Truth and idealism can lead individuals onto an enlightened path, however, with questionable ideals an individuals life can be persuaded inaccurately. In the Shakespearean Drama, Macbeth, the main characters experience misguidance from their own mislead ideals, which created significant disorder among themselves and the country of Scotland. Ambition combined with the unrighteous forces of Macbeth and Lady led them predominantly to deadly consequences. Macbeth and his wife are engrossed by the witches prophecies which directed them both to irrational thinking and absurd actions. These actions defined both characters throughout the play and impacted their demise tremendously. The ideals of the powerful couple, along with their overbearing ambition, lead their reality into an unconscionable future and their eventual death. Ideals in the life of Macbeth were instigated by various situations. He was exposed to a supernatural experience that promoted his ambition and pushed him to an uncertain path. The witches had predicted Macbeth would claim the title, Thane of Cawdor, which they prophesied right. Their next presumption was for Macbeth to become King, followed by their final prediction for Banquo's descendants to heir the throne. With the witches prediction holding true, Macbeth felt eager to establish a sense of control, knowing he is next for the throne. Macbeth shows underhanded ideals, as his choice in finishing off the present King Duncan, was sporadic and heavily influenced by Lady Macbeth. “False face must hide what false heart doth know” (I.vii.82). Spoken by Macbeth, he admits that his dishonest act is wrong, but is still willing to continue along with it. Macbeth must act as if he is innocent about the murder of Dun... ... middle of paper ... ...lanced as Malcolm becomes the King. The truth of Macbeth is shown immensely near the end of the play as his ideals are truly expressed. The demise of Macbeth was inarguably affected by himself. The prophecies caused Macbeth to become nonsesual and led him into doing the wrong for his good. Overriding ambition and stable ideals led Macbeth and Lady Macbeth to their inevitable demise. They both faced choices in life that defined their character, reinforcing true ideals in life, which determined a path for their future. The actions of Macbeth following the witches prophecies, showed his true self, which represented how easily persuaded he is. The choices he had made defined his character as it showed his transformation from being a noble man to a monstrous murderer. Theses decisions created a detrimental path that ruined the powerful couples relationship along
Macbeth, one of the darkest and most powerful plays written by Shakespeare, dramatizes the disastrous psychological effects that occur when evil is chosen to fulfill the ambition for power. Throughout the play, Macbeth’s character loses mental stability and becomes enthralled with the idea of being king. Empowered by the three witches, this situation consumes Macbeth’s consciousness until his mental state becomes deranged. This mental deterioration is evident in what he says and does as he evolves into a tyrannical ruler attempting to protect himself from enmity and suspicion. In an attempt to fulfill his ambition for power, Macbeth displays mental deterioration and becomes increasingly bloodthirsty.
Fate cannot predict a person’s character. Every human must choose to embody benevolence or malevolence. It is an important decision, which external factors greatly influence. This point is addressed by Shakespeare in his drama, Macbeth. The character, Lady Macbeth develops sincerity as a result of her husband’s corruption. Deciding between what is foul and what is fair is an overarching theme in the play, and the main characters continually shape their identities through these decisions. Shakespeare tells the story of a married couple, the Macbeths, who are the newly appointed monarchy of Scotland. The Macbeths have very distinct personalities, at first Lady Macbeth is ruthless and Macbeth is rational. As the play progresses, Macbeth turns
Shakespeare clearly explores the themes ‘Fate and Free Will’, and ‘Ambition’ within this tragedy. Shakespeare weaves these themes around the character of Macbeth, showing us the depth of his insight into human society. Macbeth fell victim to his interpretation of supernatural prophecies and the influence from his wife. His impatience for the throne led to his crimes, subsequent guilt and acknowledgement of his sins. Shakespeare presents Macbeth’s life to his audience as a moral tale, warning them how men should be careful how they regard the ideas of fortune and fate and how in the end, evil intents and actions bring with them their own punishment.
