Macbeth Essay: Banquo's Jealousy

The character of Macbeth in William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, a Shakespearean tragic play, reveals his negative state of mind, in the soliloquy from Act 3, Scene 1, as an immorally conscious person that is inexpressive and unsympathetic to his best friend Banquo who will soon be murdered as the play progresses. What Macbeth fear is Banquo, his best friend, because Macbeth knows that Banquo sides with justice and when he ever discovers that Macbeth has taken the life of Duncan, he will not tolerate his actions and will report Macbeth’s crime to the thanes and his allies which triggers Macbeth to comment Banquo, “Our fears in Banquo stick deep, /And in his royalty of nature reigns that/Which would be feared” (53-55). Banquo acts more of a king than Macbeth himself because Banquo is loyal to Scotland with his good conscious, and

Likewise, Macbeth’s jealousy increases his determination to murder Banquo without any sympathy after he finishes him off with his son, Fleance. As seen, Macbeth respects Banquo’s good virtues and his righteousness and compares it to his own lack of good qualities with the statement directed to Banquo, “He hath a wisdom that doth guide his valor/To act in safety” (57-58). Macbeth expresses that Banquo is a perceptive and sharp person that understands him and can see right through Macbeth’s lie, but he can also be a threat to him because if Banquo’s prophecy were to come true, he must kill Macbeth to acquire the throne for his children. Additionally, it also means Macbeth senses that murdering Duncan is only benefiting Banquo’s future; his actions for obtaining the crown ends up being pointless and it shows us that Macbeth portrays both hopelessness and disappointment. Furthermore, the insecurity and uneasiness that Macbeth is feeling leads him to make a deliberate attempt to take the life of his best friend before his best friend could assassinate