...Limitless Macbeth In Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, the main character of Macbeth has many goals and does anything he needs to in order to make those dreams come true. Shakespeare develops Macbeth’s ambitions in the play which usually revolve around him trying to gain power. Shakespeare indirectly shows how the acceptable limit of ambition relates to death. He develops the idea that when death occurs Macbeths ambitions become darker and less acceptable. At first Macbeth is loyal and fights for his country but when the ambition of being king comes along he hesitates to kill Duncan. Once Macbeth becomes less humane and after Duncan’s death Macbeth’s ambition goes over the limit and he kills Banquo and MacDuff’s family, hungry for power. But is Macbeth now being king make him able to cross the acceptable limit of ambition without being questioned. Shakespeare in the beginning of his play suggests to his audience that Macbeth is a loyal, fearless, selfless warrior as shown in the quote “For brave Macbeth (well he deserves that name)/ Disdaining fortune with his brandished steel” (1.2 18-19). It’s showing how Macbeth battled his way through the Norwegian soldiers all the way up to Macdonawald and cut him from his stomach to his head. Duncan, the king, has a great response by breathlessly saying out, “O valiant cousin, worthy gentleman!” (1.2 26). This shows just how satisfied the king along with the whole country is of Macbeth for fearlessly fighting off the Norwegian invaders...
Words: 891 - Pages: 4
...the beginning of the play macbeth seemed normal without any signs of a mental unstability. But throughout play, Macbeth started to hallucinate and things turned for the worst with ultimately influenced the outcomes of events in the play. Many actions by Macbeth lead him to his ultimate declining mental state. The play starts out with Macbeth and Banquo meeting three witches. The three witches plays a huge role in this play because without the witches prophecies,...
Words: 801 - Pages: 4
...The story Macbeth is like no other in plot and poetry. It sets itself apart from the rest by having a protagonist becoming evil. What makes Macbeth such a complicated character is the way his outlook keeps on changing throughout the play. This essay will prove that Macbeth is an evil man and was not overpowered by ambition to get what he wanted. This essay will also determine that certain characters like the witches did not force him to do evil; they simply triggered it. In the beginning of the play, Macbeth is shown as a hero in the Scottish army that is ironic because Macbeth has defeated a traitor and he will become one. We feel that a person of his loyalty could never commit evil unless he had a good reason or if he would be provoked. After Macbeth's first meeting with the witches, we learn from his aside that he has thought about killing Duncan " My thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical" 1(Macbeth 1.3.152). Macbeth also says " If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me without my stir." 2(Macbeth 1.4.157-159) which means that maybe he does not have to murder the king to gain that title. Luck has been very generous to him and might continue and make him king. Macbeth's true evil thoughts about being king are first shown when he finds out that king Duncan has named his son Malcolm as Prince of Cumberland. He now shows his evil and his true feelings. " Stars, hide your fires; Let not night see my black and deep desires. The...
Words: 955 - Pages: 4
...The Fate of Macbeth In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, major decisions made by Macbeth affect the entire play. The result of these decisions and actions ended in the negative outcome of his death. But was Macbeth responsible for the negative outcome, which was ultimately his death? Evidently, Macbeth is responsible for his own fate because he is a liar, he has a tragic flaw, and he is strongly dependent on others. Macbeth determines his own fate by lying. If Macbeth did not lie, he would of not made people suspicious of him and then they would of not rebelled and killed him. Macbeth lies to Macduff about killing the Kings guards. We know he is lying when Macbeth says “O, yet I do repent me of my fury, That I did kill them” (Macbeth, 2.3 121-122). Here Macduff becomes suspicious of Macbeth. Macduff’s suspicion leads him to start a rebellion against Macbeth and ultimately resulting in Macduff killing Macbeth. If Macbeth hadn’t lied about killing the guards Macduff would have not been so suspicious of Macbeth and would not have rebelled against him. Macbeth also lies to Banquo. This is Macbeth’s first lie and this starts the ball rolling. Macbeth had said “I think not of them” (Macbeth, 2.1 25). Here he lied about not thinking about the three witches, when, in fact, all he does is think of the three witches. Macbeth lying to both Banquo and Macduff causes suspicion, which caused conflict and then his death. An equally significant aspect of Macbeth determining his own fate is his...
