Macbeth, in Polanski’s version of Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’, is strongly influenced by his ambition to become King of Scotland, which drives him to acts of betrayal and murder, making him a character to be loathed. On the other hand, Macbeth is also a character to be pitied because he was deceived by the three witches, as well as, he was heavily manipulated by Lady Macbeth, which led to his downfall. Despite his action, Macbeth is also a character who deserves to be admired and commended due to his brave and mature personality.
Macbeth is a character to be hated and criticised, due to his audacity to commit acts of crime to an extreme extent to fulfil his vaulting ambitions. Firstly, Macbeth is a mass murderer, who is responsible for the regicide
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Firstly, Macbeth is respected and admired by King of Scotland, due to his great exhibit of courage and strength on the battlefield against Norwegians, which resulted him being rewarded with the titles of “Thane of Cawdor”. Macbeth, who also holds a strong moral conscious regrets his decision of murdering Duncan and Banquo, due to his mature personality. After the regicide of Duncan, Macbeth feels greatly remorse and is deeply troubled by his guilt conscience. This is shown when Macbeth says to himself “Wake Duncan with thy knocking. I would thou coudst”. This suggests that Macbeth was aware of the crimes he has committed, and he wishes he could turn this tragedy around. Macbeth also deserves respect and admiration due to his courage and bravery. Macbeth was aware of the fact the Macduff is not born from his mother’s womb, however, Macbeth refused to surrender in front of Malcom, knowing he was going to die. Macbeth’s bravery is evident in his last words, when he says “And thou opposed, / being of no woman born, yet I will try the last. Before my body/. I throw my warlike shield. Lay on, Macduff, and damn'd be him that first cries, 'Hold, enough!’.”
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Show MoreWilliam Shakespeare’s Macbeth, first published in 1606, is an endearing tale outlining the dangers of unchecked ambition and moral betrayal. In the subsequent centuries after first being performed, Macbeths critics have been divided upon whether Macbeth himself was irrevocably evil, or if he was guided by the manipulation and actions of the women in the play to his ultimate demise. Although Lady Macbeth and the witches were influential with their provocations in the opening acts, it is ultimately Macbeth’s inherent immorality and his vaulting ambition, that result in the tragic downfall. It was Macbeth’s desire for power that abolished his loyalty and trustworthiness and led him down a path of murder. It is evident through his actions and words
Macbeth is a brave general who fights for his country Scotland, defeating the King of Norway. He is loyal to his king Duncan, but Macbeth has ambition to take over the kingdom for himself. He has lots of doubts of if he is doing the right thing, but still murders Duncan and then Banquo who is another general who fought with Macbeth. These murders and guilt about his treason are leading Macbeth to become insane. This essay shows that although Macbeth’s strong desire for power is influenced by the three witches in the play and also the planning and ambition of his wife Lady Macbeth, in the end he is responsible for his self-destruction.
Macbeth is a very gothic, persistent tale of a great general in the Scottish army who causes his own downfall by listening to the dark prophecies of the three witches and his wife, Lady Macbeth. Macbeth’s self-consciousness fails to play an important part in the murder of multiple kinsmen causing the death of his wife and his mental health. Macbeth is not necessarily a horrible leader; the problem with him is that his ambitions exceed his expectancies. Macbeth’s character has constantly evolved from the point he was introduced into the play. Initially he seems as an extremely humble person, but as he learns more about the prophecies, his hindsight fails to overlook the complications of his ambitions. Macbeth’s faith in the apparitions and the witches ultimately cause Macbeth’s downfall and the unnecessary death of his beloved kinsmen such as King Duncan and Banquo.
The one who is at fault in the play of Macbeth written by William Shakespeare is not all who presume it is. Some say the blame is on the Witches, some say Lady Macbeth, but Macbeth is the real man at fault. He was at choice of his decisions, only slightly pressured by his wife, Lady Macbeth. Macbeth dug himself into a hole he was not able to climb out of. There was no return to the light side for him as he had no regrets, he was inhumane, and cold-blooded. There are many examples that show his inhumanity towards others throughout the play, one cold-blooded act to another with no turning back. It was a painful ending for Macbeth since no one showed sympathy for him as his head ended up on a sword. Macbeth is at fault for all the critical events within the play as he is the one that killed Banquo, King Duncan, and Macduff’s family.
As Oscar Wilde quotes, “Women have a much better time than men in this world: there are far more things forbidden to them.” This reference to the female stereotype contradicts to Shakespeare’s play, Macbeth, as some female characters strive for power and some go beyond of their expectations. In fact, they step out of society’s gender expectations, this disrupts the natural order of hierarchy. As well, it affects certain of female characters mentally to the point where they lose their lives and/or vilified. As a result, Shakespeare shows that the natural order of hierarchy needs to be established. This essay will therefore examine the female characters by comparing the representation of unstereotypical women-Lady Macbeth and the witches and how Lady Macbeth demonstrates a typical woman while acting as a foil.
