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Examples Of Duncan's Hesitation In Macbeth

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Macbeth is Not a Monster Would you consider Macbeth a monster or just a man? Even though his violence towards the end, Macbeth is not a monster because his hesitation and fear in the beginning and regarding to him being a tragic hero. Macbeth's hesitation about killing King Duncan allows us to infer that he begins the play as a relatively upright, loyal, and good man. This comes from the fact that he behaves so loyally and bravely in the battles that begin the play; the captain calls him "brave Macbeth" and graphically describes Macbeth's performance in the fight. Macbeth hesitates to kill Duncan because he has a change of mind. He begins thinking about the fact that Duncan has recently honored him by promoting him to the position of Thane of Cawdor. “With his surcease success; that but this blow might be the be-all and the end-all — here, but here, upon this bank and shoal of time, we'ld jump the life to come. But in these cases, we still have judgment here, that we but teach bloody instructions, which, being taught, return to plague the inventor” (Act 1 scene 7, 4-10). Macbeth explains to Lady Macbeth that he has decided not to kill King Duncan. …show more content…

Provoked and tempted by the witches, and cruel support by Lady Macbeth “Come, you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, and fill me from the crown to the toe top-full of direst cruelty!” (Shakespeare, lines 42-45). Macbeth kills Duncan and takes position of the throne. Macbeth’s first murder is definitely a trying experience for him causing his fear. The witches prophecies and Lady Macbeth’s influence intensifies his ambition and drives Macbeth to obtain and maintain his title of Scotland by whatever means, even murdering the king. He suffers from the pain of conscience, from a sense of insecurity, and from

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479 Words | 2 Pages

Around Act 1 Scene 7, Macbeth argues with himself on whether he should murder King Duncan, “If it were done when ’tis done, then ’twere well It were done quickly” where he means that if it the assassination of the king could be done without it returning “...To plague th' inventor” as this “even-handed justice commends the ingredients of our poisoned chalice to our own lips” then it should be done quickly if his murder would have no negative consequences and be successfully completed with his death (surcease), then Macbeth would risk eternal damnation however, he would gladly risk it. Macbeth is aware of the severe consequences that come with murdering King Duncan. He also could not find a reason beside his own ambition as King Duncan “Hath borne his faculties so meek, hath been so clear in his great office, that his virtues will plead like angels, trumpet-tongued, against the deep damnation of his taking-off;” and also that he is his kinsman and his subject who should always protect

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196 Words | 1 Pages

Macbeth gives many reasons as to why he does not want to kill Duncan. One reason he does not want to kill Duncan is because he is afraid of getting caught. He says that if he does kill Duncan, he needs to do it quickly because killing the king would be dangerous. Another reason he is hesitant to kill Duncan is because he is his kinsman. He feels like he will be going against a lot of rules by harming his guest.

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600 Words | 3 Pages

Macbeth’s allies would find it odd that he would want to kill Duncan because he is very loyal to him as far as they know. Although before Lady Macbeth has this conversation with MAcbeth he is a little

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1070 Words | 5 Pages

The witches tell Macbeth that he will become Thane of Cawdor and King of Scotland. Macbeth sees that the only way to become king is for him to kill one of his closest friends, King Duncan. At this point, ‘murder’ is a curse word in Macbeth’s mind. Nobody else has said or implied that Macbeth will have to kill Duncan, but he assumes that is what he has to do. He says that even the thought of murder shakes him up and confuses him to a point of an identity crisis.

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1018 Words | 5 Pages

Duncan fails to notice Macbeth’s hidden intentions because he is not a good judge of character. After Macbeth is rewarded the title of Thane of Cawdor, he declares in an aside that “I am Thane of Cawdor. / If good, why do I yield to that suggestion” (1.3.135-136). After hearing the witches’ prophecies, Macbeth immediately thinks about murdering Duncan to take his place on the throne.

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919 Words | 4 Pages

While Macbeth is contemplating whether or not to kill Duncan, he thinks about the consequence that will come afterward by stating: “his [Duncan’s] virtues / Will plead like angels, trumpet-tongued, against / The deep damnation of his taking-off” (1.7.18-20). This simile compares the the begging of his goodness to the angels’ compelling speech against all the wrongs that have been done to him. Even though Macbeth eventually is going to kill Duncan, he admits that Duncan is a virtuous king. In his head, he is rationalizing Duncan’s death by stating that Duncan’s good deeds will compensate bloody way of dying. Because Macbeth is still sane, he realizes that killing is not justifiable.

