Betrayal In Macbeth's Tragic Downfall

The extent to which William Shakespeare’s Macbeth is an exploration of betrayal is portrayed through the internal and external influences on his tragic downfall. Macbeth’s moral betrayal in the play would be non-existent if it weren’t for several external factors, including the supernatural witches, and his deceitful, manipulative wife Lady Macbeth. Macbeth’s betrayal of the king is due to internal factors, however comparably is a product of external influences. Ultimately, the notion of betrayal in the play is explored thoroughly, and this betrayal eventually leads to Macbeth’s tragic demise.

Macbeth’s “Vaulting ambition” in the play is a key internal influence, which leads him to betray his morals. Macbeth is self-described as having a latent ambitious nature, although it surface due to the prophecy of the witches, or the “three weird sisters”. Pathetic fallacy is used in the witches’ ambiguous language: “When shall we three meet again? In thunder, lightning or in rain?”. This sets the mood of the play, and the gloomy weather is a reflection of the gloomy, intangible notion of betrayal. The latent lust for power in Macbeth is surfaced by the witches prophecy: “All hail Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter”. This highlights the supernatural nature of the witches, but more
Macbeth’s deceitful potential here is exposed, as he in fact is affected by the words of the witches, and he plans on acting on his ambitions which in turn lead to his moral betrayal. Banquo describes Macbeth as being “Rapt withal” in the belief that Macbeth has been affected. Therefore, the fundamental external factor of the witches is a contributor to Macbeth’s downfall, and is the basis of what leads him to moral betrayal, and to commit such murderous