Macbeth Power Essay

Simply put, power is everything. Those with power are calculated, doing anything to maintain control. Those who lack power yearn for it. They will do anything to get it within their grasp. These ideas are prevalent throughout Shakespeare's play Macbeth. The play chronicles Macbeth's rise to power. He enters the play powerless but seemingly good-hearted. Instead, Macbeth relies on his wife to nurture his every illegitimate desire. Furthermore, at the start of the play, Lady Macbeth wields all of their power, but she lusts for more. She wants the ‘moon and the stars’ and will use her husband to get it. Thus, their relationship power defines their relationship: Macbeth’s shortage, and Lady Macbeth’s surplus. Yet, Macbeth will obtain the power he lacks. Accordingly,

She is ruthless in her pursuits and is willing to sacrifice her soul for power, “unsex me here” (Shakespeare, 1.5.47). Accordingly, her drive for power seeps into her relationship with Macbeth. The pair are not equal. Instead, Lady Macbeth has the upper hand. Furthermore, this becomes clear as she manipulates a wavering Macbeth into murdering Duncan, “We fail”. But screw your courage to this stinking place, and we’ll not fail.” (1.7. 69-71). See the As Macbeth falters, she plays to his ego, as well as virility, to steer him in the right direction, to her path. Thus, she showcases her machiavellian tendencies along with her dominance over her husband. Ambition is worthless without driving. At first glance, Macbeth is nothing if not an obliging man. He follows the king, he follows his wife, and he follows the words of anyone but himself. Additionally, Lady Macbeth describes him as good-natured and kind, not a man willing to kill (1.5.17). It is not that he is without ambition, he just refuses to voice it. Moreover, he needs it to be thrust to fruition. Hence, he becomes easily steamrolled into his wife’s