Due to this unrestrained burst of ambition, Macbeth turns to darkness and he begins to act on his thoughts even though when Banquo asks if he ever thinks about the witches’ prophecy, he denies it all. Although the prophecy the witches foresee in Macbeth’s future is news to him, he is shocked and astonished because he has already thought of becoming a king in the past. As the play progresses, Macbeth’s duplicity in character comes through; he is indecisive, guilty and he becomes the worst type of traitor because he goes against God by murdering King Duncan. Macbeth is a character who undergoes a transformation; he leaves his cocoon and morphs into a butterfly, an evil butterfly for that matter. Banquo, Macbeth’s character foil, is one great character.
Leo Grazhdankin Ms.Hook hour 1 Macbeth Analysis False prophecies lead to death and destruction In the play, "Macbeth," I believe that the witches actually play a bigger part than they really have. Simply because they start to influence Macbeth’s decisions the witches were trying to create anarchy by foretelling Macbeth’s future so he act upon it. They pretty much planted everything evil into Macbeth's head which just kept growing and growing until it just started to dominate his whole mind. He did not need to kill King Duncan or any of the other victims. But pretty much after he murdered Duncan, Macbeth just went crazy.
With the predictions of the witches, there is an immediate shift of Macbeth’s character. Macbeth, soon after discovering the second prediction of the witches is correct, he begins contemplating the last prediction, his murder of Duncan. Macbeth while contemplating states, “My thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical, / Shakes so my single state of man that function / Is smother'd in surmise, and nothing is / But what is not”(Shakespeare 1.3.159-162). Macbeth’s aside begins his downfall, already starting to shift his character from a loyal nobleman to the ambitious tyrant, with this very acceptance of his “fate”. Additionally, soon after Macbeth’s return , Lady Macbeth, aware of the witches’ prediction, begins pressing Macbeth to murder
Macbeth does not even begin his deed of killing king Duncan but he already ensures everyone that they can consider the job done. Macbeth is being driven by ambition, which causes him to commit deeds that lead to violent murderers and sins. Macbeth always likes to listen to the witches’ prophecies. When the First apparition says, “Macbeth! Macbeth!
At the beginning of Macbeth, Macbeth was feeling triumphant after coming back from the war and had no intentions of gaining more power than he already had, but when the witches found Banquo and himself they all greeted him and addressed him in different titles, witch 1 said, “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis.” This makes him think that the witches know somewhat about him, then witch 2 says, ‘All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor.” Macbeth not knowing that he is yet the Thane of Cawdor thinks that they must be lying but then a bit after the witches leave he finds out he is in fact the Thane of Cawdor and makes him think that the prophecy witch 3 made, “… That shalt be king hereafter!” is true. This shows that Macbeth never had full control of his desires even at the start of the play; the witches influenced him. Then later on Lady Macbeth pushes to him to pursue his desires.
The first evidence of Macbeth distancing and isolating himself from his friend is at the beginning of the play, when they are told the predictions by the witches that Macbeth “shalt be King hereafter!” (1.3.50). Banquo attempts to tell him that these predictions will only invade his mind with evil thoughts, saying that, “The instruments of darkness tell us truths,/ Win us with honest trifles, to betray’s/ in deepest consequence” (1.3.123-126). In this, he tells Macbeth that he should not listen to a word that the witches say, because they will tell the truth, but they will twist it in order to achieve their evil deeds. Macbeth distances himself from Banquo, as will not listen to his good friend, and decides to listen to the evil beings instead. Macbeth, after becoming King and plunging further and further into evil, orders for Banquo to be killed, as in the mind of Macbeth, Banquo has gone from his dearest friend to it being that, “There is none but he/ Whose being I fear” (3.1.54-55).
Macbeth is confused by them calling him a thane twice as he hasn’t heard King Duncan’s decision yet. The witches also tell Macbeth will be king one day. Shocked Macbeth asks the witches for more information, but they have turned their attention to Banquo, speaking in more riddles. They call Banquo “lesser than Macbeth, and greater,” and “not so happy, yet much happier”; then they tell him that he will never be king but that his children will. Macbeth demands the witches to explain what
The witches make 2 predictions about Macbeth: that he will be thane of Cawdor and eventually, king. Banquo is surprised to see Macbeth looking frightened, asking why he would “seem to fear/ Things that do sound so fair…” (1.3). Banquo then demanded the witches speak to him. They told him that his children would be kings (“Thou shalt get kinds, though thou be none…”). After all this, Macbeth was still skeptical and curious of the predictions they had made, and asked them to explain.
To begin, Macbeth is viewed as a brave and fearless man with very good military standing he is also viewed as a good leader. Macbeth is a good man at this point in the play but due to some prophecies that are made by, some crazy witches; he starts to betray his closest friends. Macbeth begins to plot against King Duncan, the man who just named him Thane of Cawdor. Macbeth realizes the costliness of killing the king and how his actions may damn him forever. Macbeth tells his wife, Lady Macbeth, That he cannot go through with it and she begins to question him, “When you durst do it, then you were a man; And, to be more than what you were, you would be so much more the man” (Shakespeare I.VII.
Another prophesy made by the witches is that Banquo’s sons will become king, the third witch states, “Thou shalt get kings, though thou be none” (1.3.65). Macbeth is put into a state of confusion and determination that prophecies are to be fulfilled due to his paranoia, lack of sleep and visions. The witches also show Macbeth three apparitions. The First apparition is an armed head, the first apparition states “Macbeth, Macbeth, Macbeth: beware Macduff/ Beware the Thane of Fife. Dismiss me.