Macbeth: His Downfall Was Due to His Ambition for Power
In the Shakespearean novel Macbeth, the protagonist Macbeth is caught in a
down spiral induced by his ambition which in the end, was the cause of his
tragic end. Macbeth, once a great hero falls victim of his ambition for
power. Although the protagonist initially tries to resist his human urge,
he in the end committed crime his country, his friends, and sadly himself.
Macbeth's first great crime was the crime against his country. In
the beginning, Macbeth was described by his fellow noblemen as a great,
loyal soldier, giving all he has for his country. Soon, it becomes evident
when the witches foretells Macbeth future: "All hail, Macbeth! That shalt
be king hereafter" (I. iii. 53) that Macbeth will be destined for greatness
but not in the way he thinks. After receiving the three prophecies, Macbeth
is intrigue by the idea the he will be king hereafter. He soon shows his
intention to carry out the prophecies in his aside: "The prince of
Cumberland! that is a step on which I must fall down, or else o'er-leap,
for in my way it lies" (I. iv. 55-57). With the help of his wife, Lady
Macbeth, Macbeth was able to kill the Duncan, the king of Scotland, a man
whom trusted and loved Macbeth. With Duncan dead and the two princes
fleeing, Macbeth was crowned king of Scotland. In the end, Macbeth had
fulfilled his prophecies but in doing, he had committed treason against his
country. Macbeth's second great crime was committed against his friends,
the people around him whom use to admire him. After he had been crowned
king, Macbeth believed his greatest obstacle had been overcame but that
assumption was far the truth. By committing the first great crime, Macbeth
had unconsciously paved the way for his downfall. Perhaps the turning point
of the novel in which Macbeth kills Banquo; his loyal friend, that
Macbeth's character begins to deteriorate. In one of his aside: "The very
firstling of my heart shall be the firstling of my hand" (IV. i. 161-162)
Macbeth's mental deterioration becomes visible. This aside is crucial
because it foreshadows the future events to come. Macbeth now seems to have
not a shred of decency or guilt left in him. Because of his irrational
thinking, Macbeth commits probably the worst crime he had every committed.
Macbeth had his Macduff's family slaughtered. This crime was so horrendous
because unlike Macbeth's prior murders, this one had no other purpose but
to quench Macbeth hatred of his rival Macduff. It soon became clear that
Macbeth is a brave general who fights for his country Scotland, defeating the King of Norway. He is loyal to his king Duncan, but Macbeth has ambition to take over the kingdom for himself. He has lots of doubts of if he is doing the right thing, but still murders Duncan and then Banquo who is another general who fought with Macbeth. These murders and guilt about his treason are leading Macbeth to become insane. This essay shows that although Macbeth’s strong desire for power is influenced by the three witches in the play and also the planning and ambition of his wife Lady Macbeth, in the end he is responsible for his self-destruction.
"I'll fight till from my bones my flesh be hacked." (Act 5, Scene 3). Phrases as forceful as Macbeth's quote are not common day language, in fact, it is used except in times of intense emotion. Although the diction of Macbeth's words are from the Elizabethan Age, it's message rings true and clear. Macbeth clearly will oppose anything standing in the way of his passion. Critics often debate over the what tragic flaw of Macbeth lead to his downfall. Was it ambition or Lady Macbeth's influence? Hardly so. It was an obsession of power that Macbeth desired so much that led to his compulsive fixation and preoccupation of obtaining his desire by any and all means necessary. Thus, he inevitably lost touch with reality and became irrational, unreasonable, and myopic which is clearly shown through his decisions. Macbeth had a downfall because of what he did and what he desired, and he could blame no one but himself.
Even after four hundred years, Shakespeare's plays still continue to resonate with modern audiences. This is because Shakespeare's plays explore universal themes which still remain relevant in today's society. In Macbeth, Shakespeare dramatically explores how one man's excessive ambition and greed for power led him to tyranny and absolute destruction. The ideas explored in Macbeth still remain relevant in the contemporary world where individuals can get tempted by wealth and power and forget all sense of moral direction.
wink at the hand! yet let that be, /" (I, iv, 57-59). Macbeth is vexed
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, ambition is defined as an ardent desire for rank, fame, or power. Power is defined as the ability or right to control people or things. Neither of these definitions have a positive connotation. Often, people with ambition will step on whomever they need to get what they want. Do ambitious people ever feel happy with their lives, or are they always striving for more while others are perfectly content? How do power and ambition influence the choices we make? This is apparent throughout many works of literature and film. In Macbeth, Macbeth is driven by his ambition to become king. In Animal Farm, Napoleon is driven by his ambition to control the farm. In The Little Mermaid, Ursula is driven
the riddle cursing Thebes and therefore is crowned king. He is a very confident ruler as he feels...
