Misguided Ambition In Macbeth

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Macbeth is one of Shakespeare’s many tragic plays. In this play, misguided ambition leads Macbeth down a path that changes him from a noble creature to a ruthless individual. Macbeth begins as a noble creature. He then turns into a man who has doubts and lacks security. He ends as a ruthless individual. To begin with, Macbeth is a noble man. He is an upstanding gentleman and a cousin of the king. Macbeth is one of the generals in King Duncan’s army. Reports are brought back from the battlefield of Macbeth’s excellent victory. When the king’s trusted adviser is found to be a traitor, Duncan decides to reward Macbeth with the title of Thane of Cawdor. The three witches prophesy this new position to Macbeth while he is still unknowing. He shows…show more content…
He and Lady Macbeth decide to make the prophecy come true. This plan is to kill King Duncan and all of the successors that stand between Macbeth and the throne. The perfect setting for the action of their plan is when the king and his court pay an honorable visit to Macbeth’s castle. Macbeth plans to kill King Duncan while everyone sleeps. After Macbeth kills the king, a bell rings and he says, “I go and it is done: the bell invites me. / Hear it not, Duncan, for it is a knell / That summons thee to heaven, or to hell” (2.1.62-64). Macbeth and Lady Macbeth also frame the guards for the dirty deed he has done. Malcolm and Donalbaine are so scared for their lives that they decide to stay with separate relatives. Separating where no one knows where they are will better insure their safety. Macbeth’s ambition has clearly consumed him. His upstanding mind has been corrupted by the chance of having power. He loses his sanity and reasoning to gain a higher status. In conclusion, Macbeth is one of many people that is clearly a good man that has been corrupted. Ambition, greed, and power get the best of him. In many characters, ambition is hard to deny. The obstacles in his way seemed trivial and made his goal easy to grasp. In these days, someone who did such a thing might plead insane if taken to court. They would most likely be found not guilty, especially if they are a celebrity. No matter what time setting, the trip from sanity and integrity to insanity and ruthlessness happens much too

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