Generally speaking, in the play "Macbeth" which is written by Shakespear, Macbeth’s tragic downfall is absolutely caused by his own free will.According to his personalities, his original guilty and cruel mind caused him to murder the king.His plan foreshadows his deepest desire and what he will do to reach his goal.Macbeth’s failure is not caused by his fate simply because he has made the final decisions by himself.Without the decisions on his own, Macbeth won’t believe those prophecies or persuasions from others or murder the king. Macbeth’s intent to murder King Duncan comes from himself. “All hail,Macbeth, thou shalt be king hereafter!(1.3.48)”.In this quotation, the third witch is telling the “prophecy” to Macbeth and Macbeth starts to …show more content…
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“To crown my thoughts with acts,be it thought and done:/The castle of Macduff I will surprise;/Seize upon Fife;give to the edge of the sword/His wife,his babes,and all unfortunate souls/That trace him in his line.No boasting like a fool;/This deed I 'll do this purpose cool/But no more sights!——Where are these gentlemen?”(4.1.155).In this quotation Macbeth regrets that all of his actions are too slow to reach his goal, he will realize every goal faster after this.He has also said that he will attack Macduff’s castle and kill all of his family members.This quotation shows that everything Macbeth has done, included murdering Duncan, is under his control.He will use any methods to realize his goal no matter it is right or not in the aspect of morality. “Both of you/Know Banquo was your enemy”(3.1.120).In this quotation, Macbeth tells both of the murderers that Banquo is their enemy.This quotation shows that Macbeth has seen everybody who is dangerous in his view as his enemy, even his king, and his best friend.He will kill all of the “enemies”,no one can stop him from becoming the king.Therefore, murdering king Duncan is his free will and this has caused his failure at the end of the
Perhaps if Macbeth never murdered Duncan and he still became King from the sudden death of Duncan one could say it was by fate. Ezeh stated that, “Libertarian freewill is basically the concept that metaphysically and morally, man is an autonomous being, operates independently and not controlled by others or by outside forces''(Ezeh). Convinced by Lady Macbeth, Macbeth willingly chose to murder King Duncan to benefit his future. Furthermore, he self-inflicted his future and was not driven by what one calls his fate but by his own mind. Consequently, being warned about his possible future by the witches, Macbeth still chose to do what he did.
It is an either or situation. Some people may think MAcbeth is controlled by fate, but quite a few people think Macbeth had complete free will. The reason people think that is because Macbeth “chose” to kill. The other reason people think Macbeth had free will is because he had the choice to deny Lady Macbeth and her wishes to have him do evil things. Another reason people may think Macbeth was controlled by free will is because he could have just stopped killing, he could have killed once and then moved on and stopped, but decided to kill more to solidate his power.
However, he and his family end up on the trail of Macbeth's murders as he is perceived as a threat to Macbeth's reign as king of Scotland. Duncan also succumbs to the destructive nature of Macbeth's ambition despite being the rightful king. He is also a victim of other people's ambitions who exploit his good character for their own gains
“If chance will have me king, why chance may crown me, without my stir” (Shakespeare 144). Macbeth, a loyal subject to his king has an encounter that will change his fate with an ultimate effect on his free will. They claim three predictions, Macbeth will be the Thane of Cawdor and later crowned King but Macbeths lineage will not maintain the throne. After this supernatural confrontation, Macbeth questions this loyalty which will ultimately lead to his new fate carried out (LitCharts 1). Fully capable to act upon his own free will, Macbeth instead is driven by fate to his destruction which gives further insight of his character advancement.
From honored soldier to murderous tyrant, Macbeth killed his way into power. He was informed of his “destiny” and stopped at nothing to achieve it. He had multiple chances to rethink his actions. He didn 't however, he kept on his march to power leaving only himself to blame. Macbeth is the only one to blame for his actions and ultimately, his death.
He then tries to find reason to kill Duncan besides his own ambitions for power and cannot find any reason as he says that he is Duncan’s kinsman and should “shut the door [on the murderer], / Not bear the knife myself.” (Shakespeare 288). He also brings up the point that Duncan is a benevolent king ant that “tears shall drown the wind.” (Shakespeare 288) if King Duncan dies. This passage shows Macbeth’s ego as id and superego, which, in this case, are ambition for power and civility respectively, is at play and influencing his upcoming actions, along with Lady Macbeth’s
Thinking that his kingship is now safe, the impossible happened. One of the witches words was coming true, the woods were moving closer to him. Freaking out he see’s Macduff face to face. Backing down from the first attempt to fight Macbeth ends up getting killed by
Macbeth shows that he is willing to kill King Duncan because he is interested in the witches prophecy, after they tell him that he will become ‘Thane of Cawdor’ and then the King.
Macbeth’s ambition is one of the most prominent things that drive Macbeth in the play and truly becomes evident when he hears of the Witches prophecies. When the witches stop talking, he demands to know more. “Stay you imperfect speakers, tell me more” (I, III, 73-74). This portrays his excessive curiosity on the subject as well as his craving for more desirable prophecies. This ambitious nature and craving for power is also demonstrated only moments after hearing the witches, when he starts formulating a plan to kill Duncan in order to make the third prophecy come true.
Macbeth chose to listen and accept the prophecy as truth even though he had no proof. Although the witches influence Macbeth they did not suggest to Macbeth to kill the king, he got that idea from his selfish thoughts. After the witches visit Macbeth he goes to his wife about his thoughts of killing the king. Lady Macbeth encourages murder because that’s the only way she thinks Macbeth can become king.
Lady Macbeth influences Macbeth to kill Duncan, but he continues to have second thoughts about it (i.vii.31-34) and feels terribly guilty afterwards (II.ii.63-66). However, following the murder of Duncan, Macbeth loses any ethics he had left. Macbeth kills the servants, Banquo, and Macduff’s whole family in cold-blooded murder. On the other hand, when Banquo ponders the witches prophecy for him, he contemplates the thought of having to kill someone to get power, but he quickly shuts it down (III.i.9-11).
Free Will over Fate in Macbeth This theory is obvious in a scene, where Macbeth is consciously deciding to kill king Duncan. In Act 1, Scene 3 he states: - “My thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical, shakes so my single state of man that function, is smother’d in surmise, and nothing is, but what is not” (Macbeth 1.3.138-141). We observe his conscious unstable thought processes about contemplating and planning the murder of Duncan emerging shortly after hearing the prophecy, and before Lady Macbeth could hear the message and influence his decision.
Eventually, he then acts upon his greed and abandons his morals through the vile words of Lady Macbeth. After the king 's death, Macbeth expresses his hatred towards killing the king "I have no spur/To prick the sides of my intent, but only/Vaulting ambition, which overlaps itself/And falls on the ' other. " Specifically, under his new state of power, he was taking extra precautions to prevent anyone from taking his dignity and bloodline. Simultaneously becoming apprehensive of his throne for this purpose he kills Banquo otherwise his descendants will inherit the throne, and the killing of Macduff 's family since Macbeth was suspicious of his downfall might be coming. "
In conclusion, Macbeth’s fate was not predetermined; the decisions he made were fully his. While he might of been influenced by the prophecy, he still completed the actions of his own free
Throughout Willliam Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the idea of fate and what controls it is a major theme. Macbeth shows that, although outside forces plant seeds, men have the ability to control their own fate. Macbeth was influenced by the words of the witches, believing that the words that could potentially lead him to ultimate power. Macbeth received a prophecy that could possibly change his life; however, the only clear cut way he saw to get there was through murder.