MacBeth is Responsible for His Downfall. There were many wrongs committed in "MacBeth." But who should bear the major responsibility for these actions? The witches prophesying the truth? Lady MacBeth's scheming and persuasion?
It is in human nature that the more power one desires the more corrupt actions one must do to attain it. In Shakespeare’s tragedy of Macbeth, a Scottish noble's craving for power leads him to do terrible deeds that leads to his demise. Shakespeare shows that power corrupts by using Macbeth who corrupts under the thought of have power over others. Macbeth becomes corrupt under the thought of becoming king and gaining almost complete control over the people that he rules. Macbeth wants the power badly enough to do horrible deeds such as commit regicide. Lady Macbeth becomes very ambitious and allows herself to become seduced to the idea of becoming Queen. Her ruthlessness urges Macbeth to commit regicide by questioning his love for her and his own manhood.
The young girl in the story is struggling with finding her own gender identity. She would much rather work alongside her father, who was “tirelessly inventive” (Munro 328), than stay and work with her mother in the kitchen, depicted through, “As soon as I was done I ran out of the house, trying to get out of earshot before my mother thought of what to do next” (329). The girl is torn between what her duties are suppose to be as a woman, and what she would rather be doing, which is work with her father. She sees her father’s work as important and worthwhile, while she sees her mother’s work as tedious and not meaningful. Although she knows her duties as a woman and what her mother expects of her, she would like to break the mould and become more like her father. It is evident that she likes to please her father in the work she does for him when her father says to the feed salesman, “Like to have you meet my new hired man.” I turned away and raked furiously, red in the face with pleasure (328-329). Even though the young girl is fixed on what she wants, she has influences from both genders i...
Macbeth is victorious; he has just returned from the battle ground as a brutal warrior; courageous, but what is more, heroic. At this point in the play, Macbeth's reputation is rapidly growing with the rampant spread of the word of his good deeds at war. This climaxes when his actions are acknowledged and rewarded by the title given to him by King Duncan,
Prophecy: The plot of Macbeth is set in motion ostensibly by the prophecy of the three witches. The prophecy fans the flames of ambition within Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, serving as the primary impetus for the couple to plot the death of Duncan--and subsequently Banquo.
Macbeth is a play about the corruptive force of ambition. Discuss this statement with particular reference to the characters in the play.
Political ambition undermines man’s loyalty. In the play, Macbeth decides to kill his king because of his ambition for position. At the beginning of the play, he portrays himself as a noble person. He fights in the battle against Norway and proves his loyalty; however, as soon as the witches prophesize that Macbeth “shall be king hereafter'; (1.3.53), he is not longer trustworthy. Ambition for power starts creeping into his head. After Macbeth’s internal conflict over whether or not to kill Duncan, he decides to do it quickly (1.7.3) in order to hasten the predictions. He decides to kill the king because he wants to extend his power all over the country by becoming the new monarch. He desires to be more wealthy and respected by the nobility as well as by the common people. Becoming king represents the highest rang in the political pyramid. The act of murdering is the only way to make his dreams come true because Duncan’s fair and prosperous rule over Scotland experience the support of the whole population. As Malcom and Donalbain fly to England, he automatically takes possession of the throne. Macbeth displays political ambition first of all because of his wife. After she reads her husband’s letter about his meeting with the witches, she suggests for Macbeth to kill Duncan so she could be queen. At the beginning Macbeth hesitates to talk about such a thing and even lists the reason not to kill: he is his king, his uncle and his guest. Not completely sure about it and victim of his own desires for power he finally accepts Lady Macbeth’s plan for murdering the ruler of Scotland. This decision portrays Macbeth’s dirty morality and easily manageable personality.
The contrast between light and dark is very important when attempting to understand Conrad's thoughts and ideas about civilization and what it really is.
The vigorous desire to achieve and willingly attain something holds the capability to greatly affect one's life. William Shakespeare's play Macbeth establishes the immense effect and influence of ambition. After gaining power over his country Scotland, the protagonist, Macbeth, experiences an internal downfall as he battles between his wants and moral judgement. He struggles to maintain stable relationships with others as his selfish desires and goals hurt those around him when achieved. In addition to clashing with himself and others, he is seen as a tyrant leader and is slowly turned against by Scotland's nation as well as England. Shakespeare's play Macbeth provides the reader with a clear understanding of ambition's corrupting power in Shakespeare's tragic character Macbeth, through his inner conflicts, struggle to maintain stable relationships with those surrounding him, and clash with society.