Macbeth The “To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow” speech by Macbeth in Shakespeare’s “Macbeth” is a great example of nihilism. In the aforementioned passage the news of Lady Macbeth’s death does not cause him to speak a eulogy in her honor. Rather it has caused Macbeth to have to look at the aspects of his reality that he had previously chosen to ignore. His nihilistic view is evidenced strongly in the following lines "signifies nothing" (Shakespeare, Wilder, 2004). He then proceeds to address the actions of life as being “a tale/ Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury” (Shakespeare, Wilder, 2004). He realizes that at the end of everything that he has done to obtain the throne and to keep it, means nothing because he is going to die, as he has made to many enemies and he has no heir. Children will also play a part in “Play it as it Lays” when Maria, who’s inability to raise one child, and abortion of the second will drive her further down an already nihilistic path that results in her own psychiatric commitment. So in the end for Macbeth it was all pointless. He goes on to say that life has no meaning, that it is just an inconsequential story full of random events that have no purpose, but the moment that an event is occurring it becomes the most important thing that there is in …show more content…
Lady Macbeth has shifted away from the nihilism that she had possessed before as she is now consumed with guilt over her actions. Later after Lady Macbeth’s death. Macbeth realizes that for them there is no long lasting fulfillment in life as he has no heir and has not accomplished anything that would allow him to leave a legacy. Even though Macbeth knows that there is no point in his actions. He realizes that his power is inevitably going to be lost. So for him to sow the seeds of destruction is in his mind an acceptable course of