One of the main causes that results in Macbeth committing so many murders is the prophecies of the witches. In the beginning of the play, Shakespeare depicts Macbeth as an admirable soldier and loyal nobleman to King Duncan. The witches then set Macbeth off on his road to become a traitor and killer. The witches predict that Macbeth “shalt be king hereafter” (1.3.53) without giving him specific details of how it is going to happen. Upon hearing the prophecies, Macbeth utters, “Stay, you imperfect speakers, tell me more./ ... and to be king/ Stands not within the prospect of belief,” (1.3.73-77).
Macbeth is an extremly complicated character to portray. His personality changes throughout the play beginning as an honurable war-hero and being praised highly by the King; making him Thane of Cawdor even though he was already Thane of Glamis. He then becomes a hesitant murderer, constantly distressed about his situiation ‘I am afraid to think what I have done’ to actively planning the murder of Banquo and showing little contrition for the death of his wife, Lady Macbeth ‘She should have died hereafter’ and becoming responsible for the massacre of Macduff’s wife and children.it is imperative that the actor playing Macbeth understands the intricacy of his character. He must also be able to show the contrast between Macbeth’s character in Act 2 Scene 1 and Act 5 Scene 5, in order to portray Macbeth, the actor must contemplate the mood and tone of what he is saying, his gestures and actions to match a certain phrase or speech. Also his facial expressions are very important.
Macbeth killed the king and took the throne, so there is an apparent reason that it was Macbeth?s choice. Finally, the witches tell him that he will not fall until ?Birnam Woods meets Dunsinane Hill.? Well, Birnam Wood meets Dunsinane Hill and Macbeth is defeated. This again is partially Macbeth?s fault. If he hadn?t killed
(1.6.35-38) Her drive behind Macbeth drove him to kill Duncan. However, when Macbeth is initially told that he will become king, he becomes overwhelmed with the idea. After consulting his wife, Lady Macbeth, he comes to the conclusion that he must kill in order to obtain the throne. Soon, his indulgence in power and his habit of killing to
William Shakespeare’s Macbeth is an intriguing play that was written and performed for James I, King of Scotland at that period of time. Macbeth consists of many different influences that drive noble Macbeth to a variety of murders and in mental disintegration of his mind the concept of misguided ambition is developed by those persuading him to kill. Three influences of Macbeth’s disintegrated mind would be the weird sisters, Lady Macbeth, and then his plots to kill out of fear and jealousy. First, in act one of Macbeth, noble Macbeth and Banquo meet three very odd witches, also known as the weird sisters. These witches are the true start of the disintegration of Macbeth’s mind and misguide him into a situation of rather to believe or not to believe for the sake of his future.
Discuss how the characters of Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, and Duncan are established in Act I by using textual evidence to support your points. Macbeth: “return to plague the inventor” Macbeth is a person that knows what he must do but is doubtful of it. He is the war hero and got news of his promotion by the witches, who also said he would be promoted further. To make their prophecy come true he must kill Duncan. Lady Macbeth: “unsex me here, and fill me, from the crown to the toe, top-full of direst cruelty” Lady Macbeth is the “true” evil.
This misinterpretation, committed in pursuit of power, leads Macbeth to perform certain actions which result in the death of the king, the death of Macbeth’s friends, and eventually his own demise. At the start of the play, Macbeth is seeking a great amount of power. His wife, Lady Macbeth says to him, “When you durst do it, then you were a man;” (Act 1, sc. 7, line 56), suggesting that they have either considered or committed murder for the sake of their own advancement in the past. Macbeth further condones this in his action to the witches’ prophecy that he will become king.
Lady MacBeth plays an important part in Duncan’s murder because it is she who had the greater ambition to kill him. If Lady MacBeth weren’t a role in this play, MacBeth would have realized that murder was wrong and illogical. If Lady MacBeth was not a part in the play MacBeth, her husband would not have committed such a heinous crime. In Act 1, Scene 7, Macbeth is hovering around King Duncan’s bedroom, hesitant and afraid. He claims that “This even-handed justice commends th’ingredience of our poisoned chalice to our lips” (Act1, Scene7, Lines 10-12) Here he is saying that, if the King is killed, there will be terrible consequences.
It was his decision and he made it in a clear mind with the goal of becoming King. Macbeth was definitely not a villain before he was the Thane of Cawdor.A couple of forces might have drove Macbeth to cause all his crimes. The most evident of the forces that causes Macbeth kill Duncan is Lady Macbeth. Macbeth is very baffled about the prediction and he almost decided to not go forward with the deed when Lady Macbeth entices him to kill Duncan by telling him he is fragile and lacks masculinity. She has a lot more ambition than Macbeth and hopes that he succeeds so she can benefit from all the killings.
The hired murderers kill Banquo but mistakenly allow Fleance to escape. At a celebratory banquet that night, Macbeth is thrown into a state of horror when the ghost of the murdered Banquo appears at the dining table. Again, his wife tries to strengthen Macbeth, but the strain is clearly beginning to show. The following day, Macbeth returns to the same Witches who initially foretold his destiny. This time, the Witches not only confirm that the sons of Banquo will rule in Scotland, but they also add a new prophecy: Macbeth will be invincible in battle until the time when the forest of Birnam moves towards his stronghold at Dunsinane and until he meets an enemy "not born of woman."