Macbeth is Solely to Blame for his Demise

The play Macbeth, by William Shakespeare, is a tragedy of the rise and fall of a power-hungry solider named Macbeth. Macbeth's gluttony, pride, and ambitions led him to turn into an unstable, callous man who would stop at nothing just to gain power. His greed to achieve more power resulted in the merciless killings of his king, best friend, and other innocent citizens. Eventually, the guilt of the deeds he was committing manifested itself in the form of hallucinations which contributed to the downfall of his supremacy. With him being weak enough to succumb to his wife's thirst of power, and being the one to physically kill Duncan, which makes him solely responsible for the chain of disarray that unfolded throughout the play.

At first, Macbeth is introduced as a courageous, valiant soldier, who does so well fighting in war that he is honored with the title of the Thane of Glamis by King Duncan. On his way home, Macbeth encounters three witches who tell him that he will become king. It is at this point that he first considers murdering Duncan so that the prophecy can be fulfilled ?My thoughts, whose murder yet is but fantastical? (I,2,151). This thought was the beginning of a chain of events that would soon lead to his demise. Although he does reconsider murder and decides to leave his future to chance, until, of course, his wife convinces him otherwise.

When Macbeth tells Lady Macbeth about how will become king he just adds to her overly ambitious attitude so much to the point that she convinces him to go murder. If he had not told her and just put himself in the hands of fate, it?s possible that Macbeth still would have become king without causing the death of the people who cared for him. It is arguable that Lady Macbeth could be the one to blame for the outcome of the play because she persuades Macbeth to murder Duncan, but it was not her who gave Macbeth the daggers, she didn?t lay a hand on Duncan. Moreover, it was Macbeth who killed the guards that he and Lady Macbeth planned to accuse of the murder. The fact of the matter is Macbeth had the free will to choose to avoid everything he got himself into.

After the killing of Duncan, Macbeth is becomes king, but his mind wrought with guilt which causes uneasiness and hallucinations.