ipl-logo

Examples Of Power In Macbeth

564 Words3 Pages

Desire, power, control: Three traits that are ignited in Macbeth as a result of his wife, Lady Macbeth and the three witches. From the start, we are introduced to the main character, the Thane of Glamis, a patriotic and noble man. We see things start to change after Macbeth is visited by three witches, who predicts he will soon become the Thane of Cawdor. Macbeth ignores this prediction until he visits his wife, Lady Macbeth. In Macbeth, Macbeth is manipulated by his wife Lady Macbeth, and the witches, who are the true causes of his downfall. To begin, the three witches fuel the desire of curiosity within Macbeth to prevent him from reaching his true potential. The witches purposefully invade Macbeth’s mind with prophecies to make him greedy and bring out the evil …show more content…

In Act 1 Scene 5, Lady Macbeth delivers a soliloquy after finding out Macbeth’s fate. She starts by telling the “Spirits/ That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, / And fill me from the crown to the toe top–full/ Of direst cruelty” (I.v.39-42). This quote suggests Lady Macbeth feels a desire to become a man to complete the job herself. She is aware that Macbeth will be too kind to kill King Duncan and earn the title as the Thane of Cawdor. As a result, Lady Macbeth attempts to change his mind. In Act 1 Scene 7, Lady Macbeth labels Macbeth a coward and makes fun of his manhood by claiming he is too kind to do the job. After Macbeth objects, Lady Macbeth exclaims “When you durst do it, then you were a man” (I.vii.49-51). Using these words, Lady Macbeth brings out the competitive and sexist nature in Macbeth. Macbeth refuses to be underestimated and appear weak in front of others. Furthermore, Macbeth’s initial objection suggests his free will. In these ways, the Lady manipulates Macbeth and attempts to live through him to accomplish her thirst for power. She knows this is the only way to achieve her

Show More
Related
1081 Words | 5 Pages

Lady Macbeth craves to be cold, ruthless and in control, which are typical masculine traits in Shakespeares time. As a result of this she begins manipulating her husband to gain what she wants. She manipulates Macbeth with great effectiveness, which she achieves by undermining his objections to murdering Duncan. when she sees him hesitating to go forward with the murder, she begins repeatedly questioning his manhood until he feels that he must do it just to prove himself and his masculinity; she says “When you durst do it, then you were a man; And to be more than what you were, you would Be so much more the man”. Lady Macbeth abuses her power by planting the idea in her husband's mind that anybody who stood in her and Macbeth’s way on the journey to reach royalty was to be destroyed, and made him feel as if he was less a man if he decided against it.

Read More
831 Words | 4 Pages

When Lady Macbeth found out about the predictions the witches had for Macbeth, she started to pressure him, even guilt tripped him about their deceased son, and made him doubt the morals he valued. As act I of Macbeth, carried on, the image and principles Macbeth had for himself began to rot away. While Macbeth desired take King Duncan’s throne, he wanted to do it the in righteous matter. Whenever Macbeth had doubts about killing King Duncan, Lady Macbeth was always there to urge him otherwise, because she cared more about power than him "Great Glamis, worthy Cawdor." (1.5 52).

Read More
422 Words | 2 Pages

Macbeth Act 1 Macbeth learns that he is to be the next king through three witches, and his wife does everything in her power to make this prophecy come true. Lady Macbeth tries many different tactics of persuasion, like insulting his manhood. As stated in Macbeth Act 1 sc. 7, her husband’s response that “I dare do all that may become a man. Who dares do more is none” does not stop or slow down her determination to convince Macbeth to kill the king and take the throne.

Read More
1724 Words | 7 Pages

In act one scene 7, Macbeth doubts if he should kill the king; however, his wife, Lady Macbeth, manipulates him into proceeding. It might be difficult for Macbeth, the renowned warrior, to hear his wife accusing him of cowardice. Therefore, under Lady Macbeth’s influence, as she questions his manhood, he commences the murder in order to prove to her that he is not a “coward.” This is important to note because his soliloquy shows his determination to proceed.

Read More
465 Words | 2 Pages

Macbeth came upon three witches that filled his mind with prophecies that essentially set him up for failure and proved that he has little to no will power. Just as his wife, Lady Macbeth, pushed and hounded him to commit crimes and sin to fulfill her own greed. Macbeth tells the story of misfortune and woe of a King in the 11th century, battling apprehension and beliefs that he is unfit to rule a country. After

Read More
312 Words | 2 Pages

The word power is defined as the ability to do something or act in a particular way, especially as a faculty or quality. In William Shakespeare's tragedy that is Macbeth the desire for power is the driving force behind the demise of many characters. The main character Macbeth, strives for power, it motivates him to such an end that he is willing to not only take his own life but the lives of his friends and the innocent. The desire for power becomes so vigorous that it turns into a dark obsession. This fixation for power caused many catastrophic events to occur.

