Have you ever thought about whether or not people have a destiny in life, or about if they have a certain fate that could change everything they’ve ever known or dreamed of? This question usually sparks human interest. Psychologically, we all have a desire to know about ourselves and what lies before us. Three works that create the theme of fate and free will is Macbeth, Hercules, and Oedipus The King. We can observe and compare the storyline and the characters shaping fates between Macbeth and Hercules. In Macbeth, the beginning of the script opens with three witches. Usually witches are known as supernatural, representing evil, danger, and death. By act three, they had foretold a prophecy to Macbeth and Banquo. This one action set up the …show more content…
whole rest of the play. “First Witch: All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis! Second Witch: All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor! Third Witch: All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!” (Shakespeare 1.3 49-51). Their prophecy changed the whole life that lay before Macbeth. In greek mythology, which is solidly expressed in Hercules, witches are in control of thread, a metaphor for life. They spin the thread, measure it, and cut it. In Hercules, the prophecy was likewise, being told in the beginning of the story by three witches, this tantalized what Hades had in mind for his future and what he believed his fate to be. “First Witch: In eighteen years precisely the planets will align ever so nicely, the time to act will be at hand, Hades will unleash the Titans. Then the once proud Zeus will finally fall, and Hades will rule all. Second Witch: A word of caution to this tale, should Hercules fight, Hades will fail” (Clements). This also changes what will come for Hades. He believes that he handled Hercules earlier in life and that he will have an easy time getting up to the mighty spot of ruling the world and Mount Olympus. However, the prophecy justifies true either way. Later in both stories each character that was told their fate tries to change it. They strive to get what they desire no matter what the cost. They result in trying to either make their prophecy come true or trying to prevent it. Such as Macbeth killing everyone who could stand in the way of ruling Scotland, or Hades trying to kill Zeus and Hercules to be in the throne of Mount Olympus. In the end, both characters fail, because their fate was already decided, it didn’t end the way they wanted because there was nothing they could do to prevent what was already set in stone. The experiences of Oedipus are very similar to those of Hercules.
Both Hercules and Oedipus went to the temple of powerful god asking them about what was to come for them. A messenger of Oedipus went to see Apollo, who told Oedipus’ prophecy. “Zeus and Apollo, it is true understand and know the full events of a man’s life” (Sophocles 32). Knowing that they could confirm the answers to the questions, old stories, and rumors starting to spread across Thebes Oedipus sent someone to hear the word of Apollo who knows all of every man’s life. Also, Hercules went to see Zeus, begging for an answer because he knew he was meant for something more. Another slight similarity is that both protagonists were found as infants and brought up apart from their families, without knowledge of their origins. In both cases this was because of a rebellion against the prophecies foretold in each story. “Laius and Jocasta, the childless king and queen of Thebes, were told by the god Apollo that their son would kill his father and marry his mother. A son was born to them and tried to make sure that the prophecy would not come true. Laius drove a metal pin into the infant’s ankles and gave it to a shepherd, with instructions to leave it to die of exposure on the nearby mountain, Mount Cithaeron” (Sophocles XL). Oedipus’ parents tried their hardest to avoid the reality they could potentially be facing after hearing the prophecy. The same instance happened in Hercules, except his parents weren’t the …show more content…
ones trying to kill him, it was his dad’s nemesis and his servants. “Let’s just kill the kid and get it over with, okay. Here you go, kid, a little grecian formula. He has to drink the whole potion! Every last drop” (Clements). Hades sent his servants to find Hercules in Mount Olympus, his goal was to give him a potion to make him completely mortal and then kill him so the prophecy wouldn’t be fulfilled. They believed they had succeeded, until they figured out he didn’t drink the last drop. Hercules was no longer immortal, but still had immense strength. Hades’ servants never told him because of their fear of him. Later on, Hades figures out that Hercules is still alive which ruins his plan. Fate is developing throughout the story at this point and is ruling over Hades’ free will. Finally, we can contrast all three works.
Macbeth embraced his destiny, while Oedipus tried to avoid his, and Hercules had no idea about his own destiny. “The service and the loyalty I owe, in doing it, pays itself” (Shakespeare 1.3 22-23). Macbeth favored his destiny because of the fact that it was in his own favor. As the story progresses we see him becoming more arrogant. The witches told him that he was going to be someone of higher power, and even the King of his country. Oedipus tried to avoid what Apollo told him was in his near future. Marrying his mother, causing an incestual family line, and killing his father. However, Hercules had no idea about his destiny, although most of the antagonists around him did. Another difference is Oedipus’ and Hercules’ parents knew about the prophecy before the main characters and those stories started off with their childhood, while Macbeth’s parents were not mentioned in the story at all and begins with him as an adult. Overall, a current theme throughout all of these three works was fate and how it dominated over the characters' free will, and what they had in mind themselves for their future. Even over the course of time, no matter what happened fate wouldn’t change and always found it’s way to proclaim what the characters’ future would be. It’s easy to wonder on your own if maybe even you have a fate or a destiny that could change the course of your
life.