Words: 869 - Pages: 4
...In the light of your critical readings how far areLear and Macbeth tragic protagonists? Example intro Normally, the common hero would be a character embodying megalopsychia. However, both Lear and Macbeth are conventionally tragic figures, even displaying anti-heroic qualities. Aristotle’s “Poetics” suggests that a tragic protagonist has greatness which is readily evident in the play. The Victorian critic A.C. Bradley picks up Aristotle’s notion to contend and mentions that although the protagonist is a person of greatness, they are not perfect and contain a tragic flaw which can lead to his downfall. Unlike most tragic protagonists, Lear’s fall occurs early in the play when he decides to express his “darker purpose” to Gloucester by dividing the kingdom between his three daughters. Firstly, this rash decision implies Lear’s downfall and prepares the audience for what is to come. Secondly, this would have alarmed a Jacobean audience who would remember how the question of succession had loomed large during the reign of Elizabeth 1. However, Lear does not show many noble attributes before his fall when he loses his temper at Cordelia and he tells her he will, “disclaim all my paternal care,” because she refuses to flatter him with praises and love. This is different to Macbeth who is seen as “brave” and “noble” in the early stages of the play due to killing the rebel, Macdonwald, and fighting off an attack from the Norwegians. Example 2 1. Throughout literary history, there...
Words: 2304 - Pages: 10
...In Macbeth, the title character is a Scottish nobleman whose strong ambition for power leads him to break the Great Chain of Being, skyrocketing him from a soldier to a king. To do this, however, he must kill the current king, Duncan. While many characters in the play attempt to frame this as a negative action, it was supposed to be for the better of the country, as Macbeth believed he would be a greater leader in a time of need for their country. That being said, the character that shows the most integrity in the play Macbeth is Macbeth, because he recognized himself as a strong force in their army, so he stepped up to become king, he battled with many people, including himself, both mentally and physically, to achieve his high rank, and because...
Words: 899 - Pages: 4
...The Ruling of the Ghost In The Tragedy of Macbeth, Shakespeare establishes the compelling character of Macbeth. Throughout the play Macbeth gets caught up in greed, his tragic flaw. In the course of the drama he becomes engulfed by guilt and begins to see the consequences of his actions. When coming face to face with his worst fear, a hallucination of his murdered friend Banquo, Macbeth sinks into a state of disorientation and regret. All the while the audience experiences bewilderment as they grasp the prospect of a ghost. Play writers could choose to include an actor on stage as Banquo’s ghost in order to eliminate this confusion; however, it is more competent and efficient to have an actor absent from the stage amid the scene. This absence...
Words: 836 - Pages: 4
...The Tragedy of Macbeth is one of the best known plays by William Shakespeare. Macbeth is a man who has it all, but is driven by his sense of ambition and masculinity. Three witches prophesize that he will become King of Scotland, but be succeeded by his friend Banquo. His mind truly starts to go off when he becomes Thane of Cawdor and Glamis, but is stepped over for his chance at the throne of Scotland by King Duncan’s son. He contemplates what he should do, but one person pushes him over the edge of no return. The biggest influence of Macbeth dive into madness and ultimate demise was his wife, Lady Macbeth, and the cowardice he had toward her. First of all we know Lady Macbeth isn’t exactly a nice lady. She calls on spirits in her “prayer” by saying, “Come, you spirits/ That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, / And fill me from the crown to the toe-full/ Of direst cruelty” (1.5. 30-33). She’s praying for the bad spirits and demons to fill her with absolute cruelty when killing King Duncan. Lady Macbeth also refers to this undertaking as her battlements furthering that this was her idea and she was just undermining Macbeth’s masculinity to get him to do her bidding. They were both ambitious but she was the one who pushed her iffy husband over the edge....
