Macbeth
The King’s Killing Spree.
“Shakespeare is boring”; a phrase we hear quite often when students are asked to study a topic related to Shakespeare. So why, exactly, is everyone still so obsessed with these incomprehensible works of literature written over 400 years ago?
Despite ‘popular belief’ amongst high schoolers whom believe his works hold no relevance to our society today, it’s clear that the themes portrayed in Macbeth, such as ambition and fate and freewill, are analogous to the various problems that modern society faces; one of the many reasons Shakespeare’s plays are still popular and prominent amongst modern audiences.
- Ambition.
Ambition is beneficial as it sets an individual’s goals and motivates people to success, however in Macbeth's case, ambition controlled him and blinded him of his wrong doings.
“I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition, which o’erleaps itself and falls of th’ other.” (Act 1, Scene 7)
It can be seen that Macbeth acknowledges that his ambition is far too great and realizes that what he is about to do is wrong (murder Duncan). Yet he knows it will bring him one step closer to achieving his goal.
Macbeth’s ambition was driven by a number of factors including the prophecy given by the three witches, and Lady Macbeth's manipulation to commit the murders of anyone who was in the way of the throne. This eventually spirals out of control and forces Macbeth to murder again and again to cover up his previous misdeeds.
As a consequence of his actions and his ambition, Macbeth is killed and Lady Macbeth loses her sanity, eventually committing suicide.
In the play, neither characters are given the opportunity to relish what they have achieved, hinting that the moral behind the theme of ambition is that it is more satisfying to achieve your goals fairy rather than to achieve them through corruption, a message that is important in a society where everyone competes against another, especially in
“Shakespeare is boring”; a phrase we hear quite often when students are asked to study a topic related to Shakespeare. So why, exactly, is everyone still so obsessed with these incomprehensible works of literature written over 400 years ago?
Despite ‘popular belief’ amongst high schoolers whom believe his works hold no relevance to our society today, it’s clear that the themes portrayed in Macbeth, such as ambition and fate and freewill, are analogous to the various problems that modern society faces; one of the many reasons Shakespeare’s plays are still popular and prominent amongst modern audiences.
- Ambition.
Ambition is beneficial as it sets an individual’s goals and motivates people to success, however in Macbeth's case, ambition controlled him and blinded him of his wrong doings.
“I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition, which o’erleaps itself and falls of th’ other.” (Act 1, Scene 7)
It can be seen that Macbeth acknowledges that his ambition is far too great and realizes that what he is about to do is wrong (murder Duncan). Yet he knows it will bring him one step closer to achieving his goal.
Macbeth’s ambition was driven by a number of factors including the prophecy given by the three witches, and Lady Macbeth's manipulation to commit the murders of anyone who was in the way of the throne. This eventually spirals out of control and forces Macbeth to murder again and again to cover up his previous misdeeds.
As a consequence of his actions and his ambition, Macbeth is killed and Lady Macbeth loses her sanity, eventually committing suicide.
In the play, neither characters are given the opportunity to relish what they have achieved, hinting that the moral behind the theme of ambition is that it is more satisfying to achieve your goals fairy rather than to achieve them through corruption, a message that is important in a society where everyone competes against another, especially in