Essay Comparing Oedipus And Macbeth

Both Jacosta and Lady Macbeth end up suffering on part by prophecies told to their husbands. Each of their husband’s fate seems set in stone and they are unlucky enough to be pulled into the mayhem that ensues. Each piece: Oedipus and Macbeth focuses around prophecies that are told to the protagonists, their wives are not taken into account with the prophecies yet in both cases the wives are just as tortured and affected. To start Jacosta and Lady Macbeth both believe in the fortunes told to their husbands; in Jacosta’s plot it is the first of two she will be told. Jacosta ends up changing her belief later when told another from someone, as in her mind the first did not come true to her knowledge. Each wife immediately follows what they

“Glamis thou art, and Cawdor, and shalt be/ What thou art promis'd. Yet do I fear thy nature,/ It is too full o' th' milk of human kindness/ To catch the nearest way.” (1.5.15-18) She herself is ready to commit the sins to fulfill the fate given them, wondering if her husband will be up to the task like her. In Jacosta’s plot she also readily commits sins, in this case to stop the prophecy from coming true. By hurting her child and leaving him to die she fights the fortune told and contrasts with Lady Macbeth. Although it can be argued their choices end up pushing fate forward, on their parts Jacosta and her husband are un-aware of this so their belief that the prophecy is real is still true. It must be noted that the visions told for both women are far different. King Laius and Jacosta are both already royalty and their prophecy tells of their downfall by the death of the king. On the other hand the Macbeths are not yet king and queen but rather their fate is said to be them rising to royalty. Different prophecies/outcomes means different reactions by Jacosta and Lady