Read More
466 Words | 2 Pages

Macbeth may not be the hero Scotland thought he was, because he could have genuinely been a good person and cared about Duncan or only considered not killing him because he was his cousin being the only thing stopping him from doing it. But the power could be to blame since some naturally want the power to control others, though not everybody with power is bad. Duncan is a good example of power not causing people to be corrupt, since he treated Macbeth well by giving him land, making him cawdor, etc. Maybe it was the fact that Macbeth was his cousin, but he wasn’t killing everybody he didn’t trust like macbeth did. As a matter of fact Duncan even stayed over in Macbeth’s castle without any suspicion towards him at all.

Read More
1072 Words | 5 Pages

She is an expert at manipulating situations to suit her desires, and she has a fierce determination to push her husband towards fulfilling the witches' prophecy of becoming king. Her insatiable and unrelenting ambition propels her into a perilous descent towards madness. The film also explores the theme of unchecked greed, with the characters becoming increasingly selfish and ruthless as they pursue their desires. The witches are a prime example of this, as they manipulate Macbeth into believing he is destined to become king. Their greed for power and control ultimately leads to the destruction of not only Macbeth but also many innocent

Read More
824 Words | 4 Pages

At the beginning of William Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’ the protagonist Macbeth is described as ‘brave’, ‘noble’ and ‘honourable’, however Lady Macbeth’s and Macbeths desire for power consumes them. Macbeth’s ambition overrides his conscience and transformed his greatest strength into his greatest weakness. Macbeth’s inability to resist temptations that led him to be greedy for power, Macbeth’s easily manipulative nature which allowed his mind to be swayed, Macbeth having no self control and his excessive pride was what allowed him to renew his previously honourable and celebrated title into one of an evil ‘tyrant’. Macbeth is led by the prophecies of the witches after they foretell he will become the Thane of Cawdor. Not only the witches, but also his wife easily manipulate Macbeth as she attacks his manhood in order to provoke him to act on his desires.

Read More
107 Words | 1 Pages

William Shakespeare portrayed the character Lady Macbeth to be extremely ruthless, malicious and manipulative. Thus, being the reason she could easily convince Macbeth to do her will, yet still put on such a convincing performance in front of those who knew nothing of her and her husband’s actions. Lady Macbeth shows her complexity constantly throughout the story when she shares her view-point on masculinity by demasculinizing her own husband, when she strategically plans the murder of the King Duncan, and finally when she finally goes crazy because of the guilt she possesses for not only her own actions but also turning her own husband into a

Read More
980 Words | 4 Pages

Though Macbeth is a brave general and a powerful lord, his wife is far from obedient to his will. Indeed, she often seems to control him, either by crafty manipulation or by direct order.

Read More
682 Words | 3 Pages

Macbeth is the Shakespearean play that features the triumphant uprise and the inevitable downfall of its main character. In this play, Macbeth’s downfall can be considered to be the loss of his moral integrity and this is achieved by ambition, despite this, Lady Macbeth and the witches work through his ambition, furthering to assist his inevitable ruin. Ambition alone is the most significant factor that led to Macbeth’s downfall. The witches are only able to influence his actions through Macbeth’s pre-existing and the three witches see that Macbeth has ambition and uses it to control his action. Ambition alone is displayed throughout the play to be the most significant cause for Macbeth’s downfall.

Read More
272 Words | 2 Pages

The concept of power is discussed within the play by using strong symbolism to show authority through the characters of Macduff, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. After reading a letter from her spouse, Lady Macbeth has a thought about murdering King Duncan letting Macbeth become king. She then realises that she has to “unsex” herself and “take my milk for gall” so she is able to help her Husband, Macbeth to kill Duncan. Lady Macbeth believed that her “keen knife see not the wound it makes” will happen and she will be powerful if she shows more manhood.

Read More
1959 Words | 8 Pages

She is malicious not only in words but also in her intent. Her sole object is to obtain power and wealth, with its attendant treasures. Lady Macbeth lacks humanity and regrets that she was not born as a man. She understands that power and violence are synonymous with manhood and bravery. Additionally, Lady Macbeth interests’ and ambition, override her love for even her husband, Macbeth.

Read More
678 Words | 3 Pages

Power can be used to achieve greatness and create a positive nature in the world, but it also has the ability to create havoc and chaos if in the wrong hands. In Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, the main character, Macbeth, gains power quickly in terrible ways, and abuses the power to create pandemonium in Scotland. He was informed about a prophecy which foretold his future with many complications ahead of him. As the play progresses, Macbeth may be characterized as a hero who submerges to evil to become the villain, due to his ambition, maliciousness, and wickedness.

Read More

More about Examples Of Power In Macbeth

Open Document