquy, He shows his intention he would like to achieve but its construction shows Macbeth’s mind still very much in confusion. However, most of the time Macbeth shows three different fears considering the consequences of killing king Duncan. At the beginning of Act 1 Scene 7, Macbeth is in turmoil about killing Duncan.
