Macbeth As a Dead Butcher

Macbeth As a Dead Butcher

After Macduff has murdered Macbeth, Malcolm remarks that Macbeth is a

'dead butcher'. To find out if Macbeth is a dead butcher, the events

of the play must be reviewed.

The Collins English dictionary defines butcher as-

Butcher; A person who kills needlessly, showing no remorse.

At the beginning of the play, Macbeth is portrayed as a hero, 'good

and hardy soldier', with his associates describing him as 'loyal',

'valiant' and 'brave'. He is also trusted to a great extent by Duncan,

who expresses this by calling him 'worthy' and 'noble'.

Macbeth has just returned from battle, and the captain has informed

Duncan that Macbeth's sword 'smokes with bloody execution'. This is

ominous; Macbeth is already being connected with death, and murder.

When Macbeth meets with the witches for the first time, they proclaim

that he will be 'Thane of Glamis', 'Thane of Cawdor', and 'king

hereafter'. This makes the scene more dramatic for the audience, as

they already know that Duncan has just told Rosse to have the old

Thane of Cawdor executed, and to give Macbeth the 'title' Thane of

Cawdor.

Macbeth reacts fearfully to these prophecies, and asks them to

"Speak if you can, what are you?"

Banquo picks up on the fact that Macbeth is afraid, and asks him why

he 'seems to fear' thing that sound so 'fair'. Macbeth does not reply,

but seems insecure when he demands that the witches tell him 'more',

and asks them why they have appeared by him to tell him prophesies.

After Angus and Rosse have informed Macbeth that he is to given the

title Thane of Cawdor, his personality gradually start...

... middle of paper ...

... calculating, but even though he is a

butcher, while he is on the throne, he is never happy. He is always

looking over his shoulder, worrying who is going to become suspicious

of him next, though this stops when the witches inform him that he

cannot be killed until 'Great Birnam wood' comes to 'high Dunsinane

hill'. Then he becomes more arrogant, and feels superior to others,

because he thinks he knows what is going to happen in the future.

By the end of the play, Macbeth has nothing to live for. He has hardly

any friends, and nobody sees him as a noble warrior any more. People

have lost all respect for him, his wife has died, and he knows that he

is not invincible, as Birnam wood has come to Dunsinane hill. When he

is killed, the Scottish people are glad, because he abused their

loyalty, and he was a 'dead butcher'.