Macbeth's Ambition Research Paper

William Shakespeare was a playwright during the early years of the 17th century. He wrote over thirty plays during his time living in Stratford-upon-Avon, England. Macbeth is one of William Shakespeare’s many tragedies. In Macbeth, Shakespeare uses the theme of ambition throughout the play to bring the character of Macbeth to his eventual downfall. His ambition presents itself in three ways: when he murders King Duncan, when he plots to assassinate Banquo, and when he plots to assassinate Macduff’s family. For example, Macbeth’s ambition leads him to murder King Duncan so that he and Lady Macbeth can rise to power as the new monarchs of Scotland. At first, Macbeth is revealed to be scared to murder the king, but his ambition overpowers his

He decides to kill Banquo because of a prophecy that the witches had shown both Macbeth and Banquo earlier in the play. The prophecy stated that, although Banquo would not be king, his sons and future ancestors would be great kings. Macbeth’s ambition to have a line of kings from his own blood starts to lead him to the conclusion that Banquo and his son must die. Shakespeare writes, “To be thus is nothing, / But to be safely thus. Our fears in Banquo / Stick deep, and in his royalty of nature / Reigns that which would be feared. 'Tis much he dares, / And to that dauntless temper of his mind / He hath a wisdom that doth guide his valor / To act in safety. There is none but he / Whose being I do fear, and under him”(III.i.50-58). Macbeth expresses how he fears no one but Banquo. As a result, he hires an assassin to kill Banquo and his son. Unfortunately for Macbeth, Banquo’s son

Macbeth begins to slightly fear Macduff after a prophecy made by the witches. Macbeth had gone to the witches and demanded to be shown his future; one of the prophecies is a warning for him to beware of Macduff. His messengers inform him that Macduff has fled to England, so Macbeth decides to kill his family instead to be safe. Macbeth says, “The castle of Macduff I will surprise, / Seize upon Fife, give to th' edge o' th' sword / His wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls” (IV.i.156-159). In this quote, Macbeth is ordering that Macduff's wife and children be killed. Macbeth had originally wanted to have Macduff killed, but decided that killing his family would be enough to prevent Macduff from causing him any harm. Later, it is revealed that not killing Macduff led to Macbeth’s hastened