Jawaharlal Nehru, the first prime minister of India, once stated, “Life is a game of cards.The hand you're dealt is determinism; the way you play it is free will,” is very relevant to Macbeth, in which the main protagonist, Macbeth, struggles as he assumes power. Throughout the play, Macbeth runs into many situations such as the witch's prophecy and Lady Macbeth’s persuasion, which seem to cause his violent actions. The witches and Lady Macbeth try to twist Macbeth’s morals, causing his ideas to become disturbing. Although one may believe Macbeth’s actions are an act of fate, Macbeth’s decisions are entirely based on his free will. In the beginning of the play, Macbeth and Banquo confront the three witches in which they state the prophecy …show more content…
When Macbeth tells his wife of his doubt to kill Duncan she hastily responds, stating, “Have pluck’d my nipple from his boneless gums, And dash’d the brains out, had I so sworn (1.7.55-56).” In this quote, Lady Macbeth states how she would kill an innocent baby if she had the opportunity. This quote is symbolic, as this is when Lady Macbeth reminds Macbeth to fulfill the witches prophecy and follow fate by challenging his courage. Lady Macbeth’s persuasion seems to be the reason why Macbeth carried out the murder , however Macbeth later reveals his real …show more content…
Right before he murders King Duncan, Macbeth hallucinates a floating dagger, and fearfully states, “Thou marshall’st me the way that I was going (2.1.41).” This quote depicts Macbeth’s dagger floating towards King Duncan’s room which is where the murder will take place. It is important that the dagger leads Macbeth to the room, not guiding him as Macbeth was already heading to King Duncan’s room. This is symbolic as it shows that Macbeth used his own free will to commit the murder. This dagger is just Macbeth’s conscience reassuring him to follow the murder . Macbeth’s decision to kill Duncan was not fate given to him by the prophecy, instead he merely followed what his conscience