...In the play Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare, the most prominent and tragic hero is Macbeth himself. His experiences signify the devastating effects of interference with the great chain of being, his mental deterioration shows the corrupting power of unchecked ambition, and his character change depicts how weak man is when confronted with the pernicious effects of greed. "For brave Macbeth — well he deserves that name”, Macbeth, a soldier of honor and valor who is overcome with greed when three witches foretell of his future greatness. The analysis of his character presents how the conditions that Macbeth is subjected to rise and fall with ambition and greed. Throughout the play, Macbeth’s experiences clearly show how one cannot successfully...
Words: 1337 - Pages: 6
...through his ambition, greed and weakness has allowed it to resonate with contemporary audiences. Macbeth’s human flaws paint him as a tragic hero – he is not intrinsically ‘evil’, but his consuming ambition, the desire and greed he possesses and his weakness and inability to resist his wife’s and the witches’ temptations ultimately lead to his downfall. These three flaws are inseparable from our human nature, and they are indeed still relevant and relatable in our society today. Macbeth’s ambition is his one great flaw that leads to his ruin. Ambition is a quality that we all exhibit. However, Macbeth’s ambition consumes him, and overwhelms his moral sense, his noble character. Initially, he is presented to the audience as a brave soldier, “like Valour’s minion,” having defeated an entire army. He is respected and admired by all, including King Duncan, who promotes him to Thane of Cawdor. By the end of the play, however, he has become a moral-less tyrant. His ultimate fall from grace lies in his ambition, his desire to become King at any cost. His image at the end of the play, a senseless, paranoid, murderer is sharply juxtaposed with his portrayal as a valiant solider initially. It is this juxtaposition of a noble hero and a ruined tyrant that invokes ‘a catharsis of pity and fear’, as described by Aristotle, in the audience, and that still allows contemporary audiences today to relate and respond. The three weird sisters are the ones who plant the seed of ambition – “all hail...
Words: 1103 - Pages: 5
...Macbeth is a play written for James I after the death of Queen Elizabeth. James was intrigued with witchcraft and the love of Scotland. In order to understand Shakespeare's Macbeth you have to understand the time and historical period which it is set. This is the Elizabethan period which is the late sixteenth and early seventeenth century when there was an authoritarian government. In this era the monarchy ruled the governments, they needed to raise strong and loyal armies to protect and rule their counties. Shakespeare chose legends and events in Scottish history to dramatise Macbeth, which he uses from the "Holinshed's chronicles around 1050 AD", that he alters and manipulates these freely to portray Macbeth's loyalty and then his destruction...
Words: 2141 - Pages: 9
...The play Macbeth, by William Shakespeare and is about Macbeth, a general In the Scottish army. After Macbeth bravely defeats all of his enemies three witches come to him and predict that he is to be Thane of Cawdor and the king of Scotland. Propelled by greed and his wife's ambitions, he kills King Duncan and seizes the throne. Because of their deeds Macbeth and lady Macbeth become dominated in guilt and paranoia. To protect himself, he commits more murders and becomes an oppressive tyrant. In the end Macbeth is defeated in a gruesome battle full of surprises. William Shakespeare uses symbolism and foreshadowing to convey how greed and ambition can lead to the downfall of your morals and even your life. Symbolism is a powerful tool used by most writers as it brings the more depth and profoundness. Shakespeare uses symbolism many times throughout the play Macbeth, one example of this is when he writes “ Come out, damned spot! Out, I command you! One, two. OK, it’s time to do it now (5.1.2).” This is when lady Macbeth has gone insane under the weight of the guilt and knowledge of the crimes she has been apart of. in this line she is trying to get out a spot on her hand. The spot on her...
Words: 501 - Pages: 3
...The Tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare tells of a man who is driven by ambition, greed, and equivocations which leads to his own demise. Many times through the play, equivocations are spoken to evade the truth and deceive the listener. A prime example of those who speak equivocations are the three witches. The three witches constantly visit Macbeth and tell him of his fate through rhyme and ambiguous language rather than tell Macbeth exactly what his fate entails. As Macbeth is lured by the fate that these witches speak, he is deluded of the truth about what will occur. Fueled by his current ambitions and greed for power and promotion, Macbeth looks forward to his destiny, to become king of Scotland, with feelings of positivity. However,...