Words: 565 - Pages: 3
...This was the first reaction I had with the theatre. Indeed, the staff had a hard time looking for available spaces so that the other viewers can be seated. While they were doing this, I was able to take a good look at the theatre and evaluate it before the lights were turned off. The stage was one of a kind. I watched quite a lot of plays and so far, “Screen Macbeth” had the most unique structure. In the other plays I watched, the stage was just the traditional stage. It was at the front, it is positioned a little lower than the seats of the audience, and the audience were facing the same side. However, “Screen Macbeth” had a platform at the center of the audience. The audience from opposite sides of the theatre were facing each other. It is not the typical four-cornered platform though. It was like a catwalk with four directions. And I think that structure of the stage helped me understand the play even more because I can see the actors’ and actresses’ expressions up-close and it somehow made me feel what emotions the characters were experiencing. The lights were a bit dark. However, with a tragic plot such as Macbeth, dim lighting system is the most appropriate. Fear is one of the feelings emphasized in the play and with the dusky atmosphere in the theatre, I guess the feeling was conveyed perfectly to the audience. The sounds system was great. I guess that is just one of the advantages of a small theatre. The actors and actresses were not even using microphones and yet...
Words: 1020 - Pages: 5
...Macbeth Literary Essay Submitted By: Zachary McGregor May 1st, 2012 I believe that Macbeth is fully responsible for his own destiny because whether or not it was fated, he still chose to do everything he did. We obviously know that Macbeth made some pretty bad decisions over the course of the play. He should be held responsible and forced to pay the consequences of his actions for the following reasons. We know that Macbeth still had the choice of whether or not to murder Duncan, although he was encouraged by the witches’ prophesies and Lady Macbeth he didn’t really have to go through with the murder. We also know that the crimes Macbeth commits are becoming increasingly sinister and evil, as he continues to do these terrible deeds it becomes easier and easier for him to commit them. Finally, Macbeth acknowledges his guilt for the crimes he commits and is therefore fully responsible for his actions. It seems that the witches’ predictions insinuate Macbeth’s desire to become king, however, no one actually forces him to kill Duncan. Even though Macbeth’s decision was most certainly influenced by the witches’ prophesies and Lady Macbeth, he still made the final choice regarding the murder of Duncan which is wrong. Macbeth’s ambition causes him to question his loyalty to the king after hearing the witches’ prophesies. “My thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical, shakes so my shingle state of man that...
Words: 1575 - Pages: 7
...correlated in the play of Macbeth since his impulses and desires greatly affect its surrounding especially while having the authority over a country. Macbeth experienced the fall of his very own ambition which granted him his very own demised. Evil describes Macbeth’s human nature and not only does he experience it, he consults with it too. The witches are highly regarded as a freak of nature which promote evil, as for Macbeth they were his advisors therefore he will make his decision based on the prophecies where they are immoral or virtuous. In consequence of Macbeth’s embracement of his best human quality (Evil) he called upon himself a death sentence. Shakespeare reflected greatly on the position of the king discreetly without stirring up too much controversy particularly on the theory of “Divine right of monarchs”. Though Macbeth attained the power of the thrown he did it through an unorthodox way excluding him from the power of God therefore made him susceptible to any pending attacks. Having Macbeth steal the thrown from Duncan in such a despicable manner is an offense to the Almighty and a violation to the natural order. Shakespeare puts great emphasizes on the legitimacy of his current non-fictional king by creating a psychopath of a king called Macbeth. Macbeth tyrannical decisions lead to his dismiss by others mutinying against him in; seem like Shakespeare borrow some inspiration from the actions of the gun powder plot in 1605. Macbeth can certainly relate to James...
Words: 1013 - Pages: 5
...between Macbeth & Lady Macbeth In the beginning of the play Lady Macbeth shows us that she is supportive to Macbeth. When deliberating the plans surrounding King Duncan's murder she says to Macbeth 'Leave all the rest to me'. Lady Macbeth also regards her husband as ‘too full o'th'milk of human kindness'. She is claiming that her husband is very kind and a worthy gentleman. Macbeth uses affectionate words to Lady Macbeth at the beginning of the play, 'my dearest love'. These statements show that Lady Macbeth and Macbeth dote on each other at the beginning of the play, although this does change as the play progresses. Lady Macbeth knows that her husband's kindness makes him weak and susceptible to guilt that could prevent the murder of King Duncan. Lady Macbeth begins to manipulate Macbeth and challenges his feelings of guilt and pity for King Duncan and replaces them with malicious and spiteful feelings: 'look like th'innocent flower, but be the serpent under't’. Lady Macbeth now instructs Macbeth on how he should act, encouraging him to be deceitful to King Duncan, his loyal and trusting leader. Macbeth becomes so absorbed in his mixed feelings about the murder that he withdraws from the loving relationship that he had with Lady Macbeth in the beginning of the play. 'First, I am his Kinsman and his subject, strong both against the deed; then, as his host, who should against his murderer shut the door, not bear the knife myself’. This quote from act 1 scene 7 shows how Macbeth is in...
