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Examples of fate and free will in macbeth
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In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the theme of free will vs. fate is an essential argument and one that plays a huge part in the character of Macbeth. There are three areas that are focused on when seeing if Macbeth was in control of what he did or if fate controlled what happened. The first area talks about Macbeth’s behavioral patterns. The article relating to this topic reveals certain patterns in Macbeth’s behavior which include a structural pattern and a relational pattern. Macbeth’s structural is that he committed murder at three important parts of his life. There is no reason to think that fate controlled the structure of his murders. Also, the relational pattern reveals that he killed ones close to him, which also is a way to show that free …show more content…
In the beginning, Macbeth follows that destiny and believes in his fate. However, he exercises his free will from the beginning by choosing to follow his fate. The most evident parts where Macbeth is a representative of free will is when he chooses to follow murdering multiple people because of what he thinks was supposed to be done. Macbeth fears what he may have to do to become king and he hope that his fate takes care of it. The idea that Macbeth followed his fate or made his own free will can be described by talking about his patterns of behavior, the factor that dread plays, and other influences on …show more content…
(1.3.150)” Which reflects on the fact that what he is experiencing now is more fearful than anything that he could imagine. Fate does not come into play while he is imagining the things that will or will not take place. In the article “Dread” in Macbeth, King-Kok Cheung (1984) uses a question from Walter Clyde Curry. The question is "By what processes does this essentially noble creature, whose will by nature desires the good or reasonable, come deliberately to choose evil?” Cheung (1984) looks at Macbeth as the noble character who tries to be good and reasonable cannot hold of any long and eventually turns evil out of his own free will. The author of this article, King-Kok Cheung (1984) also refers to a man named Kierkegaard, whose first name is not given. Cheung (1984) took this out of Kierkegaard’s
Throughout the story Macbeth by William Shakespeare, Macbeth seemed to just be a victim of “fate”. But, in the end it was clear that his character gained power over that “fate”, at least he gained power over
Although Macbeth is fated to become king he was not told how he will become king by the three witches. His decisions were purely his own. The fact that he was fated to become king doesn't put him In the wrong and we cannot blame him for it, but the actions he took to become king were purely his own free will which he is to be blamed for. The themes of fate and free will can be seen in the dramatic change of the characters as the play progresses. Macbeth for instants is seen as someone who is respected by all and is greatly loyal to the king (Duncan). However, Macbeth changes as he is told his prophecies, making him succumb into his ambitions and take fate into his own hands murdering Duncan in the process. These actions change his fate for the worst as he becomes paranoid which even leads him to murder his best friend Banquo. This, however, doesn't satisfy his paranoia as he begins killing innocent women and children, not by his own hands however as he makes others do his dirty work. His free will in killing Duncan has led him to a fate of being an evil king by the end of the play, that ends up being killed by Macduff who fulfills the remaining prophecy because Macbeth murdered his
In William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, changes happen. At the beginning of the play, Macbeth is a well liked and good man of Scotland, who turns into an evil, cold hearted, murderer by the end. His rewards and punishments could have been predetermined by fate, but the actions he took to get to get those rewards and punishments were determined by Macbeth’s free will. In Macbeth, he attempts to control the future and hide the past by listening to other people and committing multiple murders of innocent people.
"One feels," says W.C. Curry, "that in proportion as the good in him diminishes, his liberty of free choice is determined more and more by evil inclination and that he cannot choose the better course. Hence we speak of destiny or fate, as if it were some external force or moral order, compelling him against his will to certain destruction." Most readers have felt that after the initial crime there is something compulsive in Macbeth's murders; and at the end, for all his "valiant fury," he is certainly not a free agent.
The witches and Lady Macbeth appear to dominate Macbeth's will, but in reality Macbeth is always in control. The confusion is created because, unlike these one dimensional, aggravating characters, he understands the complexity of the problem and must wrestle with his conscience. However, his action is based primarily upon his own desires. Ironically, given his understanding of the issues, he is horrified by the immensity of his crime once it has been committed and his terrified of the consequences.
(Macbeth) How fate is set in stone, however the actions taken to achieve that fate are not. The unspeakable actions by which Macbeth seems to follow blindly, are blanketed in his mind as excuses. The excuse being that Macbeth must do these things, murder the king, Banquo, Macduff, for the fate of himself, so that he may be king. So in terms of fate, he is to be king, but his free will is the choice he makes to murder King Duncan in order to secure his prophesied fate. In this way, fate and free will work together as well as contradict each other. His fate is predetermined, but his free will is what gets him to reach that point of being king. As with most of Shakespeare’s stories towards the end of his career, Macbeth leaves us with yet another tragic ending for the main character, a character whose actions led to their own
What does free will mean? In William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the main character, Macbeth has a burning desire to become king and control Scotland, after three witches tell him a prophecy. Macbeth believes them and resolves to take matters into his own hands in order to ensure his reign. However, his greed and paranoia overwhelm him, creating many enemies such as MacDuff. Thus Macbeth causes his own death. Macbeth is not a helpless victim of fate, he actively made decisions that only benefited him. Macbeth was entirely aware that if he had done nothing fate would have taken care of it. Instead, he took action, believing that was the only way to the crown.
