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Character analysis essay macbeth
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Macbeth is in a tough spot wondering if he should or should not kill King Duncan. I personally think that Macbeth should not kill Duncan. Although there are some advantages to killing Duncan it might hurt him in the long run. If Macbeth kills Duncan than he will become the king. He will be on top of the food chain and control everything and everyone. If he doesn’t kill the king then he will not become the king right now. If he would just have some patience then maybe someday his dream of coming king will come true. “Fair is foul, and foul is fair” (1, 1, 12). I agree with Emma Larson in this statement because I think it has something to do with what happens to be right or
wrong.
...ce to happen and he had the chance to his mind. He could have avoided the whole situation; he could have just accepted the titles that were placed upon him. Greedy Macbeth wanted more power. He let his better judgment be tested by all of the motives that was placed in his way as an obstacle. Crimes were committed and the death of Duncan brought upon many more killings by the hand of Macbeth. Blood was shed over greed and the prophetic word of the three fortune tellers. Macbeth should be guilty in the first degree, and punished with the capital punishment.
At the start of Act 1, Scene 2 Macbeth is shown brave and loyal with
Taking Responsibility for the Murder of King Duncan in William Shakespeare's Macbeth Although Macbeth did murder King Duncan, there were other people. responsible for his death, he said. There were really 4 other people. responsible for the murder, the witches whom Macbeth had communicated. with, Lady Macbeth, Macbeth's wife, of course Macbeth himself, King.
In Macbeth, Macbeth kills Duncan purely out of selfish desire for power. After the three witches give Macbeth the prophecy that he will become Thane of Glamis, Thane of Cawdor and King, he considers murdering King Duncan in order for him to become king. After Ross delivers the news that he has just been rewarded with the title “Thane of Cawdor”, he contemplates whether he will kill King Duncan or not and how he will do it: “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... my thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical” (1.3.127-141). In the end, the only thing that convinces Macbeth to go along with murder is his own greed and
Macbeth negates his moral responsibility as a person as well as a king. He doesn’t take into consideration that he will pay for all the evil deeds that he executes. Killing Duncan is the worst crime that is possible to commit since the kings were the closest in hierarchy next to god. It is evident that Macbeth is aware that this is an evil sin when he states, “ I dare do all that may be come a man, who dares do more is none.” (Act I Scene VII, Line 46-47) The previous statement shows that Macbeth believes that killing Duncan will make him nothing more than a beast. Nevertheless he goes against his morals and kills King Duncan. Sin is a prevalent theme in this play, Macbeth shows that he knows he has lived a sinful life, “Seyton I am sick at hearth, when I behold Seyton I have live’d long enough.” (Act V Scene III, Lines 20-22) Ambition takes over Macbeth when he decides to hire assassinators to kill Macduffs wife and children, “The castle of Macduff I will surprise; seize upon Fife; give to the edge of the sword in this line.”
Furthermore Macbeth kills his best friend, but now decides to stoop to even lower means to keep his crown as king. He begin to harm the innocent people of threatening that he will,“Send out more horses. Skirr the country round. Hang those that talk of fear. Give me mine armor.” (5.3.36-37).Macbeth makes it known to all that he is going to harm all who may cause him to jeopardize his crown and reign as king. On the other hand, if no one desires to do so, Macbeth has no reason to harm the people of Scotland; but, because he is human he is doing whatever it takes to keep his fame and
When Macbeth refuse to kill King Duncan he fells that it's the wrong thing to do and he wont be able to live with the guilt and he though to him self "why kill some one that has been good so good to me?" Macbeth is torn to the part where his wife's love is more important to him than committing terrible crime.
Strong both against the deed”(I.vii.13,14). In scene vii Macbeth contemplates reasons for killing Duncan and reasons that he should not kill Duncan. During this soliloquy he comes to the conclusion that he should not kill Duncan. Immediately after arriving at this conclusion Lady Macbeth enters and reminds him of the positive impacts killing the king may have. Macbeth is torn by two ...
