Downfall: Macbeth’s Malevolent Ambition William Shakespeare’s Macbeth is a dark tale of murder, rape, deception, and the supernatural, and it very much reflects the state of England at the time. With the death of Elizabeth I, her distant Scottish cousin James took the throne, and many other relatives of the former queen were quite angry with the fact that James got the throne and not them. There was a huge conspiracy where many relatives planned to seize the throne, but the plot was foiled and the conspirators were tortured and then executed in a brutal fashion. Many historians believe the play was written because King James was Scottish and there were not many stories of Scotland, but the deeper reason is that he wanted to show the evils and dangers in having such large ambitions, such as regicides like the relatives of King James. Now in the play, Macbeth starts off as a loyal, courageous, stereotypical, drone like war hero but once a group of witches put this idea in his mind that he could become king, he starts spiraling downhill.
And be these juggling fiends no more believed, That palter with us in a double sense; That heep the word of promise to our ear, And break it to our hope. I’ll not fight with thee. (5.8. 17-22) It is clear in the end of the play that Macbeth realizes his actions were wrong and he dies a pitiful death. Macbeth was influenced greatly by other characters in the play creating mayhem inside his mind and turning his decisions in an evil way bringing disorder throughout Scotland.
Macbeth Motif Essay In Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, Macbeth the thane of Glamis is easily mislead by the prophecies of the three witches. After one of their prophecies becomes true and he becomes the thane of Cawdor he is fooled into believing the rest of the prophecies. Macbeth willing to do anything to gain the throne of King Duncan commits many murders. He kills anyone that gets between him and his ambition of the throne. His greedy and power hungry wife, Lady Macbeth, assists him in devising plans to kill King Duncan and seize Scotland.
In Act 2 Scene2, after Macbeth murders Duncan, even he himself describes Duncan's death as "a sorry sight". He says that "Look on't again I dare not". On this stage, Macbeth still has conscience. Not until Act 3 onwards, Macbeths becomes a "butcher" that blood is no longer shed righteously. He kills Banquo and all the people in Macduff's castle.
Central ideas of Macbeth are those like in the beginning of the play when the Three Witches tell Macbeth that he is going to be King. When telling Macbeth he was going to be King they gave him a sense of greed. When he told his wife about this prophecy she cond Macbeth into killing King Duncan. Killing the King was another Central Idea, The central idea led to the sons of King Duncan to run for their lives leaving the next person in place taking the throne who was you guessed it! Macbeth.
They said that one day he will become King of Scotland. Macbeth became devoured by ambition and was pushed by his wife to murder King Duncan and seize the throne for himself. Slowly becoming deranged and filled with guilt he became a cruel ruler as he was forced to commit more murders in order to protect him from malice and suspicion. The bloodbath and fighting quickly took Macbeth and his wife into the domain of pride, hysteria, and death. In all fairness, Lady Macbeth was a strong and influential character at the start of the play in Macbeth’s life but it is not a justification for what happened.
Murder, manipulation, and betrayal; Macbeth is a play written by the famous playwright, Shakespeare. The play is about a Scottish general named Macbeth who receives a prophecy from a trio of witches one day, saying that he will one day become the King of Scotland. Consumed by ambition and encouraged to action by his wife, Macbeth murders King Duncan and takes the throne for himself. However, Macbeth is now tormented with guilt and paranoia, forcing him to commit more and more murders in order to protect himself. Eventually everything proves to be too much for him and Lady Macbeth and it swiftly leads them to their death.
The castle of Macduff I will surprise, seize upon Fife, ... his wife, his babies, and all unfortunate souls that trace him in his line." (4.1.163-169) Macbeth directly addresses the audience that he will now commit misdeeds, the minute his heart tells him to. He goes as far as killing women and
Later, he seeks the witches for another prophecy which entails circumstances that will lead to his downfall; one, he can only be slain from one born by caesarian section, and second, Birnam forest moves to Dunsinane where his castle lies. The play marvelously depicts Macbeth as a tragic Machiavellian hero. According to B.K. De Paolis’ book, The Machiavel in Elizabethan & Jacobean Drama,” the Machiavellian villain-hero … embodies a character that is evil, cunning, ruthless, deceptive, treacherous, and usually foreign”. A tragic hero should be of high status with a tragic flaw, which leads to their downfall, and we should pity the poor bastard.
Macbeth indicates the location of the king's room, and Macduff discovers the body. When the murder is revealed, Macbeth swiftly kills the prime witnesses, the sleepy guards of the king's bedchamber, and Lady Macbeth faints. The assembled lords of Scotland, including Macbeth, swear to avenge the murder. With suspicion heavy in the air, the king's two sons flee the country: Donalbain to Ireland and Malcolm to raise an army in