Examples Of Three Apparitions In Macbeth

In the play, Macbeth written by William Shakespeare, Macbeth is the most ambitious and determined character. His determination and ambition to become the king and remain king led Macbeth to kill many innocent people.
To start off, Macbeth was determined to become the king of Scotland. After he led the Scotland army to victory, Macbeth and Banquo encountered three witches that stated three apparitions. Two of the apparitions were for Macbeth, one stated that Macbeth would become the Thane of Cawdor, and the other stated he would become the king of Scotland. Duncan, the king of Scotland, was proud of Macbeth’s work. So as a reward, Duncan names Macbeth the Thane of Cawdor. After hearing this news, Macbeth was shocked and became eager to be

named the king. Banquo did not want Macbeth to interfere with the apparitions, he recommended that they wait for the apparitions to be true naturally.

At that moment Macbeth stated, “ Glamis, and Thane of Cawdor! … Do you not hope your children shall be king. When those that gave the Thane of Cawdor to me promised you no less to them?”(I.iii. 133-139). This quote shows that Macbeth was impatient for the apparitions to occur naturally and his evil mind tried to convince Banquo to help him. Macbeth’s attempt to get Banquo on his side failed. However, that did not stop Macbeth from becoming king. He was so ambitious that he started planning other ways to become king. After Macbeth talked to Banquo, Macbeth started seeing an imaginary dagger, “The handle toward my hand? Come let me clutch thee! I have thee not, and yet I see thee still” (II.i. 43-44). This shows that he had imaged killing Duncan with the dagger. He wants to grab the dagger but realizes it was his imagination. He was so

determined to become king that he was willing to kill his king for his own benefits. If Macbeth was not ambitious he would not have such thoughts of ways to kill Duncan. At the end of the day, Macbeth got what he wanted.
Moreover, after Macbeth became the King of Scotland, he wanted to remain King for a long time.

However, Fleance, Banquo’s son, was promised the throne in the future. This bothered Macbeth; therefore, he came up with a plan, “It is concluded. Banquo, thy soul’s flight, If it find heaven, must find it out tonight” (III.i. 157-158). This is a quote from the conversation Macbeth was having with the murderers that he hired to kill Banquo and Fleance, his son. Macbeth had ordered this murder because Fleance was promised the throne after Macbeth. Macbeth viewed this as a threat to his throne. This quote shows that Macbeth is ambitious because, Fleance is still young; therefore, Macbeth still had a long time until he lost his throne. However, he had gone blind due to his determination. Also, when he killed Duncan, Lady Macbeth had to nudge him. But this time, Macbeth was not influenced by anyone, only his his own ambition. Also, Macbeth ordered Macduff’s family to be killed because Macduff wanted to overthrow Macbeth and start a war with him with the help of Malcolm, Duncan’s older son. The murderer, that works for Macbeth, stated to Lady Macduff, “He’s a traitor(He’s referring to Macduff)” (IV.ii. 94). After another few short lines being exchanged, the murderer kills Lady Macduff and her son. This quote shows Macbeth was determined to stop everyone that would come in his way, even if that meant murdering innocent children and women. Macbeth’s reasoning behind this action was that

it would stop Macduff from overthrowing him. However, he this action only made Macduff furious and wanted to seek revenge for his loved ones.
Ultimately, Macbeth’s determination to become the king and remain as the king led him to killing many people. Before Macbeth becomes king he is speaking to himself stating, “ The bell invites me. Hear it not, Duncan, for it is a knell That summons thee to heaven, or to hell” (II.i. 71-73). This quote shows that Macbeth’s determination to become king let him kill King Duncan with ease. He was willing to kill innocent lives for his own benefit. King Duncan was not a bad king, the people liked him; therefore Macbeth could not justify murdering Duncan. Yet, he still did for his own benefit and greed. He was so determined to claim the throne that he didn't care about Scotland at all. All Macbeth wanted was to be recognized as a king. If he were a real king, he would earn his position honestly and care about the people, not just himself. Moreover, even after he became king he was not done killing innocent people. His next victim was the Macduff family. Macbeth stated, “The castle of Macduff I will surprise, Seize upon Fife, give to the edge o’ the sword His wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls That trace him in his line” (IV.i. 173-176). Macbeth felt as if it was necessary to kill Macduff’s family because Macduff fled from Scotland in hope to overthrow Macbeth with Malcolm's help. Macbeth was determined to remain as the king, and Macduff’s revolt was a huge threat to Macbeth’s throne. Macbeth’s reasoning was that this act would set Macduff back in his place. Despite Macbeth effort to remain king, he was still killed by Macduff and the throne now belonged to Malcolm.
In conclusion, Macbeth is the most ambitious and determined character the the play. This can be stated about him because he was so focused on his success that he forgot the difference between good and bad.