In Macbeth, Shakespeare presents a ‘butcher and his fiend-like queen’. To what extent would you agree with this presentation of the two main character in Acts 1-4?
There are many ways Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are presented as ‘a butcher and his find like queen’. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth committed regicide, which a Jacobean audience would consider to be mortal sin so they would consider them as evil. However it was the witches’ prophecies that fuelled Macbeth’s ambition and led him to kill Duncan not because they were evil. Shakespeare allows us to witness the corruption of both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth through a range of linguistic and dramatic devices. Nearer the end of the play Macbeth demonstrates that he has no conscience however lady
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As the play progresses Macbeth appears as a ‘butcher’ with no conscience who does not hesitate to kill someone. From the start of the play it is obvious Macbeth does not hesitate as in Act 1 Scene 2 the captain describes Macbeth killing Macdonwald as ‘unseam’d’ indicating he ripped him open with his sword, which would have left him in extreme pain before he died, showing he did not care or hesitate to kill him. This point is further reinforced when the captain tells Malcolm that Macbeth ‘never bade farewell’ to Macdonwald and ‘ne’er shook hands’, confirming he did not feel guilt when killing him. In Act 4 Scene 1 Macbeth is told by an apparition that he cannot be harmed by anyone born of a woman so he believes that no one can harm him even Macduff however he wants to ‘make assurance double sure’. This indicates that he wants to kill Macduff to make sure he cannot harm him however it is not necessary so he believes that one more murder isn’t that serious and he doesn’t hesitate to start planning the murder of Macduff and his family. However in Act 1 Scene 7 Macbeths tries to convince himself to kill Duncan. However during his soliloquy he cannot find a