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620 Words | 3 Pages

Although many people might not consider Macbeth, from Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, to be a tragic hero, I believe that Macbeth was not pure evil, which makes him a tragic hero. Macbeth was going to cancel his assassination of King Duncan, but his wife persuaded him to follow through with it by questioning Macbeth’s strength and masculinity. Macbeth also struggled with immense guilt subsequent to the murder; his conscience chastised him for what he did wrong. When the Scottish army, led by Macbeth and Banquo, defeats the traitorous Thane of Cawdor, King Duncan declares that Macbeth will be the new Thane of Cawdor, without Macbeth knowing. As Macbeth and Banquo are on their way to the King’s court, three witches appear and prophesy that Macbeth

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783 Words | 4 Pages

So Macbeth was just waiting for the right time to do kill Duncan now that he has the chance to kill him he is going to do it. Which is very sick of him because he is doing it for the power and he wants to run the country a certain way and he knows that the people he is friends with will protect him so no can get to the him. Another way Macbeth should be known as a merely monster is that the witches who were

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1117 Words | 5 Pages

Moments like these test everyone and what we do in response to these events is something we cannot manipulate or fake. Everyone responds differently and in most causes murder and death brings upon raw and primitive instincts. Committing a crime takes time and patience, to plan and accept that you are taking a life. In the play, Macbeth takes no time in considering what he will be doing. Leading up to the murder Macbeth talks in respect to Duncan and he goes through with the murder because Lady Macbeth questions his manhood.

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614 Words | 3 Pages

Why does Macbeth kill King Duncan? Because Lady Macbeth convinced him to do so. This all could have easily been avoided if Macbeth never told Lady Macbeth about the witches prophecy, then Lady Macbeth would have never convinced him to kill King Duncan and a lot of people would still be alive. As Macbeth is worried about failing in killing King Duncan and thinking about not going through with the murder, Lady Macbeth says, “------------” ().

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818 Words | 4 Pages

Macbeth believes that since the witches first prediction of him becoming Thane of Cawdor rang true, perhaps him becoming King of Scotland will as well. Therefore, through an apprehensively cautious tone, figurative language, and appeals to logos Macbeth catalogs arguments on why he should not kill King Duncan which is effective, but is eventually foiled due to Lady Macbeth’s manipulations. To begin, Macbeth uses a apprehensively cautious tone while expressing all the reasons he should not be the one to end Duncan’s life. First, he very clearly voices is concern of being caught or punished for killing the King. “This even-handed justice commends the ingredients of our poison’d chalice to our own lips” (Shakespeare 27).

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673 Words | 3 Pages

Macbeth shows that he is willing to kill King Duncan because he is interested in the witches prophecy, after they tell him that he will become ‘Thane of Cawdor’ and then the King.

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1288 Words | 6 Pages

Macbeth was the Thane of Cawdor but he wanted to be king more than anything. The witches had told him that he would one day be king but he did not know how long that would take so when King Duncan had been invited to stay the night at his house he exclaimed that “My thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical,/ shakes so my single state of man/ that function is smother 'd in surmise,/ and nothing is but what is not”(1.3.52-55). He felt that if he were to kill King Duncan that he would have a better chance of becoming king. Though the witches had never told him that someone would need to get murdered for him to become king, his ambition tempted him to quicken this process the only way he felt he could. This was the beginning of the murderer that the witches had created with the fortune telling.

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1021 Words | 5 Pages

He goes from being a loyal soldier to a cruel tyrant killing all of his enemies. In the beginning of the play he is presented as a loyal soldier to King Duncan and he is widely respected and admired by people. It can seem questionable as to why Macbeth is an antagonist when he has the trope of a hero. Despite that image, his inner thoughts begin to reveal themselves, showing another side to Macbeth that people don’t know about. Macbeth soon admits to his dark lust for power and status beyond his capability.

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789 Words | 4 Pages

Macbeth is struggling and entangled with the advantage and disadvantage of killing Duncan. Macbeth appears hallucination under the temptation of power: “Mine eyes are made the fools o’th’ other senses, / Or else worth all the reset I see thee still, / And on thy blade and dudgeon gouts of blood, / Which was not before. There’s no such thing.

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