Preview

Literary Analysis of Macbeth

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1294 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Literary Analysis of Macbeth
Literary Analysis of Macbeth Having a lust for power can cause a loss in many things. It’s as if you’re in a win-lose situation. In this case, the play Macbeth written by Shakespeare has scholars sayings, “The lust for power by Macbeth and Lady Macbeth led to a loss of humanity.” With that said, I totally agree with their view. Both Lady Macbeth and Macbeth went out of their way to even killing King Duncan and burdening the murder on his guardsmen. Even though that’s a common human act, you just don’t do something like that. It’s just so wrong. The acts of both these people are very evil and violent, in which causes Macbeth to move from one act of endangerment to another just to protect himself from a great disaster which I likely consider his death to be it. Lady Macbeth is like a tag along buddy. She is like a huge helping hand to Macbeth and ends up dying on her way to the top with him. Both of their desires for high royalty led themselves to death. So, as said lusting for power is very harmful to oneself unless done in a proper way; meaning without anyone getting hurt. The prophecies from the three witches which take place in the woods are what started Macbeth to lose his mind and soon after Lady Macbeth. With the encounter of the witches, they greeted Macbeth as, “Hail to thee; Thane of Glamis, Thane of Cawdor, and King here-after.” The title he has now is Thane of Glamis, but he doesn’t understand how he could have the title of Thane of Cawdor, when actually Macbeth only led King Duncan’s forces to victory, so considering that the Thane of Cawdor still lives, there’s no way he can get that title. Being called King here-after definitely got his head pumped up with adrenaline to seek more questions and answers. Soon after the witches vanish, the noblemen of Scotland; Ross and Angus were sent by
King Duncan to tell Macbeth of the execution of the Thane of Cawdor and to grant Macbeth of the title. With that said, Macbeth was shocked that the prophecy

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Better Essays

    Ambition In The Great Gatsby

    • 3297 Words
    • 14 Pages

    The witches tell Macbeth that he would soon be rewarded with the title Thane of Glamis, Thane of Cawdor, and the future king of Scotland. Macbeth. Although he questions the validity of the prophecies, Macbeth is curious to know more. Before he was able to question the witches any further they had vanished into thin air, to which restless Macbeth exaggerated out loud, “Stay you imperfect speakers. Tell me more. /By Finel’s death, I know I am Thane of Glamis, /But how of Cawdor? The Thane of Cawdor live /A prosperous gentleman, and to be king / Stands not within my belief, / No more than to be Cawdor. Say from whence /You owe me this strange intelligence” (Shakespeare, 1.3.68-74). Macbeth’s curiosity feeds his desire to attain more knowledge about the prophecies and the use of irony aids in displaying his eagerness to know more about his future. Macbeth does not understand how he can be named Thane of Cawdor while the current Thane still lives. This is ironic because little does he know that the Thane had been removed of his title under the charge of treason and that Macbeth had been appointed the new Thane. The…

    • 3297 Words
    • 14 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Following Macbeth killing Macdonwald in battle, he and Banquo stumble on witches who prophecies that Macbeth will be thane of Cawdor. The witches also assert Macbeth will one day be king. After Macbeth is given the title of thane of Cawdor, he believes the witches prophecy, but instead of letting fate play out Macbeth becomes inpatient with waiting. Macbeth hesitates with his plan to kill Duncan, he must decide if he has to kill Duncan to get what he desires, but Lady Macbeth convinces him that this is how he will become the…

    • 94 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Macbeth is driven by the witches prophecies. “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, thane of Glamis!, All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, thane of Cawdor!, All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!”(1.3.49-51) Macbeth was aware that he is the thane of Glamis and knew that the thane of Cawdor was alive so he is taken aback to be called the thane of Cawdor and the future king. Macbeth is disbelieving until a messenger arrived telling him that he is now under the king’s decree the thane of Cawdor. The king's messenger Ross had come to tell Macbeth that he was “...an earnest of a greater honor, He bade me, from him, call thee thane of Cawdor In which addition, hail, most worthy thane, For it is thine.”(1.3.105-108). After being notified of this, Macbeth and Banquo continue on to see Duncan accompanied by Ross and Angus.…

    • 871 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    also thinks of having a baby that how tender it would be feels "to love the babe that milks me...…

    • 964 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The General statement made by William Shakespeare in the play Macbeth is that conflict that comes with the thirst of power can cause someone to conform, then is challenged to decide whether to pursue the desire of the thirst of power or conform to a regular life. More specifically, when Macbeth is given the prophecy from the three witches, he then has the thirst for power that makes him lose all of his morals.…

    • 444 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    When Macbeth first encounters the Witches, they inform him of his prophecy to become the Thane of Cawdor, and soon to be King of Scotland. He is also with Banquo, and he is informed that his kids will be kings, but not him. The Witches say to Macbeth, “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis! All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor! All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!” (I.iii.51-53). At first, he becomes shocked and surprised by this, but he soon realizes after being crowned Thane of Cawdor, that this prophecy will most likely come true. As soon as Macbeth learns of his prophecy, he…

    • 1428 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor!” Upon hearing those words we saw that Macbeth was intrigued of the remark and wanted to know more. Act 1, scene 3, lines 128 – 142 allows us to learn that Macbeth is ambitious but also had a tendency to doubt himself. When the witches prophecy of Macbeth becoming ‘Thane of Cawdor’ came through, sparks something in him that allowed him to see that becoming King is not impossible.…

