Ambition, death, and power: themes found in the first scene of Macbeth by Shakespeare

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During a low point in Macbeth’s life he faces struggles with power, ambition and the thoughts of death surrounding him. Grabbing ahold of him strongly he is shown many ideas that are very promising at first, especially when the witches tell him of all of the control he could have, he wants the power, the fame and will do anything to get it. In act 1, scene 3, lines 140-145 Macbeth is recalling a conversation with the witches which brings about a thought in him of murder and the ambition to kill Duncan. Creating this supremacy trip that we see later, almost causing total insanity. In this we see Macbeth come across three of the major themes in the play, power, death and ambition as he struggles to make the right decision with what the three witches tell him.
In the quote “My thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical Shakes so my single state of man That function is smothered in surmise, And nothing is but what is not” (1.3.140-145) there is evidence of the theme of ambition. Looking deeper into this and the lines before it when the witches were talking to him they never men...

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