The Free Will of Shakespeare's Macbeth

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Free Will of Macbeth Shakespeare

“Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn, and cauldron bubble.” (Witches, IV, I, 94)

Everyone has control over something. Whether it be themselves, someone else, or a possession, they have control. Throughout the play Macbeth, written by Shakespeare, Macbeth is controlled by three witches and also his wife. Macbeth has a free will to choose to do what he wants but he frequently chooses to do what others want or predict of him. In Act I, Scene iii, Macbeth can’t withhold himself from knowing more of what the witches have to predict. He says to them, “Stay, you imperfect speakers. Tell me more.”(73) This is where the witches begin to gain control over Macbeth, we know this because he doesn’t want them to leave and wants to know more about what he will become. When Macbeth finds out what the witches have predicted of him is coming true, he becomes stunned. He then begins to think of how he will be king, and all the prophecies will be won. Macbeth makes an aside saying, “ Two truths are told as happy prologues to the swelling act of the imperial theme.” (I, iii, 140) Here Macbeth is falling into the trap of the witches by realizing that he will be able to conquer the quest of becoming king. It seems like Macbeth is someone who always gets what he wants, this greed that he has causes a problem. He wants to become king, but others stand in his way, such as Banquo, Fleance, and Macduff. He says in Act I, Scene iv, to Banquo, “If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me without my stir.” (157) He knows that he has done nothing to become Thane of Glamis, so he doesn’t have to do anything to become king. At this point it seems that Macbeth feels it is destiny for him to be king but it soon changes to his free will. Like stated before, Macbeth thought he had done nothing to become Thane of Glamis but, he had. Macbeth had chopped the king of Norway’s head off during battle. This shows that in order for Macbeth to have gained Thane of Glamis he must kill. When he realizes this, he comes to find out that he will have to get rid of those in his way by killing them to become king.

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