...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...
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...In the tragic play script ‘Macbeth’ written by William Shakespeare, we follow Macbeth and Lady Macbeth as their ambition turns from good ambition like respecting their country and fighting for their King, to evil ambition, as they develop an evil flaw by performing evil acts like murder and deceitfulness. At the beginning of the play script, Macbeth is determined to do good works so that he will be well known and remembered. Then Lady Macbeth’s longing for the crown causes her to be very manipulative. She persuades her husband to do evil and once Macbeth does what she wants, they are caught in a spiral of evil doings. At the beginning of this play script, Macbeth does well in the war against the Norwegians. King Duncan orders the death of the...
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...2016 Evolution of Evil in Macbeth In Macbeth, the characters of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth undergo drastic changes as the play unfolds. Both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth regress from logical and human like people, into evil characters that would be found in a horror film. At the beginning of the play, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth seem like two usual human beings, but after hearing about possibly becoming king and queen these characters turn to the dark side and resort to murdering the current king to take the thrown. Once the characters resort to murder, regret and guilt begin to consume their lives, resulting in death for both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Throughout the play Macbeth, the elements...
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...The forces of evil and the supernatural are dominant in the play Macbeth Without a doubt, There are many forces of evil and the supernatural to be seen in the tragic play Macbeth. It is obvious that these forces are dominant in the play as they play a vital role in the plot and they appear continuously throughout the play, but they do not dominate the play, as good wins out over evil in the end. These forces can be seen as characters, as apparitions, as actions and also in the language of the play. The most powerful and manipulative force of evil comes from the supernatural characters of the “weird sisters” or the three witches. Immediately in the opening scene we are introduced to them. It is clear that they will play a major role in the play. They speak in riddles “fair is foul and foul is fair…” and they cast an ominous tone over the entire play. The dramatic opening with thunder and lightning emphasises their evil nature. The witches are the embodiment of pure motiveless evil. They are immediately associated with the worst evil of all, the devil, by Banquo, “what! Can the devil speak true?” The witches are vital to the play because they are the ones who stoked the fires of Macbeth’s ambition, without them there would be no play, as Macbeth would never have committed regicide without their influence. Macbeth is immediately associated with the witches in his first line, which echoes the witches line...
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...To what extent is masculinity associated with evil and violence in Macbeth? Evil is a theme widely explored by Shakespeare in his plays and “Macbeth” is no exception. This play demonstrates violence in relation to evil and evil in turn is a reflection of the desperation and anxieties of the characters in “Macbeth.” The question of whether masculinity is associated with evil and violence is easily answered as the main character in this horrific tragedy is Macbeth himself, who commits a range of heinous crimes from murder to dabbling with witchcraft. However, the extent to which masculinity is related to evil is more obscure. In this essay I am going to show that evil and violence in “Macbeth” is not monopolised by masculine characters. To show this I will be analysing female characters who demonstrate strong evil qualities and personalities such as Lady Macbeth, The Witches and Hecate. I will also discuss Banquo, Macduff and King Duncan because these characters represent chivalry, nobility and honour of human characters, even though they are male. The first character I will be looking at is Macbeth himself. This is because he is the central character and focus of the entire play. From the outset Macbeth is depicted as a fierce war hero: “Till he unseamed him from the nave to the chops, And fixed his head upon our battlements.” (Act 1: Scene 1: Lines 22 – 23) The captain using the...
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...against man between good and evil. This struggle is seen in day-to-day life but most importantly literature. One literature that has shown this struggle most evidently in would be Macbeth. Macbeth is a play written by William Shakespeare (Britannica). In the play the character Macbeth is first introduced as a noble man. His nobility slowly began to fall short and turn into evil once he is introduced to three witches. These three witches were able to tell Macbeth his fate. They told him that he would eventually be king. Macbeth, wanting this to come true, would have to go great lengths to make this happen and he did. To meet his fate, Macbeth had to lie, cheat, and steal in a way to get what he wanted. Sound familiar? Like us, Macbeth’s struggle of good and evil became more and more apparent. The relationship between good and evil in the character Macbeth is shown through his morality, ambition, and fears....
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...To what extent is Macbeth responsible for his own downfall? Macbeth is a universal text and is one of Shakespeare’s greatest tragedies, when we talk about Macbeth’s downfall it is both the downfall of the single state of man and the downfall of his wider social relations, these being Lady Macbeth, Duncan, Banquo, Macduff’s family and ultimately Scotland. Aristotle says that ‘tragedy is the imitation of an action’ he is talking about an action or a motive that governs the protagonist’s life. A tragedy is commonly known as a story or play that ends with a negative or unfortunate outcome that was essentially unavoidable, usually caused by a flaw in the central character’s personality. Although it is established that Macbeth is a tragedy, there are differences in audience response to tragedy. The audience of Elizabethan times saw tragedy as the destruction of the Great Chain of Being and the danger to the order and stability of the state. The Great Chain of being is conception of the hierachical order of the universe; Elizabethan audiences believed that a bond linked all things in the universe. They saw Macbeth as a tragedy because the rightful ruler of Scotland was killed which lead to Scotland being lead by an evil King. Contemporary audiences see Macbeth as a tragedy because of the psychological destruction of a man, and the crises caused by this man. Macbeth shows the journey of a tragic hero, Macbeth has the traits of a tragic hero as defined by Aristotle: nobility, hamartia...