Throughout the play you feel bad for Macbeth, he is truly someone you can relate to and show remorse for. Early in the play in order for Macbeth to become king of Cawdor, Macbeth must kill the king at the time Duncan. Macbeth does not want to do the deed but is forced to go through with the plan by his lady. “If the assassination could trammel up the consequence, and catch his surcease” (I.vii.2-4). Macbeth is starting to rethink the deed he is going to commit by killing Duncan; Macbeth is given the idea that there will be no consequences for his actions. Readers start to see perfect examples of hubris in Macbeth; Macbeth starts to believe he is above everyone and can get out of any situation he is put into. With all of the murders Macbeth commits through out the play he begins to display that he is above fait and he is able to outwit karma. Readers start to think something is truly wrong mentally with Macbeth; the man no longer values the lives of others. “They pluck out mine eyes! Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood clean from my hands?”(II.ii.60). even after the empty feeling and disgusting feeling of murder after killing Duncan, Macbeth seems shaken by the event that just took place. Soon after, Macbeth is ready to commit another murder. This time the murder of someone closer to his heart, Banqou and his son Fleance. ...
In conclusion, the witches with their riddle prophecies ignite Macbeth’s vaulting ambition as well as undermining and tempting Macbeth into the regicide of Duncan, upsetting the natural orders of things, on top of that, Lady Macbeth manipulates Macbeth into committing ‘foul act’, belittling on his manhood and thus play an even more significant role in ruining Macbeth. But ultimately, his vaulting ambition itself indeed is to be the most to blame for his own destruction since a true hero would have upheld their sense of righteousness and honor, but Macbeth as a hero has failed. After all, Shakespeare has successfully craft Macbeth as a fallen hero, by first presenting him as an honorable hero, distracted by external forces, ends up destroying himself from the inside.
Perhaps the most fundamental theme of Shakespeare’s Macbeth is the inherent corruptibility of even a seemingly good man when ambition turns to greed, and Macbeth himself, as one would expect, exemplifies this concept throughout the play. While at the outset he is seen to be loyal to his king, generally considered trustworthy, and displaying numerous other laudable qualities, Macbeth ultimately succumbs to the influence of those around him and becomes unequivocally evil, setting aside all his previously held morals and coming to be driven only by his lust for power. This transition is brought about by a wide variety of factors and plays an integral role in the development of the plot. In his tragedy Macbeth, William Shakespeare employs multiple methods of characterization in order to highlight the protagonist’s transformation from hero to villain as a result of the influences of the people surrounding him, namely the Weïrd sisters, Lady Macbeth, and Macduff, including extensive foreshadowing, a general shift in tone corresponding with turning points in the plot, and the inclusion of long-winded soliloquies to mark a critical change in Macbeth’s character.
What circumstances has dictated that a person be marked a tyrant? This question is most commonly answered by how a person flaunted their given power. Throughout the course of history, the notion of obtaining power has been a common theme. Kings have invaded lands, nobles have betrayed their leaders, and Princes have killed their fathers all in the name of everlasting power. The question, however, is why humanity has had an unquenchable thirst for power. Many playwrights have explored this particular motif in their plays. The character Macbeth from Shakespeare’s tragedy Macbeth is a prime example of this characterization. Macbeth has the scourge of the earth and his motivation for his actions unethical. Although Macbeth actions were sinful,
Lady Macbeth is a very 'crazy' character. She is blood thirsty and she will do anything she possibly can to gain power even if it means forever being cursed. Lady Macbeth is the farmer who planted the seed in Macbeth's head to become murderous and after that you couldn't stop him. She enters around the fifth scene of act 1 and her first impression is to kill her husband's best friend.
...ntrasting his unselfishness deeds with the selfish ambitions of Macbeth. Macduff is the hero Macbeth could have been had he not chosen darkness. Everything Macbeth does goes against the human kindness he once had. He forces himself not to feel when guilt from his murderous actions catch up with him, sinking lower and lower. Macduff's choices all reflect his heroic nature, as he chooses to feel the death of his family like a man, while resolving to fight the against the evil that caused it. The passion that both men possess drives them to kill; one does it for selfish desires and the other for justice. Macbeth's murder shows how deeply his ambitions run, while Macduff's killing of Macbeth reflects how deep his sense of justice runs. In the end, we see that the tragic hero and the just hero of Macbeth are formed by their own choices and have reaped what they sowed.
Minor, supporting, background; all of these words describe what people think as being an unimportant character. Even though they are classified as being insignificant, there are many actions they do, words they say, and problems they are a part of that make them have a bigger effect on the storyline than one might have thought. These small parts can affect and influence the entire outcome of the play, making what seems to be a joyful ending into one that nobody could have imagined. In Shakespeare’s, Macbeth, the supporting character of King Duncan, displays an important role in the events that take place during the play. Through Duncan’s thoughts and actions he expresses to the reader that, we put unrealistic amounts of faith in people, pride in oneself can shadow over others, and that there are flaws in the way we see one another. All of these actions and feelings that come from Duncan, have an effect on how everything will turn out in the end.
Macbeth is put together with many character traits. He is a very complex character. In the beginning Macbeth was brave and loyal. He won the battle of Norway and became the Thane of Cawdor. For brave Macbeth disdainding fortune with his brandished steel which smoked with bloody execution( ACT1 SC2 LNS18-20). Macbeth is also a gullible man, when he runs into the witches he believes them when they say, all hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter(act1 sn2 line 50) . He is so gullible to what these witches said that he killed his best friend Banquo and nearly kills Banquo's son. Macbeth also was convinced by his wife to kill Duncan. Macbeth conscious becomes guilty after he kills Duncan when he said, will all great neptunes ocean wash this blood clean from my hand?(act2 sn2 lines 79-80). He is thinking that nothing can take back the murders he had committed.
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.
Character Development of Macbeth: How Macbeth Changed From a Brave Warrior to an Insane Tyrant