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Interpretation of macbeth
Symbolism in the play of macbeth.pdf
Symbolism in the play of macbeth.pdf
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Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely: A Symbolic Literary Analysis of Shakespeare’s Macbeth Corrupt according to Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary means “to change from good to bad in morals, manners, or actions ” (Corrupt). This definition epitomizes exactly what Macbeth evolves into throughout this work with the influence of the witches. The witches in this piece symbolize the evil found in human nature and how it can affect man in many ways. This symbolization is further enforced by the overall theme of choice. A choice always has two sides, for if it did not, then it in fact would not be a choice. There is always a good side and a bad side to everything, a right and wrong. Macbeth, the protagonist, is faced with many choices throughout …show more content…
The way that they stir the pot as they add things into it is a symbol of how they also are stirring his emotions. With each stir, Macbeth’s soul is slowly broke down and altered. The more they add into the pot, the more the cruelty within him develops and grows. For example, when the second witch adds in the lizard’s leg and owlet’s wing she then says “For a charm of powerful trouble, like a hell-broth boil and bubble” (4.1.18-19). This “hell-broth” represents the evil that these women are creating inside of Macbeth, and the powerful deeds that he is about to take part in. According to Monica Wilson, the reality of witchcraft is “the exercise of an innate power to harm others directly” (308). This is exactly what the witches in the play are doing, they are using their compelling abilities to convince Macbeth to make the horrendous choices that he …show more content…
They are more than just “secret, black, and midnight hags” (4.1.48). They are a direct representation of the evil within Macbeth soul. Without the witches in the play, Macbeth would more than likely have been a respectable thane whom would’ve worked his way up the ladder to eventually become king, but the weird sisters spoiled that plan from the beginning. They got into Macbeth’s mind and brought out the worst of him. The way that they foretold the glories of the future before they occurred caused Macbeth to become selfish and greedy. The Holy Bible states, “ whoever is greedy for unjust gain troubles his own household ” (Prov. 15.27). This statement is very true in Macbeth’s case. He not only troubled his own household, but also consequently put his life into a surreal amount of danger. Macbeth essentially had a choice between life and death. As claimed by Kenneth Muir, “ the opposition between the good and evil supernatural is paralleled by similar contrasts between angel and devil, heaven and hell ” (258). The evil supernatural witches in Macbeth not only hinder Macbeth but they also keep him from what he truly deserves. Macbeth is faced with a lot of different choices during the play, choices that can make or break his destiny. Unfortunately, Macbeth’s poor choices far outweighed his finer choices,
The three witches of Macbeth chant spells and cast charms recurrently in order to bewitch Macbeth so that he will throw the world into chaos. In the meeting of the witches before they first confront Macbeth, they quickly cast a charm when they hear him approaching: “The weird sisters, hand in hand, posters of the sea and land, thus do go about, about, thrice to thine and thrice to mine and thrice again, to make up nine. Peace! The charms wound up” (1.3.33-38). The purpose of the charm is to implant in him the seed of evil and wrongdoing. Macbeth is originally shown as a loyal, slightly violent Scottish Thane. This initial observation is contradicted later on when Macbeth’s head is filled with visions of murdering his beloved king, a thought which he profoundly dismisses as horrible and frightening. Act 1 scene 3 where the witches are talking amongst themselves thoroughly “enumerates the miseries [the Weird Sister] will unleash upon [Macbeth]…” (Spencer 1). The witches cast another powerful spell later on when Macbeth is about to visit them for a second time. They include many putrid ingredien...
Macbeth rejects conformation to traditional gender roles in its portrayal of Lady Macbeth’s relationship with her husband, her morals and their effect on her actions, and her hunger for power. Her regard for Macbeth is one of low respect and beratement, an uncommon and most likely socially unacceptable attitude for a wife to have towards her spouse at the time. She often ignores morality and acts for the benefit of her husband, and subsequently herself. She is also very power-hungry and lets nothing stand in the way of her success. Lady Macbeth was a character which challenged expectations of women and feminism when it was written in the seventeenth century.
