In Shakespeare’s Elizabethan tragedy, Macbeth, Shakespeare utilizes the motifs of blood and sleep to demonstrate the effects of murder ultimately illustrating the power of guilt. The play begins with the three witches telling Macbeth a prophecy that he will one day become king. With this information, Lady Macbeth plots the murder of Duncan for her husband—who is anxious—to become king. However, they realize there are more people in the way, and they start killing more and more people. Malcolm and Macduff see what’s going on and flee to England to think of a plan to get rid of Macbeth.
Lady Macbeth is placed between “Innocent” and “Guilty” as the “Temptress”. In the beginning of the play, Macbeth has hesitations towards killing King Duncan, but Lady Macbeth mocks his masculinity and persuades him to commit the murder. She is innocent because she did not stab King Duncan and the others herself, but she is the ultimate reason the murders were carried through in the first place. King Duncan is placed between “Innocent” and “Not Guilty” as “Righteous”. The main obstacle between Macbeth and the thrown, he was the first person to have a metaphorical target on his back.
In play Macbeth, Shakespeare reveals that an individual’s great desire for power will lead him/her to perform consequential deeds that will scar his/her conscience and change the outcome of his/her life eternally. Macbeth is informed by three witches that he is going to become king and this initiates Macbeth’s thought of becoming powerful. Macbeth doesn’t act on his thoughts until he tells his wife, Lady Macbeth, that he could become king. Lady Macbeth is extremely power hungry and does all she can to convince Macbeth to be just as desirable as her. Together, they come up with a plan to murder King Duncan, so that Macbeth can become king like the witches foretold.
In the play, “Macbeth”, a certain theme comes into play: Guilt. This particular theme centers around the guilty conscience of Macbeth and his wife when they decided to kill the King of Scotland. Given the fact that Macbeth did indeed kill King Duncan himself, most people would pronounce him guilty. What they don’t realize is that Lady Macbeth came up with the plan to kill King Duncan, provoked her husband into committing murder by stripping him of his masculinity, and even showed indifference when the death of the king had already occurred. Because she conjured up the plan to kill King Duncan, provoked her husband into committing murder, and was even unfeeling after killing a beloved king, she is the one held responsible for the murder of the King of Scotland.
While all of these people were obvious serial killers with motives and psychologicalissues, the question still poses if the real Macbeth was a serial killer as Shakespear suggestshe was with his character in the play. The true MacBeth was born into a Scottish familyaround 1005 and died in 1057 due to being killed in battle, but not the same type of battle asShakespear’s Macbeth. Although the Shakespearean version of Macbeth’s character was amurderous serial killer, the true MacBeth was surprisingly not this way. At the young age of7, he was sent to a monastery to be educated by monks. There was not much else documentedabout his young life during this specific time, except for the death of his cousin,Gillecomgain, in 1032.
A bully is a person who uses strength or influence to intimidate someone else. This is an issue that affects people worldwide. There are over 3.2 million students that are victims of bullying each year. In book Macbeth the main character Macbeth is bullied and then becomes a bully himself. Macbeth's bullying has had a negative affect on him and the people around him.
Since the guilt built up Macbeth started losing his mind more and more. Killing was a way to feel power to Macbeth since his wife used that against him when challenging his man hood. Lady Macbeth knew the other plans but never stopped them. Stopping a problem before it happens can make someone feel good about themselves, but Lady Macbeth did not stop it. Her not preventing the future murders that was more guilt added to her
In William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, Lady Macbeth serves as the driving force of the killing of King Duncan. She begins as a ruthless murderer that is determined to aid her husband in receiving the throne of Scotland. After killing Duncan Macbeth, her husband, abandons her aid and brutally murders many others as king. Macbeth, out of her control, leaves her alone to deal with the guilt of the murders and she slips into depression. She is so full of guilt begins sleepwalking and later is believed to commit suicide because the guilt is too much to live with.
Guilt has the potential to crumble even the most powerful of mortals. The Shakespearean tragedy Macbeth reveals the consequence of immoral action: guilt. William Shakespeare portrays the idea that the downfall of one may transpire as a result of this regret. Throughout the play, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are negatively affected as they are overwhelmed by the realization that they have violated their moral standards; this causes their guilt. The two attempt to conceal the remorse they experience, but despite this, their misdeeds take their toll.
The witches, Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, and other characters seem to act one way, whether it be good or evil, but their intentions are usually impure and meant to harm others in order to benefit themselves. Macbeth’s guilt is caused by the foul play the witches involve themselves in. If not for their prophecy, Macbeth would have never known of his fate and would have gained the kingship without involving murder, leading to his guilty conscious. The use of Supernatural elements is added to the plot of the play in order to show readers what led to Macbeth’s downfall, and what contributed to his guilt. His guilt arose from the
The play Macbeth by William Shakespeare is a classic tragedy that includes a lot of death in the form of murder. The most significant death in the play is the death of King Duncan, whom Macbeth killed. Although Macbeth was the one who killed the king, it was Lady Macbeth who was the brains behind the act. Through the guilt of her actions, Lady Macbeth goes mad at the end of the play and in the end, kills herself. Although some may believe that she is a victim of her ambition, it is ultimately Lady Macbeth’s ambition, manipulation, and encouragement towards Macbeth’s actions that make her deserving of her fate at the end of the play.
In the tragedy of Macbeth, there is much deception, murder, and sadness. It is very interesting how the story plays out with the many crimes Macbeth and his wife commit. They do get what they deserve, but not by the hand of a judge or a courtroom, and certainly not at the pace that they should have received their punishment. In Act I, Macbeth and Banquo had just returned from their battles against the invading armies of Ireland and Norway.
Shakespeare uses the motif of blood to highlight the theme of punishment, where the effects of violence and wrongdoing have the greatest influence on those who committed such actions. Macbeth’s marriage is one of contradicting roles where he often takes the backseat, allowing Lady Macbeth to lead. His inability to take action gives Lady Macbeth many opportunities to persuade him into making risky decisions, namely killing the king. Macbeth, shocked with his own actions and flowing with remorseful thoughts, pleads for the “all great Neptune’s ocean [to] wash [the] blood/ Clean from [his] hand,” (59). Despite coming to terms with his actions, the image of King Duncan lying dead with “his silver skin laced with his golden blood,” (69) saturates
Macbeth and Lady Macbeth commits these murders against their allies so that the could be happy and gain power, but in the end, they had psychologically deteriorated and lost everything they had and once held dear to
Macbeth, Crime and Punishment Macbeth, a warrior, earns the title of Thane of Cawdor early in the play. His wife, Lady Macbeth, wants him to become king like the witches prophesied. They make a plan to kill Duncan while Macbeth starts to kill other people. All this murder begins to weigh heavily on the Macbeth’s and they start going crazy with guilt.