Words: 447 - Pages: 2
...It is not uncommon for a war veteran plagued with PTSD to desire a solitary life in the mountains. Throughout Shakespeare’s tragic play of Macbeth, Macbeth makes several bad decisions. By the end of Act V, the consequences of these decisions catch up to Macbeth, and result in his mental deterioration and downfall. Macbeth’s character traits are the driving forces in this mental deterioration. These character traits include his blind ambition, his guilt, and also his false hopes. Macbeth’s tragic flaw, his blind ambition, is a large contributing factor to his mental deterioration. In the course of the play, Macbeth has a tendency to make decisions out of his desire for power. One example of this greed is when the three witches prophesize that Macbeth will become Thane of Cawdor, and later, king of Scotland. When the first prophecy comes true, Macbeth becomes over powered by greed and murders Duncan so that he may become king. In a letter sent to Lady Macbeth, Macbeth states that, “‘Hail, king that shalt be!’/ This have I thought good to deliver thee, my dearest/ partner of greatness; that thou mightest not lose the/ dues of rejoicing” (I, v,...
Words: 558 - Pages: 3
...“Greed makes a man blind and foolish, and makes him an easy prey for death.” (Rumi) To be unsatisfied with one’s lifestyle will lead to one striving for superficial means such as money or power. It may seem tempting to one if they were given the opportunity to have wish come true, or a glimpse into their future, but nothing comes without consequences. In the short story Monkeys Paw by W.W Jacobs and the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare, the characters strive to alter their destiny through supernatural means which ultimately leads to greed developing within the characters, fate being tampered with for personal gain, and the downfall of major characters within both stories. In both texts, the main characters lived average lives;...
Words: 692 - Pages: 3
...In The Tragedy of Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare, there are many different aspects of tragic heroes and downfalls. Overall, the protagonist Lord Macbeth displays the greatest characteristics of a tragic hero because of his large and prominent downfall. Macbeth showed all of the tragic hero characteristics which include: goodness, superiority, tragic flaw, and self realization. These characteristics help define who Macbeth is, and who he progresses into as the play advances. The prophecies of the Witches seemed to control Lord Macbeth in the worst way. They took over his decision making and rational thinking forcing him to make dense choices which would eventually result in his downfall. Goodness; the quality of being good, in particular. Some say Lord Macbeth lost of all his morality by the greed of ambition but I very much disagree. Macbeth may have made rash decisions and chose to do wrong but he did all of which with a stable, sane, and understanding mind. “I’ll go no more. I am afraid to think of what I have done. Look on’t again I dare not.” (II ii 65-68). This shows that Lord Macbeth is aware that what he just...
Words: 442 - Pages: 2
...Lady Macbeth Essay Shakespeare’s play Macbeth was written in the early 17th century and chronicles the lives of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth as Thane of Crawdor and lady of Crawdor, and later on as King and Queen of Scotland respectively. Lady Macbeth is known as one of Shakespeare’s most famous female characters due to her ambition, strength and ruthlessness. Lady Macbeth can be seen as the dominant half in the relationship between Macbeth and his lady, often convincing, persuading and willing Macbeth to do her bidding. Lady Macbeth can even be seen as a tragic heroine, a term made famous by Shakespeare’s numerous tragedies. However, just like all tragic heroes, Lady Macbeth’s hamartia or tragic flaw would lead to her demise. In exploring the character that is Lady Macbeth, we can see many flaws in her character such as greed, ambition, dishonestly and manipulative to name a few. A tragic flaw, as defined by Merriem-Webster dictionary, is a flaw in character that brings about the downfall of a hero in a tragedy. Lady Macbeth’s greed for power coupled with her moral righteousness led to her demise. This is evident after first, persuading Macbeth to kill the king in order for her to become Queen, second, planning Kind Duncan’s death to the minute detail, and third, being flooded with guilt and blame afterwards leading to her suicide. After Macbeth’s confrontation with the three witches who said that Macbeth will be named Thane of Crawdor and eventually become King of Scotland,...