MacBeth is either a monster, or an innocent man taken over by the gripping jaws of greed, depending on the person. The tragic and often evil events occurring in the book “MacBeth” by William Shakespeare are laid out in a series of events that portray a running theme of fate. Foreshadowing and imagery are used in quotes throughout the novel and play to show fate, making the reader notice small details in their plots that could foreshadow massive events in the future of their plots. The theme of fate is often shown by the witches and the apparitions, both being fortune telling spirits in the novel. The witches and apparitions’ fortune telling affect the play for the reader by foreshadowing the fate of a character or an important event that is upcoming, as well as influencing MacBeth in many of his actions throughout the play.
Macbeth was a play written by Shakespeare in 1606. This play was written in the Elizabethan era which means it was not written in modern english but more of a classical version. The play’s summary is of a man, Macbeth, at first a trustworthy and kind man turning into a ruthless and sinful demon caused by greed and obsession for power. The question of is Macbeth driven by the fate set into the play by the three witches or by his own free will has been fought over for years and still is today. Evidence found in the play leads one to believe Macbeth’s fall was due to the choices he made with free will such as; he was influenced by others, he second guessed himself, and he tried contradicting the three witches’ predictions in hope of reformat.
In Macbeth, free choice, not fate, is to blame for Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s actions. Firstly, the witches never say that Macbeth must kill Duncan in order to be king. When the clairvoyant witches give Macbeth his prophecy, they say, “All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!” (Macbeth Act I Sc III li.51). Since the witches do not say that Macbeth will kill the current king in order to claim the throne, one could argue that Macbeth’s decision to murder Duncan was of free choice. Another line proves that free choice undid Macbeth. After Macbeth receives the title of thane of Cawdor without any action on his behalf, he decides, “If chance will have me king, why, chance/ may crown me/ without my stir” (Macbeth Act 1 Sc 3 li.47-49). This
They predict the future, this could mean that all of the events in Macbeth's life and his actions, too, have already been decided. But, even Macbeth considers that he has a choice when he says "If fate wants me to be king, perhaps fate will just make it happen and I won’t have to do anything" (I, iii, 147). He shows in this line that if his destiny is already determined, he does not have to take any action at all for it to come true. But, he still does this the murder, which shows that he freely decided on getting to the position of king with his own action put into
Macbeth was not a hopeless victim of fate, he was pushed by the power of suggestion, and in the end he ultimately chose his actions. The characters are people guided by a God, witches or a higher power, giving major points of destiny, yet the control of how they handle life events is on the individual. Macbeth and the rest of the cast can not just sit back and blame "fate;" life is what each individual person makes it. The play makes an important distinction: Fate may dictate what will be but how destiny comes about is a matter of chance of man’s own choice or free will.
Harbrace Shakespeare. Macbeth. Ed. Margaret Kortes. Harcourt Brace: Canada, 1988.William Shakespeare Criticism- Freud on the Macbeths (from Some Character-Types Met With in Psycho-Analytical Work; 1916). <a href="http://sunflower.singnet.com.sg/~yisheng/notes/shakespere/mbeth_f.htm">http://sunflower.singnet.com.sg/~yisheng/notes/shakespere/mbeth_f.htmLady Macbeth- Character Changes Throughout the Play PlanetPapers.com. <a href="http://www.plantpapers.com/count.cgi?ID=1790">http://www.plantpapers.com/count.cgi?ID=1790The Rise and Fall of Lady Macbeth <a href="http://www.aurora.komux.norrkoping.se/oxford/litera/tim/links.htm">http://www.aurora.komux.norrkoping.se/oxford/litera/tim/links.htmMacbeth SparkNotes Online Study Guides <a href=http://www.sparknotes.com">http://www.sparknotes.com
In Macbeth, the playwright known as Shakespeare expresses that life is governed solely by one’s own conscience of right and wrong through his main characters, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. This enlightenment approach of conscience means that everyone gets to decide their own fate, rather than letting fate choose for them. In the beginning of Macbeth, Shakespeare writes Macbeth to decide to let fate chose his path. “If chance will have me king, why chance may crown me, without my stir” (1.3.157-159), this line that Macbeth says is a paradox the play’s main idea of choices. Macbeth is making his own choice to let “fate” make a decision in his life. Saying that if the Witches are correct about his reign as king then he shouldn't have to do anything to
Realistically speaking, the concept of fate tends to be for the optimistic dreamers, those who against all measures believe in the supernatural. However, our imagination for magical existence tends to revive through mesmerizing paranormal films and overall hope. William Shakespeare portrays the idea of fate versus self-will through prophecies and destruction in the tragedy of Macbeth, questioning whether fate is predestined by the witches or self-made. Through Lady Macbeth’s ill intentions, Macbeth’s constant struggles, and ambition Shakespeare reveals this theme of fate versus self-will.