The definition of a tragic hero, as stated on dictionary.com, is a literary character that makes an error in judgment that, combined with fate and external forces, brings on a tragedy. It has been argued for years whether Macbeth from Shakespeare’s, The Tragedy of Macbeth, can truly be considered a tragic hero or whether he is solely a villainous tyrant. Although there are some valid arguments for the Macbeth is pure evil viewpoint, by looking at Macbeth in a holistic way you can see the tragic, the heroic, and the tragic hero within him. Macbeth is a tragic hero in every sense of the definition.
`Act 1- The three weird witches meet and they are planning on when they are going to meet again to talk to Macbeth. In the next scene King Duncan talks to the injured captain about the battle against the invaders, who are under the command of Macdonwald. The captain tell King Duncan how he saved Malcolm and Macbeth was very violent and fought with great force. Then the Captain is taken away by the servants then Ross enters and he tells Duncan that Cawdor has been beaten and the Norway army retreated. Then King Duncan comes to the decision to kill Cawdor and then Macbeth will "become Cawdor". Then Duncan sends out Ross to go tell Macbeth about what had happened at this time. In scene three the witches approach Banquo and Macbeth when they were on their way to Forres. The witches inform Macbeth and Banquo about what had happened in the kings court and they tell him he is the Thane of Cawdor and Glamis and that Macbeth will eventually become king. Then Banquo is told riddles that his children will be royal and he will not. After the witches disappear then Ross and Angus come up to them and Ross informs Macbeth the news which he just heard. Then Macbeth contemplates whether he will have to spill blood to become king, then when he is done they all continue to Forres. Then Duncan finds out that Cawdor dies because his son killed him. Then Ross, Angus, Banquo and Macbeth arrive. Then Malcolm becomes the heir to Duncans throne and Macbeth has Duncan dine at his castle that night so he rides to tell his wife. When Macbeth gets home he tells his wife the news and she starts to plot the murder of Duncan and Macbeth fallows. Then Duncan and the Scottish lords arrive and they are tak...
The one who is at fault in the play of Macbeth written by William Shakespeare is not all who presume it is. Some say the blame is on the Witches, some say Lady Macbeth, but Macbeth is the real man at fault. He was at choice of his decisions, only slightly pressured by his wife, Lady Macbeth. Macbeth dug himself into a hole he was not able to climb out of. There was no return to the light side for him as he had no regrets, he was inhumane, and cold-blooded. There are many examples that show his inhumanity towards others throughout the play, one cold-blooded act to another with no turning back. It was a painful ending for Macbeth since no one showed sympathy for him as his head ended up on a sword. Macbeth is at fault for all the critical events within the play as he is the one that killed Banquo, King Duncan, and Macduff’s family.
By pricking Macbeth’s desire for power and prestige with promising prophecies and giving him confidence with the apparitions, the witches lure him to commit evil deeds and to continue doing so endlessly. Their tempting prophecies bait Macbeth into their deceitful plot. Banquo, a fellow nobleman, warns him about the prophecies, “But ‘tis strange: and oftentimes, to win us to our harm, the instruments of darkness tell us truths, win us with honest trifles, to betray’s in deepest consequence'; (I, 3, 122-127). Banquo is a smart man, and it is unfortunate that Macbeth ignores his advice. To be sure that Macbeth self-destructs by his own sinful behavior, the sorceresses create prophetic images that ensure him security. Not knowing they are all part of the deception, Macbeth easily succumbs to their plan. He aimlessly kills, believing nothing can harm him, but he is dead wrong. The witches true intention is best revealed in Hecate’s orders, “And that distilled by magic sleights shall raise such artificial sprites as by the strength of their illusion shall draw him on to his confusion'; (III, 5, 26-29). Macbeth’s biggest misfortune is encountering the witches, and an even bigger mistake is to revisit them. The cunning scheme of the wicked women successfully leads Macbeth to evil and confuses him enough for him to lose command of his actions.
