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The Influence Of Minor Characters In Macbeth By William Shakespeare

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Malcolm wakes up and is informed his father has been murdered, full of emotions he flees to England to protect himself. That is one out of the two times we see Malcolm, but his character helps add depth to the play. While it seems that Malcolm and even Duncan would be considered main characters, they are only minor because of the limited time they are shown in the play. Macbeth interacts with many different people throughout the play, and these small interactions add emotion and value to the play. While these characters appear once or twice, they show various sides of Macbeth that we would not have seen without them. They also influence Macbeth's actions and what he does to people throughout the play. The minor characters in "Macbeth" add emotion …show more content…

Duncan is only seen in Act 1 when he arrives at their castle and is murdered. While his screen time in the play is short, he has a major role in the play because that is Macbeth's first of many murders. Macbeth is a good person and is loyal to Duncan because he is a good king, but he is influenced by his wife to kill Duncan and take the throne. He feels remorse and guilt after killing Duncan which shows the sympathy Macbeth has inside him. This is his first step towards corruption because now that Macbeth is king, he is paranoid and cautious about keeping his title of king. As the play goes on, this makes him kill more and more, but it also is the first sign of corruption within …show more content…

The witches appear to Macbeth and tell him prophecies in multiples of three. At the beginning of the play, he is told by the witches he will become king which ignites the ambition and corruption in his soul to kill Duncan. If the witches never told him this Macbeth would most likely be Thane of Cawdor and a follower of Duncan; however, this is not the case because of the witches. The next time Macbeth sees the witches he is told another 3 prophecies which ultimately lead to his death. The witches appear a few different times, and each time they influence Macbeth in some way and make him do something that corrupts him even further. With all of that being said, the witches influence Macbeth to become corrupt and commit horrible actions, while the other minor characters allow the reader to see Macbeth for who he is and make us feel various emotions toward

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861 Words | 4 Pages

This play captures the rise and fall of King Macbeth. Shakespeare shows the reader that one persons greed can get him killed and other people around to turn on him, By showing the reader what decisions Macbeth made to elevate his status in power. The kind of people who changed around them and how they changed. Furthermore in Act 1, Macbeth is given a prophecy that he would become king by three witches. This leads to him into thinking greedy and commiting murder.

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1488 Words | 6 Pages

Furthermore, I found that there was one part of the play that I think is very important is found in Act 1 Scene 7, particularly Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s conversation about their plot to kill the king. Through out the play Lady Macbeth criticizes her husband’s inability to be manly and carry out their plan to kill the king by constantly pointing out his flaws. I think that the grief of losing their child is what causes

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2055 Words | 9 Pages

Thus, Macbeth conflicts with Duncan, Banquo, Lennox, Macduff, Ross, Mentieth, Simward, and all noble Scotsmen. Of course, Malcolm III must be included in this list, and even the three sisters whom Macbeth encounters in Act I since they make predictions that work against Macbeth.” (ENotes, “Homework Help”). As previously stated, most if not all characters present a kind of contrast towards Macbeth; all the characteristics of the minor characters highlight the flaws in the type of person Macbeth is. Duncan is a foil because of his role as king, the role that Macbeth desired and sought after.

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744 Words | 3 Pages

Shakespeare's implies this by having them appear as crucial forces. The witches foreshadow upcoming events that are happening to individuals. The corrupted witches have the abilities higher than human existence. They instruct Macbeth that his prophecy will direct him to the actions he does. Macbeth is easily influenced and pays attention to the weird sisters.

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489 Words | 2 Pages

Blood splattering all over the room and on Macbeth's hands unable to wash the deed away. This tragic scene occurs in "Macbeth" by William Shakespeare when Macbeth kills Duncan to attain the throne. Throughout this play the three witches predict Macbeth's down fall in various visions and attempt to mess with him for entertainment. Furthermore, in "Macbeth" the witches play a vital role in the destruction of Macbeth's power through visions and manipulation even though appearing in very few scenes. To begin, the three witches tell Macbeth of visions throughout the play that impact his decisions when being king.

