To what extent is Macbeth responsible for his actions?
Whose Fault Is It?
In the play Macbeth, Macbeth’s actions are cold blooded and are done out of ambition and greed. For example, he killed King Duncan because he wanted to be the king of Scotland. He also hired murderers to kill Banquo and his son Fleance because they stood in his way of becoming king. Only Macbeth was responsible for his deeds, however, the witches, and Lady Macbeth also played key roles in influencing Macbeth’s actions.
During Macbeth’s first encounter with the three witches, he learns that he has been appointed Thane of Cawdor, and that he will be the king; but, he also knows that if he is to become the king, a few people will have to die. After thinking about it, he decides that if he is going to become the king he will let it happen naturally. His decision changes, however, once he talks to Lady Macbeth. When Lady Macbeth hears Macbeth’s story, she wants him to kill Duncan so that they can become king and queen. At first, he does not want to kill Duncan, but then Lady Macbeth questions his manhood “When you durst do it, then you were a man; / And, to be more than you were, you would / be so much more the man” (I, vii, 49-51). She tells Macbeth that she would kill her own child to have a chance like this “ I have given suck, and know / how tender ‘tis to love the babe that milks me:...
Shakespeare’s Macbeth is a story of a great Scottish warrior hero who falls prey to the temptations of his own aspirations to be king. Macbeth hastily silences everyone who even has a chance of standing in the way of his power. Initially, he is able to overcome his scruples to obtain the position he desires, but soon the uneasiness catches up to he and his wife in shocking manners. The dagger scene, banquet scene, and sleepwalking scene are all related because they demonstrate the guilt that both the Macbeths experience after the murders of Duncan, Banquo, and the Macduffs and how their actions are driving them to their inevitable deaths.
This essay earned a 89/100. it was a lot of work considering the lines from macbeth for textual support.
In Lady Macbeth‚s eyes if Macbeth did not kill Duncan than he would not be a man to her anymore, she believes that he would be denying all urges for greater wealth and prosperity that man should have. She is wondering why he is not taking the opportunity to be king when he can easily do so, in reality, we know why Macbeth is contemplating the murder of Macbeth, because he has morals, qualities that we consider manly today.
Macbeth, a tragedy, starts with a dying, bloody Captain talking about the valor with which Macbeth fought. How does this brave, devoted, valiant soldier become an insane, cold-blooded murderer, killing men, women, and children alike? The story of his downfall begins with his new-found ambition to become king after three witches tell him of his “imperial theme.” After fighting so courageously in battle, Macbeth, Thane of Glamis a title inherited from his late father, and fellow nobleman Banquo, encounter three witches. They greet Macbeth by his current title, by a title soon to be bestowed upon him, and last by the title of king. Immediately, Macbeth is intrigued by their prophecies, but unsure since the King and the
The definition of a tragic hero, as stated on dictionary.com, is a literary character that makes an error in judgment that, combined with fate and external forces, brings on a tragedy. It has been argued for years whether Macbeth from Shakespeare’s, The Tragedy of Macbeth, can truly be considered a tragic hero or whether he is solely a villainous tyrant. Although there are some valid arguments for the Macbeth is pure evil viewpoint, by looking at Macbeth in a holistic way you can see the tragic, the heroic, and the tragic hero within him. Macbeth is a tragic hero in every sense of the definition.
What is the cost of ambition? For as long as history tells, ambition was a way for people to move forward with their lives and advance past others. Whether it means competing for a promotion or fighting to stay alive, this emotion gives people the motivation and perseverance to work through their obstacles and reach their goal. Although ambition allows many great opportunities and rewards, it can create selfish, egocentric people who do not take much consideration of others. Ultimately, if ambition consumes one’s thoughts and desires, their actions will not only cause chaos within themselves, but also within the lives of the people around them. In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, ambition played a significant role throughout the play. Lady Macbeth was
Shakespeare wrote timeless literature pieces, set in the Elizabethan era. His stories relate to conventional views of Renaissance culture while maintaining a realistic, morphable view concerning issues, such as gender roles. By questioning and challenging Elizabethan hierarchy, stories such as Macbeth posed a threat to stereotypes and ideology while respecting values. Shakespeare's tragedy, Macbeth, explores femininity, gender stereotypes, and allusions to Greek mythology to investigate relativity between cruel behavior and masculinity. (NEED ONE SENTENCE)
In everyday society, there are movie stars, celebrities, athletes and powerful figureheads that are looked up to. In every generation people experience downfalls due to individual choices, personal conflict, and family problems, . These people develop a tragic flaw that usually leads to their ruin. In William Shakespeare's, The Tragedy of Macbeth, Macbeth, the main character develops a tragic flaw, and ends up experiencing a downfall. In this play, there are people who can be blamed for his eventual demise, but in the long run, people are truly responsible for their own choices and actions. Macbeth is responsible for his own downfall. Macbeth is responsible because he abandoned his morals, he was easily persuaded, and he became too hungry for power.