    • 1416 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    When Macbeth is talking to the witches, they shout out, "All hail, Macbeth, thane of Glamis! ... thane of Cawdor! ... shall be king hereafter!" (I.3.49-51). They're telling him that he'll become thane of Cawdor, then become king right after. Macbeth is a very talented soldier who has earned the promotion. Once he becomes thane of Cawdor, his greed tells him to become king right away.…

    • 242 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    How Is Macbeth A Hero

    • 689 Words
    • 3 Pages

    When we are introduced to Macbeth, the Weïrd Sisters are telling him that one day he will be the king. Then, Macbeth is given the title Thane of Cawdor, he is given this title because, the previous Thane was found out to be a traitor and was executed. Then, Macbeth had to prepare for Duncan’s royal visit where he thinks, “Present fears/ Are less than horrible imaginings./ My thought, whose murder is yet but fantastical,” (1.3 150-3) Macbeth says this because as he finds that as his power is increased, he craves more power and starts to believe that the only way he can get to the throne is by killing Duncan, the…

    • 689 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Macbeth Evil Vs Evil

    • 382 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Macbeth acknowledges that he has no other motive to kill King Duncan other than his vaulting ambition. Also, he knows about the repercussions of possessing such extreme and evil version of ambition. Macbeth will still succumb to his unnatural ambition. This way, Macbeth disregards all his morals when he murders Duncan, which further proves the overwhelming influence of evil that corrupts ambition. Throughout the play, Duncan seems like a kind and fair king. He rightfully punishes those who betray him and his country, and reward those who fight valiantly for their country. As a result, Macbeth is rewarded the Thane of Cawdor title by order of Duncan himself and instead of being grateful and noble, Macbeth is driven by his inordinate ambition to murder Duncan. To make matters worse, Duncan is Macbeth’s king, cousin, and house guest. The strength of Macbeth’s evil ambition is so incredible that Macbeth is able to neglect his morals duties as a loyal subject, a relative, and a host to fulfill his unnatural thirst to become king. Although Macbeth’s own ambition is at fault, Lady Macbeth’s own corrupted ambition also assists in the murder of King Duncan. As soon as Lady Macbeth receives the letter containing information about the prophecies, she immediately begins to plot the murder of Duncan. Lady Macbeth knows Macbeth may be too kind to murder Duncan, so she…

    • 382 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    What is Macduff's motivation?Macduff, to a large extent, is driven by patriotism. His primary motive is his love for his country, Scotland. This is displayed when he tells Malcolm of his grief over his country's suffering/s, quote:"…new sorrows strike heaven on the face, that it resounds as if it felt with Scotland and yelled out like syllable of dolour."- Translation: "The grief cries up to heaven and the skies seem to feel Scotland's sorrow, for heaven's cries echo the same note."- Macduff, Act 4, Scene 3, Lines 6-8Macduff wants to defend his country and is so motivated by his love for his country that he leaves behind his beloved wife and children to bring back Malcolm, whom he believes will restore peace and harmony to his homeland. His passion to defend his country is shown in the following quote.…

    • 597 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    William Shakespeare's Macbeth is a tragic play. Gradually throughout the play's sequence, Macbeth's actions become increasingly more wicked and evil. The real focus is how and why Macbeth changed so drastically. The three witches predictions or prophesies had a traumatic effect on him that slowly began his steep downfall.…

    • 658 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    At the start of the play, Macbeth was portrayed as a heroic and courageous man. He created this image for himself by fighting long and hard in the King of Scotland’s battle. The King of Scotland (along with all his people) was very impressed with Macbeth. He was rewarded for his efforts, being presented with the title of the Thane of Cawdor. After the battle, he and Banquo were out riding when they bumped into a group of incredibly strange women that had a strange aura of power about them (the witches). It was here that Macbeth was confronted with the prophecy that someday he would become King of Scotland. There were many reasons Macbeth could become King without murdering anyone – the current king could die, renounce his throne and appoint Macbeth as King, or Macbeth could overthrow him. Macbeth did indeed think for a while that he could become King without murdering anyone.…

    • 1158 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Macbeth, the main character in the Shakespeare play with the same name, is a very complex and interesting character. Throughout the play Macbeth exposes his overwhelming thirst for power. Macbeth attains this power by a eliminating those who stand in his way. It is Macbeth's ever growing thirst for power that exposes him as a cruel hearted individual and ultimately causes his downfall.…

    • 498 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the tragedy Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare, many character traits are portrayed through the various characters throughout the play. Macbeth was one of Shakespeare’s greatest tragedies. It was completed in 1606 and was most likely first performed before King James I and his royal family at Hampton Court. King James I is believed to be a direct descendent of the character Banquo. Probably the most potent character trait expressed in Macbeth would be integrity or the lack there of. Integrity could be defined as doing the right thing at all costs no matter what the consequences or what would be in the persons best interest. In this play the person that displays the most of this character trait would be Macbeth himself. Macbeth shows his lack of integrity in many ways throughout the entire play through his actions towards the other characters, this trait helps to personify what kind of person Macbeth was and what kind of person he was becoming.…

    • 582 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays

Related Topics