showing us that the thought of murder was already at the back of his mind. Macbeth could not have been as honourable and trustworthy as people believed him to be, given that if he had had but a shred of integrity, murder would have been the last thing on his mind. Macbeth is given prophecies by the witches and he is encouraged to act on these suggestions by Lady Macbeth, but he ultimately makes the choices to murder Duncan, Macduff's family and Banquo. The fact that Macbeth feels guilt, fears being caught and fears losing the throne reveals he has hidden anxiety. If Macbeth was truly at the mercy of fate, following the prophesise that was “set out”, he would have no difficulties in carrying out his crimes.
Duncan announces that he is going to Macbeth's castle. Lady Macbeth convinces Macbeth that he has to fulfill his prophecy himself and kill Dunncan. Duncan's sons leave the country believing they will be killed next and Macbeth becomes king. Macbeth remembers the witches prediction to Banquo. He wants to solidify his power so he kills Banquo and attempts to kill Banquo's son Fleance, but fails.
For an example in Act 1 scene 3 when the witches told Macbeth he would be the Thane of Cawdor and then it became true. Macbeth would not have any intention to kill Duncan if he would have never met up with the witches. Macbeth’s quote in Act 1 Scene III “This supernatural soliciting/cannot be ill; cannot be good: [...] / If good, why do I yield to that suggestion/ whose horrid image doth unfix my hair[...]” This quote clearly states that Macbeth was influenced by the
His own human nature, paranoia and selfishness are what leads him to his death. Macbeth is to blame for his death at the end of the play. Macbeth is manipulated by the witches and believes in their prophecies. The witches have considerable influence over Macbeth throughout the play. First, their early predictions stating that he will be king, and then the predictions of the apparitions saying that he only could be murdered by someone that was not born of a woman.
They were the driving force behind Banquo and King Duncan's killing. The witches prophesised that his life would completely change, by becoming thane of Cawdor, then king of Scotland. At first, Macbeth dismissed their prophecies, but after he was promoted to Thane of Cawdor, Macbeth wondered if he will be King, too. "If chance will have me king, why chance may crown me without my stir." Another prophecy made by the witches was that Banquo's son will be king.
This is right before Macbeth will kill Duncan. On his way to murder King Duncan, Macbeth sees the vision of the bloody dagger leading the way. Significance: It is clear that Macbeth is insane. Macbeth has been convinced into the action not by his own reasoning, but by his personal insecurities, played upon by his wife, the witches, and his own ambition. By the time Macbeth’s mind conjures up a dagger for him, he can see the murder as a conclusion, not a question for his consideration.
No one to blame but Macbeth Decisions can be impacted by a number of factors; but in the end we have to be the ones to take responsibility for our actions. This is demonstrated when we see Macbeth transform from a brave soldier to a power-hungry murderer, feared by all his subjects. Macbeth is the one to blame for his own descent into cruelty and murder because he let his ambition, arrogance and greed take over his mind. While some may claim that Macbeth is to blame for his actions, others argue that it is the force of the supernatural that leads to his demise. Early on the witches reveal prophecies to Macbeth suggesting his rise to power.
With the witches’ prophecies mulling over in his mind, and knowing that he was not the successor of the throne, he knew he had to take matters into his own hands. With the support and persuasion of Lady Macbeth, he kills King Duncan and gains his kingship. When Banquo makes his vow to find out who killed Duncan, Macbeth knew he had to silence him. After Macbeth is named king, he seeks out hired murderers to kill Banquo and his son, Fleance. Macbeth does this because he is afraid that Banquo will get in the way of his new title and Fleance, because he is prophesied to be king.
She pushes for Macbeth to do the unthinkable all so that they may become Kind and Queen. She accuses Macbeth of not acting like a man. “When you durst do it, then you were a man”, if he went ahead with killing the King. This was a great force for Macbeth to proceed with the task. When he finally goes
Macbeth is at first skeptical of the witches’ claims. Lady Macbeth’s aggressive persuasion forces him to fulfill the prophecies. Lady Macbeth challenges Macbeth's masculinity by aggressively pursuing the prophecies, and taunting him saying “When you durst do it, then you were a man”(Shakespeare, 366). This forces Macbeth to act according to the will of Lady Macbeth to establish his dominance. Lady Macbeth calls upon the spirits to aid her in her plot to overcome her husband's reluctance and force him to kill Duncan.