Macbeth is a good man who has fought bravely and will be rewarded. The witches pick out his small character flaw and slowly tweak it until they have him doing what they want for their evil plans.
The tragedy Macbeth by William Shakespeare is based on a thane in whom is corrupted by greed and a negative ambition. The character Macbeth contradicts his moral responsibility in this play a great deal; many moral questions are brought forth to Macbeth. He questions himself and whether or not he should follow through with the evil deeds that he does. Macbeths ambition causes him to compromise his honour, he doesn’t take into consideration that he is being trusted and that every action that he takes will have a reaction. Macbeth attains his position as king unjustly. As is evident by the conclusion, justice prevails as usual and Macbeths demise is a result of his evil deeds.
The three witches use cleverly chosen words and prophecies to exert control over others. These prophecies seem to be more potent than any action, as they can be interpreted in any number of ways, and have the ability to provoke otherwise hidden thoughts and desires. For instance, upon hearing the first prophecies and seeing the first part come true, Macbeth says, “This supernatural soliciting, cannot be ill, cannot be good … If good, why do I yield to that suggestion whose horrid image doth unfix my hair and make my seated heart knock at my ribs.” This shows the power of the witches, and indeed the supernatural in general. The prophecies, of which Macbeth is convinced are true, have provoked thoughts and ideas, both good and evil.
The manipulation Macbeth endures from the three witches and Lady Macbeth causes him to spiral down a murderous path consumed with betrayal to others
The play Macbeth has its many conflicts with the supernatural and many recurring themes. Only when the main character, Macbeth, starts desiring something which cannot be acquired without grave and horrible actions is when we start seeing the conflict with the supernatural where outside forces, in this case the Witches, influence his future where he is perhaps thinking that it's his fate to become what the Witches allude to. The struggle with the supernatural isn't the only conflict Macbeth has but we also start seeing other representations of struggles. Some can be summed up as minor but it plays a big role in how the story progresses and how it develops into where Macbeth and Lady Macbeth become a representation of great evil versus perhaps Malcolm and
The witches where the first main contributing factor to Macbeth’s downfall. The witches symbolize the dark side of human nature, they are absolutely evil. We know this as
The witches play a very important role in "Macbeth", as they initiate the evil plot. Even from the prologue we can see the witches are evil. "Fair is foul, and foul is fair:" (Act 1 scene 1 line 11). They uphold their evil status throughout the play although their power is not fully demonstrated until the prophecies come true and also later where they conjure up the three apparitions. The witches are truly evil and love evil for its own self unlike Macbeth. "Spiteful and wrathful; who. as others do,/Loves for his own ends, not for you." (Act 3 scene 5 line 12-13). Throughout the play they provide the strongest impression of evil. They are continually committing mischievous deeds, such as, "Killing swine" (Act 1 scene 3 line 2), tormenting sailors and casting spells.
If we are to explore the significance of these witches, we must do so by treating them as vital poetic symbols in the play, essential manifestations of the moral atmosphere of Macbeth's world. & nbsp; The most obvious interpretation of the witches is to see them as manifestations of evil in the world. They exist to tempt and torment people, to challenge their faith in themselves and their society.
In Shakespeare’s tragic play Macbeth, Shakespeare creates the ruthless character Macbeth, who is willing to go beyond any measure in order to attain the power of being king, including murder, deceit, betrayal and overpowering the chain of being. Macbeth was first tempted by the idea of kingship when three witches presented him with their portent of Macbeth becoming the next King of Scotland. Ebullient, Macbeth, immediately informed his wife of the news and they both pondered the thought of having the power to rule all of Scotland. Lady Macbeth, a power seeker herself, promptly schemed a plan to kill King Duncan in order for her and her husband to rule, displaying her ready ambition for power. Macbeth’s thirst for power ate away at his conscience