Macbeth is one of the best known plays written by Shakespeare in the 17th century, Jacobean period. It was the period where the belief in supernatural was greatly held and king James I himself, the author of Divine rights of king adhered in witchcraft and openly practiced the idea of kings being God’s representatives on earth, so to even complain about them was a sin. The tragic hero, brave and valiant Macbeth had all the required characteristics of the ideal Scottish soldier; valorous and gallant but he is bound to have a tragic flaw which he is powerless over and the cause of his inevitable death, his ‘vaulting ambition’ and greed. We then have our other tragedy Othello, which is unique in the literature of time because he was the first black tragic hero presented on a stage. Othello is often referred to as the ‘Moor’ due to his heritage of being North African. The effective warrior who was never meant to fit into the Venetian society ,where black was traditionally known as the colour of evil and interracial marriages were improbable. This tragedy is about a noble hero and the destruction of his good and marriage by his tragic flaws of jealousy and pride. Both heroes are the subject of their prey from the beginning; Othello’s innocence and honesty leaves him unprotected from Iago, Macbeth is chosen as a target for temptation by the servants of nature (witches), and the stage is set for their downfall.
Shakespeare develops the plays Othello and Macbeth by foreshadowing the tragic fall of the protagonists in the way they are introduced, to present human weakness. The opening act of Macbeth begins with the witches performing a spell with thunder and lightning. This creates an eerie mood for the audience and witches are exposed of...
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... knows that Macduff being the ‘woman born’ is the one to kill him, he showed his original side for the last time; the brave and valiant Macbeth arose once again, hereby proving he will not give up. Shakespeare’s moral of Othello was to maybe tell the audience to make your own decisions instead of having someone else choose for you or maybe to hold on to the things you love and not take them for granted or to have full trust on them. In Macbeth we learn the lust for power can corrupt even the most greatest or that ambitions have their limit, don’t make it into something you will even murder for.
Works Cited
Shakesphere, William. Macbeth. New Jersey: Pearson, 2010. 322-415 .Print.
Shakespeare, William. Othello, Moor of Venice. Perrine’s Literature: Structure, Sound and Sense. 9th ed. Editors Thomas R. Arp and Greg Johnson. Boston: Thomson, 2006. 1263-1357.
“The Tragedy of Macbeth” goes into the darkest and deepest morals of any Shakespearean play. Each character in the play portrays a very important role and each character gives off their own form of sincerities towards the advancing plot. Macbeth
Shakespeare, William. The Tragedy of Othello: The Moor of Venice. Ed. Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine. New York; Washington Square Press, 1993.
Perhaps the most fundamental theme of Shakespeare’s Macbeth is the inherent corruptibility of even a seemingly good man when ambition turns to greed, and Macbeth himself, as one would expect, exemplifies this concept throughout the play. While at the outset he is seen to be loyal to his king, generally considered trustworthy, and displaying numerous other laudable qualities, Macbeth ultimately succumbs to the influence of those around him and becomes unequivocally evil, setting aside all his previously held morals and coming to be driven only by his lust for power. This transition is brought about by a wide variety of factors and plays an integral role in the development of the plot. In his tragedy Macbeth, William Shakespeare employs multiple methods of characterization in order to highlight the protagonist’s transformation from hero to villain as a result of the influences of the people surrounding him, namely the Weïrd sisters, Lady Macbeth, and Macduff, including extensive foreshadowing, a general shift in tone corresponding with turning points in the plot, and the inclusion of long-winded soliloquies to mark a critical change in Macbeth’s character.
Shakespeare, William, and Kim F. Hall. Othello, the Moor of Venice: Texts and Contexts. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2007. Print.
