William Shakespeare's Macbeth
In Act I, King Duncan is at the top of the chart of power, because he
has the most power being the king of Scotland, he is a good and kind
king, which holds legitimate and referent power. In Act I, Scene 2, he
announces his eldest son, Malcolm, as heir to the throne, after the
traitor, Macdonwald is captured.
During the battle to defeat the Thane of Cawdor, a traitor to
Scotland, we are introduced to Macbeth, a general in Duncan's army,
which holds the next highest power; he is the Thane of Glamis and also
Duncan's cousin. He is fighting along side his friend, another general
in Duncan's army, Banquo. After the fighting, the Weird Sisters decide
to pay Macbeth and Banquo a visit and tell them that Macbeth will soon
become the Thane of Cawdor, and then King. They also tell Banquo that
his sons will become king. Therefore, the Weird Sisters hold
information power over Macbeth and Banquo. Macbeth is confused and
also curious about their predictions.
The other noblemen of Scotland are Lennox, Angus, and Ross and King
Duncan also holds referent and legitimate power over them. Also Duncan
holds reward power over Macbeth, because when Macbeth has captured
Macdonwald, he rewarded Macbeth with Macdonwald's title as Thane of
Cawdor.
Although, at this time in history men had power over women, Lady
Macbeth and Macbeth are somewhat equal in power in different forms of
power. For, example Lady Macbeth holds expert power, because she can
manipulate Macbeth into doing her dirty deeds, and mock his power and
manliness and tempt him to prove to her he is strong. On the other
hand, Macbeth, being a man in that time holds legitimate power over
Lady Macbeth, because women were expected to stay home cook, clean,
and take care of the children. We can clearly see that Lady Macbeth
isn't one of these women; she is strong-willed and determined. The
more comments that she had made, the stronger she got. It made the
reader more horrified to listen to her true nature.
The two scenes that the essay will be focusing on are Act 1 Scene 1
In the beginning of this tragedy Macbeth was portrayed as a stand up, favorable man, by everyone, even the King, however, it was not long before he became the antagonist. Macbeth's appalling fall from grace did not happen without help. Some even say that without all the ingredients in his life, his decline from honor would not have even happened. There are many different elements that contributed to this tragedy. However, even knowing these components one can never be sure Macbeth's fall was not one of his own making.
Laurence Sterne once wrote, “No body, but he who has felt it, can conceive what a plaguing thing it is to have a man’s mind torn asunder by two projects of equal strength, both obstinately pulling in a contrary direction at the same time.” This passage embodies one of the over arching themes of Macbeth. The character Macbeth, in Shakespeare’s tragedy Macbeth, could easily identify with this passage due to the fact that he is pulled in opposite directions by both his desire to do what is right and his desire for power.
William Shakespeare's Macbeth Shakespeare first showed Macbeth in the court of a newly crowned King James the First. Some people would argue that in places this was written as a piece of flattery for James the first. James was meant to be a descendant of Banquos' and therefore Shakespeare shows Banquo to be a valiant and heroic character throughout the play. However, Shakespeare had to be careful what he said in the play, as he didn't want to upset the King. This play could be written as a piece of propaganda or a warning to anybody who went against the King.
However, she may be old as she is determined to get her last chance of
Shakespeare pays much regard as to what it is to be a man and to
Power can transform even the most loyal of men. In Shakespeare’s gloomy and morbid Macbeth, nothing is as it seems. Even the most loyal characters are duplicitous in their nature, exemplified by Macbeth. The greatest Scottish warrior becomes power hungry in his quest to re-kindle his relationship with his wife, Lady Macbeth, and is thrown over the edge when he is not appointed the Prince of Cumberland, an honor he feels he deserves. This same hunger for power ultimately destroys Macbeth, leading him to betray all those he loves, including king Duncan, his friend Banquo, and his wife.
He was such a kind and generous soul that is to never be forgotten. We will be forever grateful that we got to see his friendly, smiling face each day. Scotland has lost a distinctive and peerless leader and those of us who knew him personally are now without a friend whose character will always be remembered. He leaves a legacy of love and integrity with his family and of those who knew him. He has left behind wonderful memories of a loving husband, father and King.
King Duncan trusts Macbeth too much. Macbeth appears as a superhero and faithful to King Duncan. He fights against the traitor Macdonwald, and he helps the king to solve a great problem that wins the war. Duncan trusts Macbeth very much because of Macbeth’s heroic efforts and he gives Macbeth the title “Thane of Cawdor”. In actuality, Macbeth is not as faithful to the king as he appears. He has the ambition to become king after hearing the prophecies from the three witches. After Macbeth returns to his castle, he makes plans with Lady Macbeth to kill Duncan when he comes to visit. As soon as Duncan arrives, he says something very important. Duncan says, “This castle hath a pleasant seat; the air/ Nimbly and sweetly recommends itself/ Unto our gentle senses” (I.vi.1-3). This quote shows that Duncan, like Macbeth, even feels that Macbeth’s place is comfortable for him. Duncan never suspects the trustworthiness of Macbeth and never does anything to guard himself. Macbeth kills Duncan easily. Therefore MacBeth’s appearance deceives Duncan.
Lady Macbeth in William Shakespeare's Macbeth Throughout Macbeth, we are introduced to several interesting characters that influence events for good or bad. Perhaps the most complete character of all could be argued to be Lady Macbeth. Lady Macbeth often takes centre stage and reveals her emotions to the audience through several soliloquies. Because she is such a complex character, the audience has to make their own conclusions about her personality and drive behind her actions.
"Power poisons every man who covets it for himself" (Chute 126). In the Shakespeare's play, Macbeth, the character, Macbeth, kills the respected King Duncan in his quest for power. However, during his rule, Macbeth demonstrates that he is incapable of mastering the power and responsibilities of being a king. His drive for power and maintaining his power is the source of his downfall. Macbeth is not meant to have authority beyond Thane of Cawdor. When Macbeth is king, he does not use his authority judiciously.
Macbeth, and all of William Shakespeare's other works include several universal themes. Shakespeare incorporates these themes into his works to emphasize meanings and points. Several times in Macbeth nature is out of order which coincides with unpleasant events occurring. This happens many times in Macbeth. Shakespeare demonstrates this using setting, characters, and dialog.
he heard this he was intrigued to find out how he was going to become
In William Shakespeare's Macbeth, Macbeth was a well-respected man of noble birth, but his fortune was reversed after he turned to darkness. He plummeted endlessly into a chasm of evil until his corrupt life was ended on the edge of Macduff's blade. Whose actions opened up the path of darkness to Macbeth? Whose actions led to Macbeth's demise? The answer is threefold. The weird sisters set Macbeth's fate into motion. Lady Macbeth goaded her husband towards the acts of evil that doomed him. Macbeth himself made the choices that cemented his dreadful end. The weird sisters, Lady Macbeth, and Macbeth himself all served to bring about Macbeth's downfall.