Serial killing is rampant in the U.S. According to estimates in a recent study conducted by the FBI, there have been about 400 serial killers in the U.S. in the last century, with the total number of murder victims ranging from 2,525 to 3,860 . Various experts in the field have suggested that there may be anywhere from 50 to as many as 300 serial killers active at the same time, although there is no clear evidence supporting this . Certainly, an estimate of 300 active serial killers seems at odds with the FBI’s estimate of 400 over the entire previous century. But an estimated 80% of the serial killers in the past century have emerged since 1950. For whatever reason, serial killing is clearly on the rise, with the term itself coined only since the mid-1970’s, so perhaps 300 active serial killers at one time could be unfortunately possible. The number of serial killing in the U.S. is staggering.
Macbeth is captured by his wild ambition at the opening of the play when he and Banqou meet the three witches. The witches tell Macbeth that he is the Thane of Cawdor, and later will be king. They tell Banquo that his sons will be kings. Instantly Macbeth started to fantasize how he is going to be king. He understood that in order for him to become king he has to kill Duncan. “My thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical”(Act 1 Sc. 3, p.23). He was pondering about the assassination until the moment that he could no longer control his emotions. “To prick the sides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition, which overleaps itself and falls on the other-“(Act 1 Sc. 7, p.41). Because of his “vaulting ambition” he killed Duncan.
When anything in life first begins to grow, it begins as a seed. The seed of a plant, or of a thought, or of an idea. Once created, the seed can do one of two things. It can grow, or it can die. Shakespeare’s play Macbeth tells the story of an innocent man who is turned evil from the seeds planted by those around him, allowing readers to explore the repetition of growth and how it is implied through characters. Throughout the play, growth is used to display Macbeth and Banquo as foil characters, show Banquo’s “goodness” through positive imagery, and to show Macbeth’s “evilness” through negative growth imagery. By analyzing Shakespeare’s use of growth imagery, critical readers recognize that growth enforces the idea that growth triumphs evil, embodied in the actions and consequences of Macbeth and Banquo as they make one of two crucial choices? Good, or evil?
Firstly, we shall consider Lady Macbeth and Macbeth as they are the two who planned and performed the murder. Although after the witches told Macbeth that he was to be king and he was burning in desire to be so he, on first instance, decided that if fate had determined that he was to be the sovereign of Scotland he shouldn’t try to be reach the throne by his own actions, that it would come eventually: “If Chance will have me king, why, Chance / may crown me, / Without my stir”. However, it was Lady Macbeth who convinced him to slay the king so that he could usurp the throne: “Hie thee hither, / That I may pour my spirits in thine ear”. So we can say that Lady Macbeth has more responsibility on Duncan’s murder than Macbeth himself as she used her position as a wife and a woman to induce his husband to the sin. She knew the “adoration” Macbeth had for her (“My dearest love” referring to Lady Macbeth) and used her status of woman to judge Macbeth a coward if he didn’t kill Duncan. Even though Macbeth holds some blame for not...
Google continues to grow and innovate. Google focuses on the user and all else will follow. Since the beginning, they have focused on providing the best user experience possible, and take great care to ensure that they will ultimately serve their customers(Google.com n.d.). In relation to market development and product development the core values “Its best to do one thing really, really well (Google.com n.d.),” fits in with these strategies. “You don’t need to be at your desk to need an answer (Google.com n.d.),” describes Goggle’s innovation to mobile platforms. “The need for information crosses all borders (Google.com n.d.).” Google company has grown and has offices in more then 60 countries, maintaining more then 180 internet domains, and serve more then half of their results to people outside of the United States, and this relates to concentrated growth strategy. “Great just isn’t good enough(Google.com n.d.).” Google continues to strive to reach for better ways of doing things, through innovation and integration, continue to improve things in unexpected ways (Google.com n.d.).
Shakespeare’s famous play, Macbeth, is the story of a man named Macbeth who kills the present king of Scotland, Duncan, in order to become the king, and the aftermath of that event. Within Macbeth, very few female characters are introduced. The first female characters are the three witches, who prophecize the whole play, and then Lady Macbeth, the wife of Macbeth and the most prominent female character in the play. Both the witches and Lady Macbeth lead Macbeth to kill Duncan, but once he does, they find themselves unable to live with the consequences. Shakespeare purposefully wrote the main female characters in this derogatory way so as to assert the idea that women cause ambition, ambition is bad, and therefore, women are bad, but then shows that once the women cause bad things to happen, they can’t deal with them. In Macbeth, Shakespeare documents his belief that women are not only deceitful and cause deadly ambition, but cannot withstand the ramifications of that ambition once they come to pass.
It is part of human nature to strive for excellence and to improve oneself. Generally, a person’s actions are completed with a certain goal in mind. In the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare, the protagonist, Macbeth, strives to fulfill his ambition of becoming the king. Everytime he completes a task which ensures he does not lose power, Macbeth immediately pursues another task in order to fulfill his desires, even after he becomes the king of Scotland. Macbeth’s thirst for power drives him to murder King Duncan, to plot the murder of Banquo, and eventually leads to his own demise.