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...mind, not his enemy or foe that lures him to evil ways.” In essence, this quotation 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,...
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...Good versus evil! The central pillar of the play Macbeth, and the main character. Macbeth had crossed the line and never stepped back. He had earned the respect of the people and the king. The called him noble and some people said he was, “Like Valour’s minion.” Lady Macbeth, his wife, said, “ Yet I do fear thy nature: it is too full o’the milk of human kindness.” This simply emphasises how tragic Macbeth’s transition from good to evil was. Macbeth is respected, loyal, highly ranked and venerable. Macbeth and his wife are closer than ever and he has the trust of the king. He is happy and his integrity is intact. Macbeth has no trouble being trusting and he is emotionally sound. All this until he meets the witches. They predict his pronouncing of Thane of Cawdor and him becoming king. “All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!” These predictions drive his ambition and stir ideas of killing the king. As ideas form in Macbeth’s mind, his wife conspires against the king. Macbeth has, “Volting ambition,” but he struggles so much with betraying and killing the king. His reluctance and integrity helped by his loyalty assist him in initially saying no. His wife however challenges his manhood and he reluctantly continues. Following the murder however, the regret and shock of having done it really upset him mentally and emotionally. Macbeth even says that all the oceans water couldn’t wash the blood from his hands. His wife in contrast says, “My hands are of your colour; but I...
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...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...
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...Macbeth Final Project Living in a world where even nature is at war with itself is challenging, and only the bravest, good-hearted people will emerge triumphant. The play Macbeth is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare and takes place in eleventh-century Scotland. Featuring a plot full of twists and turns, readers are hooked throughout the play. Even when the main character, Macbeth, is enticed to commit a treacherous deed which causes a chain of murders and deceptions that eventually lead to Macbeth’s unsightly demise people cannot put down this play. It is a masterpiece giving insight into human nature, and temptation. Proving that only the characters who remain true to themselves will escape unscathed from this backward place; because, in a world where people mask their true intentions, they sacrifice their beliefs, and lose sight of who they are. People mask their true intentions when the prospect of future gain is offered. This is evident because Macbeth openly expresses his distaste in Duncan’s murder when he tells...
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...“Macbeth is basically a good man led astray. ” Steven Zhang In the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare, Macbeth appears to be the evil mastermind behind all the murders he has committed, including that of King Duncan and Banquo, his own friend. However, the plot is not that simple, Macbeth isn’t really the evil person, he simply lost his morals and let his ambitions get the better of him. He was first given the prophecy that he will eventually become king by the 3 witches. He decided that it could be true because he became the Thane of Cawdor like their prophecies and let his ambitions overcome his morals; He is a loyal man and he did not make the decision to kill Duncan alone. His wife convinced him that it was for the “good”; Finally, Macbeth...
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...How you use your power defines your character. In the play “Macbeth”, power is a corrupting force that can change a man’s character and cause him to act in evil ways. Corruption can be motivated by power and the advantages people see in it. In “Macbeth”, Macbeth gets a little power and soon begins to want it all. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth make a plan to kill Duncan, the king, “But I worry about weather or not you have what it takes to seize the crown.”...
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...Macbeth is presented as a suffering victim, who then plummets into a downward spiral where he becomes a symbol of evil. When we first encounter Macbeth, the witches have just foretold the three prophecies. Macbeth is enamored with the idea of becoming king one day. Looking for advice Macbeth confided in his wife, Lady Macbeth. Lady Macbeth’s immediate reaction is that she has always pinned for the throne and was going to find a way to obtain it. Ultimately Lady Macbeth conjured up the idea to kill King Duncan. She later presents her matoltocal plan to Macbeth. At first Macbeth is not willing to go through with her plan. He thinks it is unjust and that there are other ways to obtain the throne. However Lady Macbeth uses her power of persuasion and lores her husband into a trap. She does this by stating, “When you durst do it, then you were a man.”(Shakespeare 1.7.49) Lady Macbeth tries to take away Macbeth sexuality by saying in the quote that if he does not complete this deed he will be less of a man in her eyes. She continues to go into more depth and say that she will no longer love him either. Lady Macbeth picks apart Macbeth until there is nothing left. She took away Macbeth...
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...Tragedy of Macbeth is riddled with plenty of themes and motifs that can be pointed out throughout the play. One of the most prominent themes is power. It is especially seen in Macbeth’s character, with him being very power hungry. Once he gains the power he desires, he will do anything he must to keep himself from losing it. Other characters have some need for power, whether it be good or evil. The good and evil can be seen as the light and dark aspects of the power. In the play, it is quite obvious that Macbeth possesses dark, evil powers that are full of greed and selfishness, since he is extremely protective over his throne when others try to take it from him. In the opening act, Macbeth is announced Thane of Glamis and then later Thane of Cawdor. He says to himself, “Glamis and Thane of Cawdor! \ The greatest is behind” (1.3.116-17). This was Macbeth’s first taste of power, which helped his thirst for more grow. His wife, Lady Macbeth, also showed a dark sense of power. Once she discovers her husband’s naming to the Thane of Glamis and Cawdor, she goes off into a speech describing how he shall become king next. “. . . Come, thick night, \ And pall thee in the dunnest smoke of hell, \ That my keen knife see not the wound it...
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