How Does Malcolm Affect Macbeth

“To the victim, adversity is bad. To the leader and warrior hard times are life’s richest times of growth, opportunity and possibility. Use them to fly” (Robin Sharma). Malcolm, son of King Duncan, is the epitome of this quote as he becomes a leader in both physical status and developing characteristics. Macbeth is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare that follows the greed for power and poor decisions made by the protagonist, Macbeth, that ultimately lead to his demise. With the news of his father’s murder and the threat of Macbeth taking over the throne, Malcolm becomes directly affected by Macbeth’s decisions, and is forced to take an internal journey to get rid of his timid nature and become confident when faced with trying times. Malcolm,

In the beginning of the play, Malcolm receives the news that his father, King Duncan, has been murdered. In response to this, Malcolm says,“What will you do? Let’s not consort with them:/ To show an unfelt sorrow is an office/ Which false man does easy. I’ll to/ England” (2.3.131-134). When talking to Donalbain, Malcolm reveals that he is skeptical of the honesty of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, since it is very easy to fake sorrow. Malcolm fears that he will suffer a fate similar to King Duncan. Because of this, he and his brother, Donalbain, leave Scotland and flee to England, enabling Macbeth with the opportunity to frame Malcolm for the murder. Instead of addressing the death of his father and figuring out who the real murderer was, Malcolm runs away from his issue, showing his cowardice in the beginning of the

Malcolm helps Macduff come up with and carry out the plot that wins the kingdom of Scotland back from Macbeth. In order to do that, Malcolm assembles a massive army to recover the throne from Macbeth. Malcolm reveals his plan of action to his army saying, “Now near enough. Your leafy screens throw down/ And show like those you are . -You, worthy uncle, / Shall with my cousin, your right noble son,/ Lead our first battle. Worthy Macduff and we/ Shall take upon’s what else remains to do,/ According to our order” (5.6.1-6). He encourages his army to be courageous against Macbeth and gives out responsibilities to Siward and Macduff. With this plan, Malcolm rids Scotland of its tyrant and builds his leadership skills as the new future king of Scotland. Malcolm’s plan was extremely successful and led him to the defeat of Macbeth, making him the new king of Scotland. He began making plans for his kingdom and declared, “Which would be planted newly with the time,/ As calling home our exiled friends abroad/ That fled the snares of watchful tyranny”(5.8. 78-80). Malcolm regains the throne to create peace and order in Scotland, and makes his first declaration in his new kingdom. He prepares to start a new era under his rule, calls his people home that were exiled by Macbeth, and invites them to see him crowned at Scone. With these two acts, Malcolm proves to be evolving into a heroic figure, ready to take over the