Among the greatest gifts that the renaissance produced was the eloquent and incredible Shakespearean plays. Written mostly in the 1590s these plays have been performed and admired countless times; entertaining mass audiences by providing interesting tales that explore the depth of human insights and the different universal themes. Among the many Shakespearean plays Macbeth, written in 1606, stands out with its short composition but multiple themes. This tragedy narrates the tale of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s quest to grasp ultimate power by ignoring their morals and succumbing to their dark desires, which ultimately leads to their downfall. This tragic play portrays the desires, needs, and temptations that accompany ambition in men and women. However the ambition in Macbeth is blind, it does not abide to the morals, but it allows space for dark actions as means necessary for accomplishment. Blind ambition serves as the main driving force that drives Macbeth to subdue to his dark desires, defy his noble behavior, and ultimately his downfall.
Shakespeare, William. "The Tragedy of Othello: The Moor of Venice." The Signet Classic Shakespeare. Ed. Alvin Kernan. New York: Penguin Putnam, 1998.
Mowat, Barbara A. and Paul Werstine, ed. Introduction. Shakespeare: Othello. New York: Washington Square Press, 1993.
In the play of “Macbeth”, Shakespeare gradually and effectively deepens our understanding of the themes and most importantly the relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. The main theme of Macbeth is ambition, and how it compels the main characters to pursue it. The antagonists of the play are the three witches, who symbolise the theme appearance and reality. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s relation is an irony throughout the play, as most of their relation is based on greed and power. This is different from most of Shakespeare’s other plays, which are mostly based on romance and trust. There is also guilt that leads Macbeth and Lady Macbeth to the final consequences of the play. As the progresses, the constant changes in Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are exposed.
In the early 1600’s, William Shakespeare penned an Aristotelian tragedy ‘Macbeth’ which provides his audiences both then and now with many valuable insights and perceptions into human nature. Shakespeare achieves this by cleverly employing many dramatic devices and themes within the character of ‘Macbeth’. Macbeth is depicted as an anti-hero; a noble protagonist with a tragic flaw that leads to his downfall. This tragic flaw of Macbeth’s, heavily laden with the themes of ‘fate or free will’, and ‘ambition’, is brought out by Shakespeare in his writing to present us with a character whose actions and final demise are, if not laudable, very recognisable as human failings.
Shakespeare’s “Macbeth” explores a fundamental struggle of the human conscience. The reader is transported into the journey of a man who recognizes and acknowledges evil but still succumbs to its destructive powers. The character of Macbeth is shrouded in ambiguity that scholars have claimed as both being a tyrant and tragic hero. Macbeth’s inner turmoil and anxieties that burden him throughout the entire play evoke sympathy and pity in the reader. Though he has the characteristics of an irredeemable tyrant, Macbeth realizes his mistakes and knows there is no redemption for his sins. And that is indeed tragic.
William Shakespeare, The Tragedy of Othello, The Moor of Venice (from Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, and Drama, sixth edition. Ed. X.J. Kennedy and Dana Gioia. New York: Harper Collins, 1995.
Four hundred and seven years ago William Shakespeare’s, The Tragedy of Macbeth is performed for the first time at The Globe theatre. The Tragedy of Macbeth capture its audience by using a wide range of emotions giving its audience the uncontrollable feeling of catharsis. This well known tragedy tells the story of a great hero who earns the crown of Cawdor and Glamis because he wins the battle for his people against the scottish; this great thane goes by the name Macbeth. He is once known for his kindness and good heart; but, later transforms to a ruthless tyrant thirsting for more power, killing anyone and everyone who stands in his way including: the current king of.., his best friend, and the innocent. Macbeth proves that it is human nature
Shakespeare. Othello. The Longman Anthology of British Literature. Ed. Rossi. New York: Longman, 1999. 312-379.
Macbeth is a very complex character whom reflects man's thirst for power through the drastic changes of his personality; thus being one of the slightest reasons in which make this intriguing character, greatest of all Shakespearean’s well-known works.
Kermode, Frank. “Othello, the Moor of Venice.” The Riverside Shakespeare. Ed. G. Blakemore Evans. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1974.