The Tragedy of Macbeth is a well known story that revolves around the word “ambition” but this ambition isn’t always self driven by someone, but rather through the influence of someone else who maintains control of the situation. The story is about a man whose desire to be the king and have power leads to the murders of those who might stand in his way. Throughout the story we see many characters who play major parts in how one event follows another, and how some characters seem to completely have control of the events in the story. Although in Macbeth the Three Sisters and Macbeth exhibit some control over the events, Lady Macbeth has the most responsibility.
William Shakespeare’s Macbeth is a testimony to the difference between greed and ambition, good and evil, and right and wrong. The story shows that when one becomes obsessed with power, they will often resort to methods of manipulation and retaliation to achieve their desired outcome. In the case of Macbeth, he is approached by the Three Witches who inform him that he will one day become Thane of Cawdor and the King of Scotland. Additionally, they inform Macbeth’s comrade Banquo that his sons will one day be kings.
His lust for power drives him to murder Banquo and Fleance to ensure that they will not become kings, and so that his own sons will inherit the throne. Making rationalizations for the murders, he recalls the witches’ prophecy, by saying “They hailed him to a line of kings... No son of mine succeeding.” (3.1) Desiring to retain the power he occupies, Macbeth becomes increasingly willing to kill in order to preserve it. His mental state begins to deteriorate rapidly as he becomes increasingly more paranoid due to the lingering guilt of the crimes.
His desire for the crown outweighed his conscience to do what was morally right. Now, void of morality, he kills the guards to cover up and divert any suspicion from himself. And, as his thrust for power grows, he kills his friend Banquo to eliminate all threats that would stand in his way. His tyranny did not stop there; not only was he a lying murderer, but he now personified evil as he set eye on “The castle of Macduff” by ordering the killing of everyone in the household (4.1.151). Macbeth reigned with fear, berating those around him or killing them to maintain control.
As humans, the power to control is one of the most dominant feelings that ignores the harm it can cause others. The greed for more power brings out the selfish and merciless side of someone, leading them to their eventual downfall and the destruction of everyone around them. In the play Macbeth, by William Shakespeare, the story begins with Macbeth, who is King of Glamis, and Banquo, King of Lochaber, meeting with the Three Weird Sisters to hear a prophecy they foretell. Macbeth learns he will be crowned King of Scotland and the idea of him becoming king slowly consumes him, becoming his focus throughout the play. For them to control the throne, Macbeth and his wife form plans to kill everyone and anyone in their way, starting with King Duncan
As individuals, we have a certain degree of control over our own lives and the decisions we make. While external factors such as social pressure, cultural norms, and personal circumstances can influence us, ultimately, we have agency in choosing how we respond to those factors. This is portrayed through William Shakespeare's tragedy, Macbeth, the titular character Macbeth is the protagonist, a Scottish general who receives a prophecy from three witches that he will become king. Consumed by ambition and spurred on by his wife, Lady Macbeth, Macbeth murders King Duncan and takes the throne for himself. However, his guilt and paranoia lead him to commit more murders in order to maintain his power, and he becomes increasingly tyrannical as his
“That every minute of his being thrustsAgainst my nearest of life; and though I could With barefaced power sweep him from my sight And bid my will avouch it. Yet I must not,For certain friends, that are both his and mine,Whose loves I may not drop, but wail his fall,Who I myself struck down”(Shakespeare 3.1 115). The quote is Macbeth talking to murderers telling them to murder Banquo and his son so he can stay king. Macbeth killed Banquo so he can have no more kids and tried to kill Banquo's son so he can't be king either. Macbeth felt greed when he killed Banquo and duncan.
There are a lot of parts of the play Macbeth that were very important throughout the play. Macbeth was a very dangerous guy after the witches told him that he will become the king of scotland. That led to Macbeth killing a lot of people and having their workers or guardians making killing people and their families. The most important part of the play of Macbeth was when Macbeth walked into the king 's room with the bodyguards in the room, but they didn 't notice Macbeth because they were to drunk to notice him.. So when they found the king dead in his bed.
Macbeth Findlàich is famously known from Shakespeare and the Scottish Play, 'Macbeth'. Shakespeare did many plays on historical events but not very historically accurate. He exaggerated a lot in his plays and switched a few things around, 'Macbeth' being one of these plays. This Scottish play deals with evil, darkness, prophecies, desires, and the feelings after getting what was wanted. This paper will cover a little bit about Duncan, King of Scotland during 1034-40, how Macbeth became King of Scotland, Malcolm, Duncan's son defeating Macbeth and what role the Scottish Play by Shakespeare plays in this historical event.
His capricious and malicious acts prove how naive and vile he is as a person. Macbeth even attempts to kill Banquo to prevent any trace of his nature from making him, a “fruitless crown.” Macbeth states, “Must lave or honors in the flattering streams, and make our face vizards to our heart, disguising who we are,”(3.2.45). With such desperation, Macbeth is willing to include other people in his premeditated murder. By having Lady Macbeth be part of his plot to kill Banquo, Macbeth reveals two things about himself: That he does not value those around him, even if they are his loved ones, and that he places his personal success over all aspects of his life.
Does Macbeth relate to modern society? This can go both ways, there is some evidence that states it relates to society, and some that does not. Most of the story relates to Society for a good reason. If you have the ambition to get a task done, you would do anything to get it done. Even if you use immoral means to get done.
The Correlation of Macbeth’s Contemporary Issues With Modern Day Society In Macbeth by William Shakespeare many issues addressed in the play are still relevant in today’s society. People can relate life over four hundred years ago to life today by bringing the contemporary issues used in this play forward such as fate vs free will, violence and repercussions, and stress and mental illness. These issues arise quite frequently in modern society, yet the people carrying out these actions are sometimes unaware of how detrimental the end result can become. By relating these topics between Shakespeare’s Macbeth and society over four hundred years after the play was written, people may be able to better understand the connection between fate vs free
Macbeth is also a power hungry man who would do just about anything to achieve his goal of becoming King. When Macbeth first hears the prophecies from the three witches he instantly became invested with the journey to become king. Similar to Lady Macbeth, nothing was going to come between him and his potential power, “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). This quote exemplifies how Macbeth’s initial solution to becoming king was murder.
If something is too old, does that mean it is not relevant anymore? The dreadful play Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare in the sixteenth century, has created a lot of controversy towards the issue that it is not relatable to a modern audience anymore. However, the themes, and character traits found in Macbeth are very similar and relatable to a modern society. The play Macbeth, demonstrates humanity, which will never change, attesting to the fact that, the play is still relatable to a twenty-first-century audience.
Some of the themes in Macbeth that are relevant today is the coruption of power, ambition, and fate. Corruption of power is relevant to the 21st century because like Lady Macbeth, when someone gets a feel of being powerful it gets to their head and they crave more and always want to be more powerful. Ambition connects with the 21st century because every one has to be determined for what they want in life and have to be willing to do whatever it has to do to achieve what they want, like when Macbeth and Lady Macbeth did what they needed to do to be great and powerful like they desired. Lastly, fate is relevant to the 21st century, because everyone has their own fate and whether they accept it like Banquo or they try and fight it like Macbeth, fate always wins in its