In the beginning of the play, Macbeth is described as being “valiant”. He is a skilled warrior, who is loyal to his king and his country. Almost single-handedly, he wins the war for Scotland. He defeats many of the enemy soldiers, including a traitor, all in the name of his king. But, when three witches encounter Macbeth and his friend Banquo, Macbeth’s ambition begins to grow. They tell Macbeth that he will be Thane of Cawdor and King. Soon after, Macbeth meets with King Duncan. He informs Macbeth that he is the new Thane of Cawdor. Macbeth is astonished, and from then on he is obsessed with being king. His ambition begins to become ruthless when Duncan proclaims that his son Malcolm is the Prince of Cumberland, and therefore, the heir to the throne: “The Prince of Cumberland! That is a step/On which I must fall down, or else o’erleap, /For in my way it lies. Stars, hide your fires;/Let not light see my black and deep desires:/The eye wink at the hand; yet let that be/Which the eye fears, when it is done, to see.” (I,iv,48-53) At this moment, Macbeth, realizing that they stand in the way of the witches’ prophecies, decides that both Duncan and Malcolm need to die for him to be king. As soon as Macbeth kills Duncan, he enters into a world of evil. Later in the play, Macbeth’s ambition becomes increasingly ruthless. He kills his best friend Banquo, and almost kills Banquo’s son, Fleance, because he believes they would stand in the way of his reign. The witches told Banquo “Thou shall get kings, though thou be none.” (I,iii,67) This means that Banquo himself would not be a king, but that his successors would be. Macbeth tries to prevent this by killing Banquo and his son Fleance.
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.
There are many ideas about the way things are suppose to be, they guide people in the way humans approach life and how people go about achieving our goals. Unfortunately people do not always accomplish these ideas they have for ourselves but the truth often times is what we really need. In the Shakespearean drama, Macbeth, he writes of a once cherished leader, Macbeth who is approached by supernatural being and acts out erratically to fulfill what prophesies he desires which lead to his eventual demise. Macbeth has difficulty perceiving idealism from the truth, in other words what he thinks should happen and what actually happens. The prophecies are the catalyst for his irrational thinking and from then on Macbeth becomes addicted to knowing what his future could be and taking it to the extreme of needing to create it then and there. Down this path he also has his wife Lady Macbeth who pushes him further to act on these prophecies to achieve the ultimate goal of the crown. She too has an obsession with doing whatever it takes to be Queen and have that authority to her name. These two characters take to the extreme what it means to need truth but desire their idealism and how this leads to their eventual demise.
instill in him the need to be King. Still, desire is not enough for Macbeth and he is thus driven "to seek certainty as his one objective. He wants certainty from the witches . . . at whatever cost" (Campbell 228). Macbeth, however, is not completely lost yet; honour and justice remain in him, and although it takes him some time to fully consider the consequences of the witches' words on him, he rejects his horrible thoughts of murder and postpones all action: "If chance will have me king, why,chance may crown me, / Without my stir" (I. iii.143-144). For the time being, Macbeth's true essence is in control, that of loyalty and honour.
After a long and hard battle, the Sergeant says to King Duncan, “For brave Macbeth,-well he deserves that name,- disdaining fortune, with his brandish’d steel, which smok’d with bloody execution , like valour’s minion carv’d out his passage till he fac’d the slave;” (1.2.16) . This quote shows that Macbeth is viewed as a valiant soldier and a capable leader. However, it does not take long for the real Macbeth to be revealed- a blindly ambitious man, easily manipulated by the prospect of a higher status. His quest for power is what drives his insanity, and after having been deemed the Thane of Cawdor, Macbeth’s ambition can immediately be seen. In a soliloquy, Macbeth says, “Present fears are less than horrible imaginings; my thought, whose murder yet is but fantastica, shakes so my single state of man that function is smother’d in surmise, and nothing is but what is not” (1.3.140). Macbeth has just gained more power, and his immediate thought is of how to gain an even higher status as king. He imagines how to kill Duncan, and then is troubled by his thoughts, telling himself it is wrong. This inner struggle between Macbeth’s ambition and his hesitation to kill Duncan is the first sure sign of his mental deterioration. Although Macbeth does kill Duncan, he questions whether or not he should to do so, which is far different from how Macbeth feels about murder later in the play. Macbeth becomes king, and this power leads
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.
