Differences Between Macbeth And Romeo And Juliet

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Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare, has a presence everywhere in today’s world, especially in modern literature. It has earned the title of one of the most famous romantic tragedies of all time, and rightfully so. Revolving around the two protagonists (Romeo and Juliet), taking place in the city of Verona, Italy, the plot describes a tragic tale of two love-stricken souls, who were unfortunately never meant to be. Coming from two families whose rivalries haven’t yet ceased (the Montagues and the Capulets), they meet by chance and immediately discovered an incredibly strong attraction to each other. However, under the extremely unfortunate circumstances, the only fate that awaited Romeo and Juliet was death. In Romeo and Juliet and …show more content…

On the opposite hand, Macbeth most definitely differs from Romeo in more ways than one. In the beginning of Macbeth, he lives as a successful soldier before he begins to overthrow the king (Mac. 1.2.45)-- a completely different situation from Romeo’s at the beginning of Romeo and Juliet. Another major difference in their characters is that although Romeo is static and round, Macbeth is dynamic and round, for he does, in fact, change throughout the course of the play. In the beginning, Macbeth’s character is seen as well respected, brave, valiant, and a loyal soldier, though at the end, he is seen as a cruel tyrant who brought injustice and misfortune to Scotland. One trait that fueled the journey onto his unfortunate path includes his endless ambition. Unlike Romeo, whose only interest is romance, Macbeth’s only true desire is power and the title of King, stopping at nothing to accomplish his goals. Even so, though Macbeth shows a reluctance to kill in the beginning, he continues anyway (Mac. 2.1.75), even sinking lower into manipulating other people to kill for him (Mac. 3.1.100.). His longing for status and power becomes so great, that even when Lady Macbeth dies