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Banquo In Macbeth

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Macbeth Essay Banquo's significance as a character shapes the plot of the play, even after he leaves the world Macbeth resides in. In the tragedy of Macbeth, By William Shakespeare, the character Macbeth is told of his fate and his actions are then controlled by his knowledge of it. He kills the King and ascends to the throne, and becomes paranoid. Banquo plays an equally important role in Macbeth's decisions before he dies, as he does in the Lords’ conclusion that Macbeth has unfairly come to power after he dies. While Banquo still lives, Macbeth makes many decisions as the result of Banquo's existence in the play. Early in the play, Banquo encourages Macbeth to think nothing of the encounter with the witches, "to win us to our harm, The …show more content…

During the dinner with the lords, Macbeth hallucinates the ghost of Banquo and screams, "Thou canst not say I did it. Never shake Thy gory locks at me"(IIV.iv.55-56). Macbeth's mental state begins to falter as shown in this scene, demonstrating the power Banquo's character has on Macbeth even after he has passed. As a result of Macbeth's episode, the lords become suspicious of Macbeth. Macbeth becomes extremely paranoid after he kills Banquo, and his son escapes death. He goes to see the witches and demands, "answer me To what I ask you"(IV.i.62-62). The witches respond with insight and explain that MacDuff is a powerful threat to him. Based on this information, he decides, "The castle of Macduff I will surprise, Seize upon Fife, give to th' edge o' th' sword His wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls"(IV.ii.157-159), and he carries through with the action. The murder of innocent children and a woman is completely unnecessary, but because Macbeth sought out the wisdom of the witches due to his paranoia from the vision of Banquo's unliving character, it occurred. As a result, MacDuff seeks revenge for the murder of his family, and eventually murders Macbeth, and Banquo's name takes the throne, just as the witches have suggested. In summary, due to the lack of a positive influence, like Banquo while he lives, and to the mental stress and negative influence

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