The heroic loyal character of Macbeth is forced into a internal battle to decide between ambition and loyalty to his king. Macbeth overcomes the evil within him, though Lady Macbeth crushes his thoughts of loyalty to the king by calling him a coward or threatening his manliness. Macbeth allows the evilness to grow within him, which allows ambition to take control of his life. Due to the evilness that has started to control his life he prepares to kill the man who has given him everything to his credit, to fulfil his ambition, and to become King.
At some point in the life of every individual, certain events and changes occur that shape the person into how they will behave and appear in the future. The life of an individual either starts to blossom with opportunity or starts going through a consistent downward spiral. How does it work out perfectly for some and go wrong for others? Macbeth is a prime example of how one decision can alter life forever. As Macbeth tries to successfully pursue his prophecies, his mind and body slowly deteriorate until he has nothing left to live for. Tillyard once explained that the human mind works through reason, will, and passion (Tillyard-The Elizabethan World Picture). These ideas are somewhat parallel to Macbeth’s actions. Once he begins feeling guilty of his actions, fearful of being caught, and driven to have total control, the motives of his mind are gradually moving from being thought out with reason, to will, and finally to passion. As Macbeth makes his descent into death, his passion to be king gradually takes control his whole being. At the lowest point of his existence there is no reason left inside him. His mind is so busy and crazy that he no longer has the ability to make thoughtful and insightful decisions. He goes from being a loyal and careful servant to a deceitful and scattered ruler.
In the play Macbeth, William Shakespeare exclaims that personal portrayal can conceal one’s stature and true intentions. Macbeth is a man who is initially well trusted by the king. Unfortunately behind King Duncan’s back , Macbeth decides to murder him because of a future prediction that three witches made about Macbeth. After hearing that he could potentially become the Thane of Cawdor, and more importantly the King. He decided he must take action in order for his future to become true. Though the ways he went about obtaining this future were not all ethical. Deception and betrayal brightly lit his path to becoming the potential king, and unfortunately Macbeth was faced with fate and more importantly put to justice for his preposterous actions.
Macbeth written by Shakespeare, is a tragic and historical thriller play filled with action-packed murders and the fall of man. The characters are portrayed to have personal ambitions. Shakespeare displayed these ambitions to both be destructive and constructive. Which unchecked ambition has detrimental impacts as shown in the main characters and checked, cautious ambition can help influence and encourage others. Ambition is an overarching theme found common in the play and could also be shown for the sake of justice and a positive characteristic. These ambitions were either presented as fatal flaws shown
Macbeth’s ambition to obtain power convinces him that it is his destiny to become King of Scotland, and that he should do anything to fulfill that destiny, even if it involves him committing tremendously immoral acts such as murder. After Macbeth realizes that the witches may actually speak the truth due to the second prophecy (Thane of Cawdor) becoming true, he begins to have an eerie and frightening thought of him killing his king and friend, Duncan, in order to ac...
...ake place with Macbeth. He transforms from a valiant warrior into a corrupt murderer. Even though it was Macbeth who carried out the crimes, they were the thoughts of other people. The Three Witches and Lady Macbeth influenced Macbeth. Macbeth was a loyal man who had a conscience but was made into a cold-hearted killer. The Three Witches were miserable women who desired the death and ruin of Macbeth. Moreover, Macbeth's ambition and greed propelled him to destroy anyone who stood in the way of his success. Lastly, Lady Macbeth was a selfish woman who played Macbeth for a fool and used him to gain her fancies. The Three Witches, Macbeth's own unchecked ambition and Lady Macbeth were the motivational factors which ultimately lead to the doom and destruction of Macbeth.