...his wife caused Macbeth to kill the King, kill his best friend Banquo, and kill his counterpart Macduff’s family. These choices eventually caused his downfall; in the form of a beheading by Macduff. The concept of fate against free will is often examined in Macbeth, which is what Shakespeare wanted people to do, and in real life. Many people believe that everyone controls their own destiny; that the outcome of their life is based upon the decisions they make. Others conclude that people have a set path through life. Some conceive the idea that life is a mix of both, where people’s decisions have an impact on their life, just not on the outcome. The concept of “fate vs. free will” will continue to be examined, and plays like Shakespeare’s Macbeth allow people to do that.
Are the characters governed by fate or free will? Fate means a power that some people believe causes and controls all events, so that you cannot change or control way things will happen. Free will means the ability to decide what to make independently of any outside influence. The different between the two they justify the causes that are in somebody else’s hands or in your own hands. The reason why I picked the background information that supports my hook because life can be influenced by the outcome of what you do regardless of what is in favor. The characters and events in the play were influenced by fate because the path and actions they chose recently reflect what happen later on in the play.
Fate vs Free Will is one of the most oft used literary techniques in writing. It is never more evident than in Shakespeare’s play Macbeth. The major theme of the story Macbeth is whether or not the story is fueled by the free will of Macbeth, or by his fate. Are the events in Macbeth a result of his mentality and outlook on life, or were they going to happen no matter what? Almost every major event that takes place can be traced back to this question. It can be viewed in different ways, and most people have their own opinions. Dissecting this question is a part of what makes teaching Macbeth still have so much value to this day. But there is a clear answer to this question upon further dissection. The story of Macbeth is fueled by his free will, which he perceives to be a necessary part of achieving his fate.
In Sophocles ' Oedipus the King, the themes of fate and free will are very strong throughout the play. Only one, however, brought about Oedipus ' downfall and death. Both points could be argued to great effect. In ancient Greece, fate was considered to be a rudimentary part of daily life. Every aspect of life depended and was based upon fate (Nagle 100). It is common belief to assume that mankind does indeed have free will and each individual can decide the outcome of his or her life. Fate and free will both decide the fate of Oedipus the King.
In society, people have varying opinions on fate. Many question whether life’s events are pre-determined by fate or whether people have a destiny to serve a greater purpose. Fate versus free will is an archaic topic among philosophers that is ultimately up for interpretation.The question on whether or not something else is controlling life’s events or if they are simply a coincidence faces us in some point of our lives. In Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare plays with the idea of fate and its control on the events in the play. He forces us to realize the destiny between Romeo and Juliet involves the fate between the two opposing households as well. Shakespeare blurs the line between fate and free will in his play Romeo and Juliet to show that the outstanding cause of Romeo and Juliet’s tragedy was not something decided- it was fate. It is evident by the events in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet that fate was the main cause of the tragedy in the play, and that Romeo and Juliet held the destiny to finally end the feud between the Capulets and the Montagues.
The Greek tragedy Oedipus the King, by Sophocles, was written to show the common people of Greece how powerful the gods are and that your fate is pre-determined and nothing you do can change that. He does this by showing how people in this story try to escape their fate and how it is no use because in the end, what the oracles predict comes true. In the story there are many occasions in which people try to escape their fate.
In the story, “Oedipus the King” before Oedipus became king of Thebes, he made choices that led to events that defined his fate. The first event emerged when Oedipus heard a drunken man saying that the ones who cared for Oedipus at Corinth were not his biological parents. The terrible news is what set forth the very first steps towards the beginning of the events that led to his fate. Oedipus confused and interested in the truth, went on to speak with God. However, the God did not answer what Oedipus questioned and instead had his fate foretold. “The god dismissed my question without reply; he spoke of other things. Some were clear, full of wretchedness, dreadful, unbearable: As, that I should lie with my own mother, breed children from all men would turn their eyes; and that I should be my father’s murderer,” (Gioia, 2010). Oedipus still unfamiliar, of who his parents were, chose to flee from home in attempt to prevent the God’s statement of his fate from coming true. Oedipus’ choice of fleeing the country was perhaps a bad decision. It was what led him to experience the first event of his fate. As Oedipus goes his...
