It is said that ambition is the key to success. In the case of William Shakespeare, the most illustrious playwright to cross the threshold of the world of drama, it is the key to ones downfall as depicted in his blood-spattered tragedy Macbeth, written in 1606, during the English renaissance under the monarch of James I. Shakespeare was inspired to compose his greatest gore drama Macbeth as it most clearly reflects the playwrights close relationship with the sovereign, claimed to have descended from the lineage of the historical Banquo. Although Macbeth is not one of Shakespeares most complex plays, it is universally acknowledged as his most passionate and poignant play, ever written. The protagonist in the play, Macbeth, is a dichotomy of good and evil, a tragic hero, a man whose power of mind and body are distorted to evil. Shakespeare has fastidiously explored the intellectual and supernatural predicaments faced by Macbeth visibly emphasizing the moral declination, as his aberrant nature succumbs to the forces of evil. In this lies Macbeths tragic stature.
Macbeth is initially introduced as a man of valor, a loyal subject of his king, a mighty soldier, covered in the blood of his countrys enemy. “For brave Macbeth-well he deserves that name- Disdaining fortune, with his brandished steel, Which smoked with bloody execution, Like valors minion carved out his passage Till he faced the slave-” Shakespeare carefully builds up a flamboyant picture of his disposition as a true hero, whose actual existence on the battlefield has been decisive on each juncture. The king as a commemoration of a special favor bestows Macbeth the title of the traitor, “Thane of Cawdor” which deepens an effect of satire later on in the play. We see the evil trait in the valiant soldier unleash after the apparition of the witches, prophesizing a lucid image of Macbeth as they greet him with three titles: Thane of Glamis, which Macbeth is fully aware of; Thane of Cawdor, which is true at this point, but which Macbeth has not been told of; and King, which has not yet to befall. “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis!” “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor!” “All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!” It is at this turning point, where we are taken into the vicissitudes of darkness as Macbeth is plunged into a profound pensive thought. We see the possibility of evil sinking down through his mind, predominating his probity, reinforcing it with consuming ambition and physical courage.
The Essay on Macbeth Witches Thane Hail
Analyse Macbeth Tragic Degeneration From A Brave, Loyal Subject To A Murderous Tyrant The play focuses on the changing character of Macbeth and his increasing greed for power. Many factors contribute to the changes to Macbeth throughout the play which cause the character to deteriorate from a man with nobility and good intentions to one who is ruled by ambition and greed. The play begins with the ...
As the premonition foretold by the witches regarding the title of “Thane of Cawdor” proved to be accurate, Macbeth began to deem in the prophecy of kingship. Here, we are taken into a series of soliloquies where Macbeth struggles with his conscience over the possibility of regicide, rising to a crescendo of passion revealing feelings of terror and dread. He is not wholly committed to the powers of darkness as he still has noble feelings and understands the magnitude of what he is proposing. By the use of euphemisms, Shakespeare emphasizes that murderous thoughts are alien to Macbeth. “if it were done when tis done, then twere well It were done quickly. If the assassination Could trammel up the consequence, and catch With his surcease success-that but this blow Might be the be-all and end-all”.
This conscientious soliloquy is conveyed in a haphazard manner, “the horrid deed” abhors him because he realizes regicide is a cardinal sin. However due the profound effect of degradation and constant goading by Lady Macbeth who feels that Macbeths scruples are mere cowardice, Macbeths inner conscience transforms. She dwells on Macbeths lack of buoyancy, summoning forces of malevolence within herself, to drive Macbeth towards the fruition of the witches prophecies. Thus, Macbeth spurs and stirs to stimulate his ambition to such an extent, committing the murder by his own inclination with the help of his wifes accusation of inadequacy. However, immediately after committing the murder, we see the gradual deterioration of Macbeth by the lines, I have done the deed. Didst thou not hear a noise? I heard the owl scream and the cricket cry.
The Term Paper on Lady Macbeth Audience Witches Life
'Macbeth has, with the aid of his wife, committed the murder of Duncan and he has claimed the throne of Scotland for himself. During his reign as king Macbeth has created a tyranny in Scotland. He has continuously been dragged further and further into the world of evil, visiting the witches during his reign. He is suspicious of everyone and has spies in the homes of the thanes of the country; he ...
Did u not speak? When? Now. As I descended? Ay. Shakespeare utilizes Macbeth to portray the terrible effects that ambition and guilt can have on a man who lacks strength of character. Macbeth, a great warrior he may be, is ill equipped for the psychic consequences of crime. After the murder, Macbeth rises as the king of Scotland. However, the heroic and gallant soldier seen in the inauguration of the play begins to disintegrate.
He fluctuates between fits of fevered action, in which he plots a series of murders to secure his throne. His tension is so great that it burgeons into hallucinations, employing dramatic effect on Macbeth, the utter destruction of his mind. His chronic state of rambling throughout the series of soliloquies instigates a vent to moments of terrible guilt, incidents where he conjures a vision of the dead Banquo, who he had conspired to be murdered after the prophecy thou shalt get kings, though thou be none aimed at Banquo. With great skill, Macbeth whets his murderous appetite, raging fiery molten deep within him, as we see yet another dimension of futility and pathos that has taken hegemony over Macbeth. Macbeth believes he can control his own fate. He is pitifully confident that he can manipulate his own destiny, and in order to fulfill his egocentric plan, he tampers and alters with life.
He is ignorant and oblivious to the vast magical forces lined up against him. Determined to know his own fate, he calls upon the three witches. However, he is wholly unaware that the witches are the greatest equivocators, even though he had become the master of duplicity. Macbeth shall never vanquished be, until Great Birnan wood to high Dunsinane hill Shall come against him. The power of man: for none woman born Shall harm Macbeth. With mindless brutality, his blood thirsty tyranny absolute, he prepares for battle, lured into a false sense of security by the final prophecies of the witches, Macbeth clings against all apparent evidence, to the notion that he will not be harmed.
The Term Paper on Lady Macbeth Murder Witches King 2
... for these three witches, the Macbeths would never have even contemplated murder. None of the events involving the witches would have happened ... rule. The witches, through three sentences helped the imaginations of both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth to start forming ideas of murder. These ... had forgotten to leave behind. He remarked Will all great Neptunes oceans wash this blood clean from my hands ...
However, the tragic end is nearer than Macbeth expected as one by one his hopes are stripped away. When the truth is revealed about Macduff, Macbeths final thread of lingering strength abandons him, his dire death clearly seen at the hands of Macduff as his own head is severed as a symbol of powerful relief that evil has been finally destroyed, saved from the chaos engendered clutches of Macbeth..