Words: 564 - Pages: 3
...heroes. A Tragic hero is usually a character that makes a mistake that leads to his failure, but a Shakespearean tragic hero is initially one, who is born noble, but not necessarily virtuous; there are some great aspects of personality that he has in excess which would often also be his weakness which creates a conflict for the character. His own destruction brings out the principle or moral of the play. Scholars argues that Othello is not a hero but a murder that commits a crime of passion, but just as every Shakespearean tragic characters, Othello is a person that has made an error of judgment, had a fatal flaw and was destined for defeat; which when combined with external forces, will bring on a tragedies like Julius Caesar, Hamlet, and Macbeth. Like many other characters in Shakespearean tragic plays, Othello is not a weak character nor is he a person of failure, but he is the captain of the Venice army, he is married to one of the most beautiful woman of Venice named Desdemona, and he is very well known even though he was of a different ethnicity. When Brabantio accuses him of putting a spell on his daughter Desdemona; in front of the Venetian senate, no one believes the charges because of his outstanding reputation "Here comes Brabantio and the valiant Moor,"(Othello 1.3.47). Unfortunately, this was only the beginning, Othello’s main role in the play started to unravel when he made his first mistake. Othello is corrupted, and quickly becomes irrational, which leads him to...
Words: 2087 - Pages: 9
...Being Macbeth ENG 125 Instructor: Sahag Gureghian 03/11/2014 Being MacBeth Talk about a difficult read! Macbeth is definitely a difficult read, but it is also a very good read. There is something about the way it is written that has you raising your eyebrow and widening your eyes, as well as, questioning what was just read. Shakespeare used many elements when writing Macbeth. He was able to express each and every idea vividly using the elements. The three elements that I chose to discuss in this essay are foreshadowing, symbolism, and language. The first element that I would like to discuss is foreshadowing. A lot of foreshadowing took place in Macbeth. Clugston defines foreshadowing as “a technique a writer uses to hint or suggest what the outcome of an important conflict or situation in a narrative will be” (2010). Sometimes when foreshadowing is used in Macbeth it is very unclear of what the outcome will be. When you read a certain part and think one thing, Shakespeare uses foreshadowing and the reader is left asking questions and wondering what will happen, and why. In Act 1 Scene 1, the three witches are talking about Macbeth. They are discussing Macbeth’s future during thunder and lightning. I believe that not only does the witches conversation lead the reader to believe that something will happen, but the thunder and lightning also play an important role in what is to come for Macbeth. In scene 3, the witches appear again. This time they are not alone....
Words: 735 - Pages: 3
...Question: Plays are often said to show rather than tell. How far does Richard III indicate that dramatic action and dialogue fulfill all the functions of presenting thought and action? "King Richard III", a play written by William Shakespeare portrays the true sinister nature of the main antagonist, Richard as he overtakes the throne of England through vile methods. Despite being deformed since birth and looked down upon for that very fact, his determination to be a villain replaces his lacking factors. Naturally, actions and dialogues of the characters in the play help the audience paint a portrait of other characters and the roles they occupy in the play. They uncover the unknown side of the characters and show the thoughts which these characters hold as they progress. There are conflicts and contrasts that vary but they are all essential to unifying the play as a whole. Without those factors shaping the play, one would hardly be able to find more about other characters of the play and understand the dynamics of the play. By including monologues and dialogues amongst characters, Shakespeare fulfills all the traditional functions of a play in presenting thought and actions. The play begins with Richard delivering a soliloquy in which he first explains his situation and then proceeds to accounts of his evil deeds. When Richard mentions his deformed body and poor conditions that make him hard to live as a “normal” human being, audience may at first feel sympathy, only to have...
Words: 810 - Pages: 4
