Truth In Shakespeare's 'Macbeth'

Cate McTigue
English 10H
Mrs.Hanson
1/10/23
Everything is Not What is Seems: Macbeth In Class Essay
Have you ever wanted something so bad that you are willing to ignore all the red flags? All the signs telling you that things might not be completely as they seem. If you have, you may relate to William Shakespeare’s play Macbeth. In the story Macbeth has been given a prophecy by three witches that he will become king, but the witches aren’t telling the whole truth. Macbeth becomes so obsessed over the idea of becoming king that he starts to not see things as they truly are. Throughout the play Macbeth becomes more and more reliant on the witches' prophecies, causing his perception of reality to become altered.
The witches initial prophecy leaves

He tries to reason with himself that this is a good thing, but he feels there is an underlying darkness to it. This is the start of Macbeth’s ambition and greed taking over him and his view of the world changing. He questions his thoughts when he says “This supernatural soliciting Cannot be ill, cannot be good. If ill, why hath it given me earnest of success Commencing in a truth?”(Macbeth 1.3.143-146) It shows how he is putting his thoughts and reasoning aside. Deep down Macbeth knows that there is something off with the prophecy, but he suppresses those feelings because he has been given a great reward. When he first heard the witches prediction he wasn’t sure it was true, and now he is convincing himself to put his bad

Macbeth's state of mind is shown when he envisions a dagger in front of him, pointing in the direction of Duncan’s room. “Is this dagger which I see before me, The handle toward my hand? Come let me clutch thee. I have thee not, and yet I see thee still.”(2.1.44-47) Although this dagger is just a figment of his imagination, it reveals how he has been so corrupted by the witches prophecy that the lines between appearances and reality are becoming blurred. Macbeth sees the dagger taunting him towards Duncan and takes it as a sign that he is supposed to kill him. In reality it is just his mind playing tricks on him, but Macbeth is so entranced by the prophecy that he will take anything as a sign to continue his evil actions. He has other visions similar to this throughout the play, such as the ghost of Banquo appearing to him “Avaunt, and quit my sight! Let the earth hide thee. Thy bones are marrowless; thy blood is cold; Thou hast no speculation in those eyes Which thou dost glare with.”(3.4.113-116) After this vision Macbeth decides to go back to the witches for answers. Although the witches are the ones who have caused all this chaos, Macbeth is still so obsessed with being king that he will do anything to keep his throne, even go back to the witches. Both of these visions show how the prophecy is making Macbeth’s view of reality skewed. These visions cause him to make bad decisions, such as