How much of an influence does fate have on the ideals of a person? Is Macbeth acting out the selfish desires of his own accord? Fate is thought to be unavoidable, and all the paths of life lead to a destiny that is inescapable. In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, not only is Macbeth’s hand forced in committing a murder, his fate is expedited in the process. Macbeth is in control of his own destiny, but is spurned into decisions by the Witches and his wife. Although Macbeth believes he is controlled by fate, a more thorough inspection reveals his control over all his actions.
In the stories/plays and poems of Gilgamesh, Oedipus the King and Achilles in the Iliad, there are three main heroes who have their fate decided for them by the Gods. Each hero has had fate placed on them according to the god’s, however as fate is understood there is also the idea of free will. Gilgamesh is two-thirds god and one-third man, who feels as though he has no equal, Gilgamesh feels superior to all men until he meets Enkidu, a creation sent to stop Gilgamesh from his reckless and wild ways. Oedipus is the king of Thebes and his fate was prophecies by the blind soothsayer Tiresias in which he was to kill his father and marry his mother. In the poem the Iliad, Achilles was the hero that would win the war with Troy, the prophet Calchas predicted that Achilles would die at an early age. In all of the epics, each character had a destiny to full filled, blessed with extra ordinary powers and abilities, each had the a...
In the context of the fictional story of Macbeth, it is hard to argue that fate was not controlling his life and actions. Many prophecies were made that seemed impossible at first, but each one came true and things happened as expected, though maybe not in the exact way or at the exact time that they were thought to. It is pretty clear throughout the narrative that the concept of fate prevails in the context of Macbeth, but once these beliefs are placed into the realm of the real world, there is a lot more room for argument. Things in real life are less certain, and there are many variables that can affect a person’s opinion on this matter. Ultimately, it comes down to a personal decision that everyone exercises their freedom of choice on to establish what they believe.
Fate and free will, the beliefs that humans are either mere playthings to the universe or are in full control of their destinies. The tragic play Macbeth, by William Shakespeare, has the ideas of fate and free will present throughout. The play opens on eleventh century Scotland, where the main character, Macbeth, meets with three witches who tell him that he is fated to become king. Macbeth decides to leave out chance, take matters into his own hands, and kill King Duncan. He soon becomes paranoid and sends orders to kill those he believes are a threat to his power. Although Macbeth was fated to become king, his downfall was caused by his own free will on the account of his choices to put faith in the witches, kill King Duncan, and kill the family of Macduff.
In the tragedy “Macbeth,” written by William Shakespeare, Macbeths free will is shown as he tries to take what is his. “Macbeth” is about a Scottish troop (Macbeth) and his friend Banquo. Macbeth and Banquo meet three witches whom tell them about a prophecy that involves Macbeth and Banquo’s son. One of the prophecies was that Macbeth would become king. The prophecy makes Macbeth’s mind corrupted making him pursue dark actions to overthrow King Duncan. Macbeth’s free will is exhibited by the way he has the inspiration to control what he does throughout the tragedy. People may say that it is fate because the prophecy states that Macbeth will be king, but it also states that Banquo’s sons will be kings in
In both of these tragic plays, “Macbeth” by Shakespeare and “Oedipus the King” by Sophocles, a catastrophic fate transforms the lives of the protagonists and ultimately becomes a sad reality for both of them whether they flee from it or pursue it. In this way, the authors present fate and destiny as the unavoidable reality every human will have to face, and whether it is a simple statement made by strangers or satirical act of unmerciful gods, it shows life is not in our hands but rests in the power of outside forces.
In today's society we let our lives be led by a certain force that we believe in very strongly. Yet, a common debate that still rages today is whether we, as a species, have free will or if some divine source, some call it fate, controls our destiny. In the play, Oedipus the King, that special force is also used and is known and defined as fate. This played an important role in the lives of the characters just as it plays one in our daily lives.
William Shakespeare on his bloody tragedy, Macbeth, introduces the spectator into a mind-blowing historical event transformed into a play. Though with some questionable accuracy about the real event, Macbeth tells the story of a brave general named Macbeth who, from the encounter with three sister witches, receives the prophecy about him becoming king of Scotland in a near future. Because it is unknown how Macbeth will become king, Shakespeare uses this fact to unravel an array of mysteries around the different characters throughout the play who are moved towards the accomplishment of such prophecy. Through its presentation of human behavior, Shakespeare’s Macbeth suggests that people are willing