evilmac Comparing the Evil of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth

This deception is evident soon after when Banquo is concerned about the witches trying “to win us harm. / The instruments of darkness tell us truths /... ... middle of paper ... ...ower illustrate that even at the root of even the noblest man, can lie chaos and terror. In an ironic twist near the end of the play, Macbeth laments life and at the same time provides a perfect description of his own: “It is a tale / Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, / Signifying nothing” (V. v. 29-31). Although Macbeth has strived to become king, in reality his power was nothing but an illusion, created by his twisted fantasies and the sin residing within him. Works Cited Pilkington, Elaine.

All of these deaths are a result of Macbeth’s over ambition to become king, fuelled by the prophecies of the evil witches. Like Macbeth, a tragic hero has choices, a conscience of right from wrong and in the end must die, because to live would create mayhem and a feeling that his actions were justified.

The Witches and Lady Macbeth Cause the Downfall of Macbeth William Shakespeare's tragic play, Macbeth shows the gradual descent of the character Macbeth into the moral abyss. Macbeth's yearning for power draws him to the murder of King Duncan, Banquo, and Macduff's family. It is difficult to understand how a courageous, gentle man such as Macbeth, could be involved in such villainous activities. In truth, it was the witches and Lady Macbeth that transformed into evil Macbeth's natural desire for control and authority. The play, Macbeth clearly illustrates that wicked intention must, in the end, produce wicked action.

Syracuse: Syracuse University, 1961. Quincey, Thomas De essay from Harris, Laurie Lanzen, and Scott, Mark W. ed. "The Tragedy of Macbeth." Shakespearean Criticism, Vol. 3.

Shakespearean Criticism, Vol. 3. Detroit: Gale Research Company, 1986. Traversi, D. A. essay from Harris, Laurie Lanzen, and Scott, Mark W. ed. "The Tragedy of Macbeth."

It is continually building up until the end, when all the evil is unleashed upon the world. This song connects to the play because when Macbeth hears about the witches’ prophecies, something evil is born in him. He starts thinking about killing King Duncan and having horrid images of him doing it. His thoughts when he heard the prophecies were: “If good, why do I yield to that suggestion/Whose horrid image doth unfix my hair/And make my seated heart knock at my ribs,/Against the use of nature? Present fears/Are less than horrible imaginings./My thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical,/Shakes so my single state of man” (act 1, scene 3, lines 138-143).

Furthermore the use of messages addressing to or addressed by, how evil Macbeth is. The Evil inside Macbeth is quite evident; for he commits several murders. Finally, there are certain analogies, which suggest that Macbeth is comparable to Satan. Shakespeare intended on using a hero of good deeds such as Macbeth, as his figure. He is seen as a good advocate of Satan’s evil conduct: for an evil person is one you least expect.

Unfortunately his ambitious nature gets the better of him and causes him to listen carefully to how he might acquire his kingship. Macbeth feels guilty that he is thinking about killing the King because he’s basing his entire thought upon belief in the ‘evil creatures’. We see this when Macbeth has a soliloquy in which he says, “Cannot be ill, cannot be good” and also asks himself why the thought of becoming King makes his “seated heart” knock against his ribs. Macbeth ‘sees’ a bloody dagger in front of him even before he kills the King; this shows that he feels guilty even before the evil deed. He tries to convince himself and his wife that he should not kill Duncan, and at one stage he orders her not to go any further with the deed.

Like Satan, Macbeth contemplates the chance to become king and feeds his need for greed knowing that: "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" (1.4.48-53). As... ... middle of paper ... ...s to blame.

If it were only the witches' prophecies, then Macbeth would surely not have murdered Duncan. It was because Lady Macbeth constantly harassed her husband, that he was driven to commit all this evil. "... her blood thickened, her milk changed to gaul - into the inhuman, the distortion of nature..." (Ludwyk 233). This illustrates the complete metamorphosis of Lady Macbeth from a loving, beautiful, caring, kind wife to a ruthless, nasty, shrew of a woman. The women in this play distort Macbeth's intuition so much that he thinks he is doing the right thing.