Words: 519 - Pages: 3
...Rash Language Arts IV 17 December, 2015 Macbeth: Good, Bad or Both? The Paradox of His Life. There has been a lifelong argument over whether Macbeth, is a good or a bad man. Simply Macbeth is disillusioned. He is both a good and a bad man at heart. He was capable of serving his country and he was a loyal soldier. In the end Macbeth let his greed and political ambition get the best of him, and that became the fault for his downfall. What started out as a good hearted loyal soldier, became a man who let his greed get the better of his morals and values, soon he lost his sense of purpose and became a bloodthirsty king, with the help of his wife and her encouragement throughout the beginning of the play. When Macbeth and Banquo left the battle, they came across three witches in a bleak place near the battlefield. The...
Words: 680 - Pages: 3
...denotes that because every human being has a brain, they also possess the ability to think and act in a malicious and inhumane manner. Considering this, William Golding, the author of Lord of the Flies, illustrates that uncivil behaviour will prevail on the adult-free island. In a like manner, Macbeth by Shakespeare gives insight to the lengths people will go to so that one can achieve personal profits at a rapid pace. Through similar fashions, both novels depict the true nature of human beings. Similarities between the characters of Jack from the Lord of the Flies and Macbeth from Macbeth reveal that power and greed is the root of all evil. In addition, the use of knives and representation of blood in both novels plays large roles in the quests for power. Also, similarities in plot structure help to further establish the sinful nature of humans. One can conclude that both Macbeth and Lord of the Flies give insight to the fact that human nature is predominantly evil through the characterization of Jack and Macbeth, symbolism of knives and blood and similarities within plot structure. Initially, the predominantly evil aspects of human nature show through the characterization of Jack and Macbeth. In the Lord of the Flies, the society the boys live in begins to crumble as Jack becomes less and less civil while the others follow. Jack quickly turns from an innocent young boy to an uncivil animal, “He looked in astonishment, no longer at himself but at an awesome stranger… the mask was...
Words: 1473 - Pages: 6
...Macbeth was a true example of a tragic hero. Macbeth had strong individualism, greed, and he accepted death when it came time for him to pass. Macbeth was loved by all. He was a tragic hero that let his fate get ahead of him and let greed overpower him. First, Macbeth shows strong individualism and extremism in the book. “I have done the deed” (Macbeth 2.2.19). Wanting to see himself at the top, Macbeth killed his cousin, and would have to kill more before he succeeds at becoming king. Macbeth’s greed and desires have only just begun to overtake him. Secondly, Macbeth is ambitious and bold. He chases the fate that the witches tell him; “All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter” (Third Witch 1.3.53). This ambition turns to greed...
Words: 284 - Pages: 2
...relationship. In William Shakespeare Macbeth, darkness, blood, supernatural and animals imagery occurred to indicate the evil deeds and development of the relations of the characters. Macbeth kills the king Duncan, the morning is dark after the night of King Duncan murder and Lady Macbeth’s hands full of blood which show their relation to the evil side of the world. Furthermore, Macbeth hallucinating a dagger and supernatural abilities of the witches and animals attacking each other which also indicate the evil side in the events that has occurs. Motif is used in the play to manipulate the characters emotions and indicate their...
Words: 1111 - Pages: 5
...Macbeth’s lust for power and ambition elicited betrayal and the destruction of the role of kingship, eventually leading to his death. Betrayal is exhibited in abundance and although Macbeth misleaded the one’s nearest to him, he ends up losing it all. “why do I yield to that suggestion whose horrid image doth unfix my hair” (Act 1 Scene 3). Macbeth justifies his will of committing regicide, but realizes his betrayal which shows that friendship does not stand in the way of greed. The assassination of Duncan preceded to the disruption of the divine rights of kingship, which was regarded as a sin in the Jacobean period. This unquenchable third lead him to unravel; mentally and emotionally. Macbeth goes into a state of paranoia, where he kills...
Words: 261 - Pages: 2
...Macbeth, when written in 1606, was a revolution in theater. Telling the story of the titular Scottish king, Macbeth is a dark story with heavy themes of murder, vengeance, blood, ambition, greed, paranoia, power, and cruelty. These dark and interesting themes combined with its flowing poetic language has led to Macbeth being one of the most widely produced plays throughout history, with many unique variations. While the text to a modern audience may not seem as dramatic and edgy, for its age it must have been quite a powerful and dark experience. In my version of Macbeth, it is that experience that I want to capture. A modern of production of Macbeth that attempts to keep the spirit of the original ought to seek to create an audience experience...
Words: 381 - Pages: 2
