Ambition In Macbeth And Star Wars

“As falls the dew on quenchless sands, blood only serves to wash ambition's hands” (Lord Byron). In William Shakespeare's Macbeth and George Lucas's Revenge of the Sith (Star Wars, ROTS), both Anakin and Macbeth show aggressive ambition to achieve power. This warring ambition influenced by external forces advents the destruction around them and in themselves. An ambition that conflicts with the moral conscience has devastating results because it detaches people from reality and makes them ungrounded. Such an ambition would be created under precognition, manipulation and naive belief in others. In Macbeth and ROTS, precognition is the factor which motivates Anakin's and Macbeth to engage in heinous crimes that would turn their lives into a

After Macbeth returns home he says this soliloquy to his wife, "But only vaulting ambition, which o'erleaps itself, and falls on the other." (I.vii.26-28). The witches’ prophecy creates an aggressive ambition in him to achieve power and kill the king. She responds to these by questioning Macbeth's hope, "Was the hope drunk, Wherein you dress'd yourself? Hath it slept since" (I.vii.35-36). Lady Macbeth manipulates Macbeth into murdering the king. Feeling hesitant by these accusations, he plots to kill the king and achieves his immoral ambition. Similarly, Palpatine manipulates Anakin using his fear of losing his wife. Palpatine manipulates Anakin about his dreams and promises to save his wife by mastering the dark force. After Anakin discovers Palpatine as a Sith Lord, he tells his news to Mace Windu. When Mace Windu tries to kill Chancellor Palpatine, Anakin tells Windu that killing Palpatine is against the Jedi rules. Furthermore, when Mace Windu refuses to Anakin, he says, "That's not the Jedi way. He must live. I need him"(Star Wars, ROTS), and chops off Windu's hand. He supports the Chancellor to save his wife and goes against Jedi council and becomes a destructive force and a puppet in Palpatine's hands. Therefore, manipulation based on Macbeth’s and Anakin’s fear makes them atrocious by trying to protect their