He mentions his reasons why he should not kill Duncan. “Macbeth teaches us not only that power corrupts, but also that knowledge corrupts: bad thoughts lead to bad deeds” (Curran 392). . Lady Macbeth acts as Macbeth superior while the murder of Duncan occurs. “After he is crowned, he is driven to protect what he has gained by ordering the deaths of anyone who he considers to be a threat” (Dominic 252). Lady Macbeth and the witches are all influential factors in the committing of Macbeth murdering Duncan. “Lady Macbeth appeals to her husband’s sense of manhood, and in effect, some maintain use seduction and humiliation to convince him to commit the murders” (Dominic 251). She questions Macbeth’s love for her; she questions Macbeth’s masculinity and criticizes his desire to be king. “While violence is an integral part of this warrior society, Macbeth’s use of it off the battlefield to further his personal ambition” (Dominic 252). Macbeth is an extremely violent man and you can see this throughout the play. A quote that exemplifies his violence, “I am in blood stepp’d in so far, that, should I wade no more, returning were as tedious as go o’ver”( Shakespeare, William 3.4 36-39). Macbeth is stating that there is nowhere left to
Before the murder of King Duncan, Macbeth was a brave, noble warrior. “For brave Macbeth well he deserves that name… Till he unseamed him from the nave to th’ chop and fixed his head upon our battlements” (Act I, Scene 2, lines 2). He was one of the last people anyone would expect to kill King Duncan. Shakespeare chooses a noble character such as Macbeth, to emphasize how greed and power can alter a person’s good morals. In Act one we start to see Macbeth’s desire for more power rise. “Stars, hide your fires; Let no light see my black and deep desires. The eye wink at the hond yet let that be which the eye fears, when it is done to see” (Act I, Scene 4, lines 52- 55). His desire for power is at war with his good morals. He wants to become king but does not want to kill Duncan.
Macbeth knows that Duncan must be killed if he wants to acquire the throne, and the thought of Duncan’s murder is very disturbing to him. Macbeth desires to become king, but his ambition is halted when he thinks of the consequences that follow if he were to get his wish. However, when Malcolm was chosen to become Prince of Cumberland, Macbeth knew that if he did not take any action then he wouldn’t be king. The reader can see that the ruthlessness that lies in Macbeth is coming out when he says “The Prince of Cumberland – that is a step on which I must fall down or else o’erleap, For in my way it lies. Despite the fact that Macbeth is a ruthless individual, Lady Macbeth makes him look like a saint.
He begins to decide on a course of action. It becomes apparent that Macbeth has contemplated killing Duncan when he (aside) acknowledges his “black and deep desires” (1.4.58) Macbeth knows that, if he wishes to take the throne, he must kill Duncan.... ... middle of paper ... ... The paradox “fair is foul and foul is fair” characterizes the changes the protagonists undergo in acts one, two and three. Throughout the play Macbeth, the “fair” one, becomes overcome by guilt and becomes “foul”.
Macbeth knows that killing Duncan is morally wrong as demonstrated in (I, vii, 31-32) where he states, “.we will proceed no further in this business: he hath honour’d me of late”. Yet it is his vaulting ambition that gets the better of him as he shows signs of wanting to kill Duncan. Macbeth says, “The Prince of Cumberland”. – That is a step on which I must fall down, or else o’erleap.
Hello, people of Scotland, I have come to clear the air. The rumor that our dearest King Duncan is dead is, in fact, true, he was sadly and brutally murdered in his sleep in the dear home of Macbeth. I have come to bring justice to our beloved Duncan and solve the case. This was a foul murder that had a motive. All suspects were at the crime scene: Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, Banquo, Donalbain, Malcolm, I can not grasp why one of these human beings would ever harm King Duncan. I do know that I will bring justice to King Duncan. I have three main suspects; Donalbain, Malcolm, and Macbeth.
Macbeth began good and honorable. Despite all that he’d heard from the witches, he was disturbed at the very thought of committing evil for self gain. In a soliloquy, Macbeth even self reflects upon the reasons he shouldn’t kill Duncan, emphasizing each stage of Kohlberg's moral development theory in his pondering. In the end of it all though, he still chose murder. At this point deep regret and guilt took hold over him. “Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood / Clean from my hand? No: this my hand will rather / The multitudinous seas incarnadine / Making the green one red” (2.3.63-66). This quote shows that Macbeth’s ambition hadn’t completely eroded his conscience and moral code. He was immensely remorseful for what he’d done, believing that his hands would never be clean, that God had abandoned him and that he would be unable to sleep from the guilt. This moral standpoint only lasts for so long. When Macbeth eventually gains the power and status he sought he chooses to consolidate his power through violence. Despite the regret he had for killing Duncan, he still chooses violence as an answer to his problems, killing his best friend Banquo. Macbeth attempts to alleviate his guilt for this by not directly killing Banquo, but having hired murderers carry out his ambitions. After Banquo is done away with, Macbeth begins to operate on a more cold and ruthless code of ethics. He justifies his behavior by saying, “I am in blood / Stepp’d in so far that should I wade no more / Returning were as tedious as go o’er” (3.5.136-138). Believing that his soul is unredeemable at this point, he continues on his pursuit of power. He begins committing atrocities that are completely immoral, such as the murder of Macduff’s family. Macbeth kills these innocent people, to simply send a message, completing his transformation into a tyrannical monster. His ambition poisoned his principles