Macbeth is the epitome of the fall. A fall from grace and a fall from power have become staples in literature and film. The great and powerful king becomes corrupted by the spiders of politics, his transformation exacerbated by his guilt. Macbeth's attraction to power radiates from him, and turns both him and his wife cruel and greedy. The underhanded politics, the cloak and dagger espionage, and the cold-blooded murder twist Macbeth and sour his throne. Like Tantalus, he will never be satisfied. The power given to him, or rather the power he took, would never satisfy him because of his paranoia. His stolen crown weighed heavy on his head. The promise of absolute power corrupted him absolutely. Lady Macbeth was the devil on Macbeth's shoulder. Everyone has their own demons, some stronger than others. Without her, Macbeth would have never tried to climb the ladder of power. The power that he would receive tempted her more than it tempted him. She is the one who encourages Macbeth to kill Duncan, and she is the one who chastises him for leaving evidence. She wants …show more content…
His inescapable guilt and paranoia force him to kill people and consult others that he normally would never. The witch's prophecies become haunting visions and immutable truths after they are twisted by his mind. Some of the prophecies are interpreted as good omens, because Macbeth is desperate for anything that could give his guilty conscience peace. The others are ignored by him, because he believes them to be pointless or unimportant. "…For none of woman born shall harm Macbeth." is interpreted by him to prove his invulnerability, when really it's referencing Macduff's caesarean birth. "…Macbeth shall never vanquish'd be until great Birnam wood to high Dunsinane hill shall come against him." This prophecy is ignored by Macbeth, because he can't fathom an entire forest moving toward his kingdom. He is clouded by his fear, and because of this he falls deeper into his own