Just Lather That's All Moral

Many individuals take the opportunities presented to them for granted, resulting in not thoroughly and cautiously thinking about how their actions will affect not only themselves, but possibly the people around them. Morality is a huge factor that affects the positive or negative outcomes of one’s actions. Novels, stories, plays and other forms of writing help display this concept by showing how characters are only self satisfied when negative consequences are not faced. In William Shakespeare's play, Macbeth and Hernando Tellez’s short story, “Just Lather, That’s All”, the main characters, Macbeth and the Barber show whether self satisfaction is attainable if one follows their morals.
To begin with, Macbeth and the Barber are presented with

opportunities where their victims are in a vulnerable position. In Shakespeare’s play, after Macbeth discovers his third prophecy of becoming the King of Scotland, he is conflicted whether to overthrow King Duncan or abide by his morals.

This is due to Duncan’s vulnerability in his castle as he mentions the environment of the Macbeth castle being warming and pleasant (Shakespeare 1.6.1-3). Duncan is oblivious to Macbeth’s plan of committing regicide against him. His unawareness of Macbeth’s desire of wanting to become king makes him a vulnerable target. Due to the trust and reliability Duncan has for Macbeth, he lets his guard down. Then at night, when Duncan is asleep and is at his most defenseless state, creates a facile opportunity for Macbeth to take advantage. This gives Macbeth the option to decide if his desires are worth killing Duncan. Likewise, to the Barber’s convenience in “Just Lather, That’s All”, Captain Torres enters his shop. Disarming himself, the Captain settles down for just a simple shave and thinks to himself, “The man could not possibly realize it, and this was in my favour. But I would have preferred that he hadn't come” (Tellez 1). Although Captain Torres is aware of the Barber's desire of killing him, he

presents the Barber the opportunity to murder him. This is due to the defenseless state the Captain puts himself in. The Barber has the choice to murder because of his razor, used to shave, which can potentially become a weapon, used to kill. In comparison, Macbeth and the Barber encounter a complication where both their victims place themselves in a vulnerable position. In Macbeth, Duncan is sleeping thinking he has the loyalty and trust of Macbeth. Whereas, Captain Torres disarms himself and is exposed to a sharp razor on his neck. Hence, Macbeth and the Barber demonstrate how given a favourable moment, a person has to decide whether or not to act upon their options presented to them.
Furthermore, Macbeth and the Barber struggle to decide whether to follow or neglect their morals based on the opportunities presented to them.

Given that both victims are in a vulnerable position, Macbeth and the Barber make a decision that vary from each other. In the play, Macbeth contemplates whether to dethrone Duncan for his own benefit. This is illustrated in his soliloquy (Shakespeare 1.7.13-28) when he alternates between what is morally acceptable. Macbeth notes his importance as a kinsmen to Duncan and how killing someone that is predominant would affect his reputation. However, Macbeth overrules his previous thoughts with the deception that killing Duncan will please Lady Macbeth. He strongly believes his decision is reasonable because of his intent to satisfy his wife. This is what ultimately becomes the deciding factor of neglecting his morals. On the contrary, in Tellez’s short story, the Barber cautiously thinks about the outcomes of murdering Captain Torres and what will become of his reputation. Questioning himself, he states “Murderer or hero?... You came to me for a shave… I don’t want blood on my hands” (Tellez 2). Although the Barber knows it would be quite simple and effortless to kill the Captain, he lets his morals become a deciding factor, ultimately deciding to spare the Captain. He realizes how much he values his profession and would rather not let one person who he despises ruin it. When comparing the two stories, morals become the deciding aspect

on whether to kill or not. Without considering the consequences of his actions, Macbeth’s need to please Lady Macbeth causes him to completely neglects his morals and allow him to act impulsively. Unlike the Barber, who acts on the side of his values and completes his duty of simply performing a shave for the Captain. He debates whether he would rather be known as a murderer or hero, however, he knows he would not benefit from this opportunity and chooses to not commit the crime. Ultimately, the Barber helps display how if one thoroughly thinks about the outcomes of their actions, they will choose to do what is right.
After acting upon their decisions, both protagonists face the consequences of their actions. Macbeth acknowledges the consequences of committing regicide once he feels a great sense of remorse. This is noted when he says, “that which should accompany old age,/ As honor, love, obedience, troops of friends,/ I must not look to have” (Shakespeare 5.3.26-28). Macbeth immediately feels regretful and guilty of his actions when he realizes he has lost all the important things people cherish at an old age such as love and loyal friends. He learns his actions are irreversible and is regretful of who he has become, a tyrant. He recognizes the loss of respect from the citizens of his castle because they are afraid to approach him due to his previous impetuous actions. He lost the respect he once had from the people who valued him and is facing the consequences of receiving false impressions from those who serve him. In contrast to “Just Lather, That’s All”, the Barber faces the positive outcome of abiding his morals. The Captain leaves the barber shop saying, “They told me that you’d kill me. I came to find out. But killing isn’t easy. You can take my word for it.” (Tellez 2). The Captain was aware that there was a possibility that the Barber may kill him, however the Barber fought against his negative feelings towards the Captain, showing a high sense of morality. He overlooked his desires of wanting to kill him because he does not want his reputation to be tainted by blood. Essentially, the Barber is satisfied with his decision of following his morals as his reputation is not damaged. He feels no sense of regret because he is self satisfied with the decision he chose to go along with.
Both stories display that the consequences of one’s actions are only positive if one follows their morals. Macbeth is filled with guilt as he greatly valued the objective of becoming King of Scotland, however he comes to the realization of who he has become, and wishes it were possible to reverse what he has committed. This is an indication of how Macbeth is regretful of his actions and wishes he had never neglected his conscience. On the contrary, the Barber believes his morals are more important to abide by, which results him staying professional and not having the hands he works with tainted by the death of someone's life he ended. This helps demonstrate how if one follows their morals, self actualization can be achieved.