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531 Words | 3 Pages

The events taking place make me think that Macbeth will try and execute Malcolm. I think that because of what the witches said he won’t let it go and will allow that to take over his mind. At first I thought Macbeth was a nice noble fighter but now I see that he has other intentions. His mind is set on the crown and that is all. Based on Duncan’s actions in naming Malcolm heir I think that Macbeth will try and hurt Duncan now.

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922 Words | 4 Pages

Macbeth’s mental condition begins to dwindle as time goes on, starting with the murder of Duncan. At first, Macbeth is seen as a soldier that everyone aspires to be, strong, brave, and compassionate about his duties to the king. In act one scene two, Captain says, “...For brave Macbeth-well he deserves that name-...” This shows that he is a likeable person who has only the objective of serving his king. After meeting with the witches and hearing his prophecy, Macbeth starts to think about what it would be like to be king of Scotland.

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1014 Words | 5 Pages

This suggests that the Witches are heavily influencing Macbeth. However, it is the predictions they make that show the influence they

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766 Words | 4 Pages

Macduff's wife and children do not appear in a great quantity of scenes, but they still have a predominant role in the play. For instance, his wife and children have a scene where they are talking to each other and the audience gets a view on how they interact with each other. This may not seem important, but it displays their family connection. Later, they end up murdered by Macbeth and some of his men. Due to the conversation displayed before, it makes the audience feel sympathetic and distraught about their deaths.

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Throughout the play, the witches have a strong influence on many characters. MacBeth listens to their prophecies and tries to pursue ultimate power because of them. The witches are an example of supernatural beings and change in natural order of events. The witches prophecies were seen as concrete and not able to be altered, so by MacBeth trying to usurp and affect his future, he reaps the poor consequences of his actions. The witches are stronger and more powerful than MacBeth because they have all-power and the ability to forever alter the course of someone’s life.

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1631 Words | 7 Pages

Macbeth is a Shakespearean play about a man called Macbeth who becomes evil in a rise to power. The play has many characters who change throughout, in ways more than one. These changes add layers and meaning to the drama and are shown in many ways. A very important character in this play by William Shakespeare is Macbeth, who starts off as Thane of Glamis, and extremely loyal to King Duncan. This character’s first scene of the play is him after killing a traitor to King Duncan.

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963 Words | 4 Pages

Killing Duncan was his downfall that also brought down Scotland and because of this evil act, Macbeth was punished over and over through the play until his downfall cost him his life. His figurative nobility is brought up when Macbeth becomes king. Once a noble general now and noble king keeping secrets. The audience sees his figurative

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897 Words | 4 Pages

If there are no small roles in theatre, does that mean that there are no minor characters in literature? William Shakespeare’s play, Macbeth, includes many minor characters, such as the porter, the Old Man, and the captain of Duncan’s army, in an attempt to enhance the story. In the beginning of the play a very valiant and loyal soldier of Scotland, called Macbeth, is given three prophecies by a group of witches. The prophecies show Macbeth that he will raise in title and someday become king. In an attempt to fulfill these prophecies, Macbeth turns to murder and deceit.

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976 Words | 4 Pages

On his own, Macbeth had no intent of harming others for his own gain, or anyone else’s. With the influence of evil around him, his personality shifted to the murderous Macbeth we see as the play goes on. The first murder that Macbeth commits is that of King Duncan. Before being named the Thane of Cawdor, Macbeth runs into the witches for the first time with Banquo.

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876 Words | 4 Pages

The witches played a colossal role in Macbeth’s downfall and ultimately, his death. Since the first part of the prophecy stated Macbeth as being the new Thane of Cawdor, he believed he could continue to become king as well. In knowing his prediction, Macbeth also realized that since the king was in good health, so he would have to kill the king himself. For the rest of his prophecy to come true he would have to kill the king for himself. “All hail, Macbeth that shalt be king hereafter!”

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