Power Will Lead To Insanity In Shakespeare's 'Macbeth'

Macbeth Essay

Shakespeare's Macbeth takes us through the detailed development of his characters. A character that shows a lot of development throughout the story is Macbeth himself, someone who seems simple until his mental state spirals out of control and his life becomes complex. The reason that Macbeth loses his mind is because he feels pressured by Lady Macbeth to obtain more power. The play Macbeth by William Shakespeare depicts how having too much power will lead to insanity. The idea of losing all sanity is illustrated through Macbeth, Lady Macbeth and Malcolm all craving power. In the beginning of the play Macbeth shows us how wanting power leads to insanity when he requests Banquo to be killed. This would be because Macbeth feels

They begin to brainstorm solutions of how they will get Scotland back to the thriving country it was before Macbeth came into power. While talking about they types of leaders they will be, Malcolm doesn’t feel confident in what kind of leader he would have been if Macbeth didn’t come to power. While thinking this he states, “All the particulars of vice so grafted that, when they shall be opened, black Macbeth will seem as pure as snow, and the poor state esteem him as a lamb, being compared with my confineless harms.”(4.3.52-56) It seems that even though Malcolm thinks anyone would be a better king rather than Macbeth, he himself doesn’t think he would be a good leader. Although it is ironic because he was supposed to be king and he doesn’t feel that he would be fit for the job. Malcolm compares Macbeth to darkness when he states his name saying “Black Macbeth.” This shows how Macbeth is a burden on Scotland and how he brings nothing but darkness, also known as death. Another way that Malcolm shows how he knows that power will lead him to insanity is when he explains how he would be bad for the country. The idea of Malcolm being bad for the county but a better king than Macbeth displays how messed up Macbeth has become. Malcolm sees that he isn’t good for the country, but he also didn’t put himself into the position of king. This shows how he knows that the power of being king will lead him to becoming insane. Finally, the a final word that indicates that power will lead someone to insanity is when Malcolm states “Macbeth will seem as pure as snow.” Malcolm feels that he would be a worse king and that he knows that the power will make him go crazy. He also knows that Macbeth is a better king than he will be, so when he states “pure” the connotation of the word indicates happiness and cleanliness, however Malcolm could be referring to himself when he