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Macbeth stylistic devices
Ecxplore the ways shakespeare presents the relationship between macbeth and lady macbeth
Macbeth stylistic devices
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Through the interactions and relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, Shakespeare conveys that relationships in which one person is the clear leader and the other the clear follower usually end up with an ignorance of the consequences of one’s actions leading to unexpected and rapid destruction because the follower is likely oblivious to the repercussions of the actions of the leader. This is evident especially during Macbeth’s internal struggle on whether or not to kill Duncan. One of the key scenes which shows this is Act i, Scene vii. Here, Macbeth shows scepticism about their plan to kill Duncan saying “We will proceed no further in this business; he hath honour'd me of late; and I have bought golden opinions from all sorts of people, which would be worn now in their newest gloss, not cast aside so soon.” (I.vii). …show more content…
Shakespeare conveys the fact that this may not necessarily be the best setup for a successful relationship as is seen in the end of the play because both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth experience defeat. Shakespeare says through this that those who lead may be too fueled by ambition to make proper decisions and therefore may face fates similar to those that Lady Macbeth faced. Additionally, since Macbeth followed in his wife's footsteps too closely and did not think for himself the consequences of his actions, he also experiences defeat. Shakespeare’s theme is the fact that those who follow in a relationship may not take appropriate time to think for themselves and can face similar fates to the leaders whom they follow. As a result, while there is both a leader and a follow in any given relationship, it is important that both parties in said relationship are able to exhibit both leader and follower qualities in order to make the best, most thought- out
After a long and hard battle, the Sergeant says to King Duncan, “For brave Macbeth,-well he deserves that name,- disdaining fortune, with his brandish’d steel, which smok’d with bloody execution , like valour’s minion carv’d out his passage till he fac’d the slave;” (1.2.16) . This quote shows that Macbeth is viewed as a valiant soldier and a capable leader. However, it does not take long for the real Macbeth to be revealed- a blindly ambitious man, easily manipulated by the prospect of a higher status. His quest for power is what drives his insanity, and after having been deemed the Thane of Cawdor, Macbeth’s ambition can immediately be seen. In a soliloquy, Macbeth says, “Present fears are less than horrible imaginings; my thought, whose murder yet is but fantastica, shakes so my single state of man that function is smother’d in surmise, and nothing is but what is not” (1.3.140). Macbeth has just gained more power, and his immediate thought is of how to gain an even higher status as king. He imagines how to kill Duncan, and then is troubled by his thoughts, telling himself it is wrong. This inner struggle between Macbeth’s ambition and his hesitation to kill Duncan is the first sure sign of his mental deterioration. Although Macbeth does kill Duncan, he questions whether or not he should to do so, which is far different from how Macbeth feels about murder later in the play. Macbeth becomes king, and this power leads
Humans are always fascinated by power. Sadly, they do not realize the danger of it until it is too late. In the play Macbeth, William Shakespeare's underscores how Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are both consumed by power. In the beginning, Lady Macbeth dominates Macbeth, manipulating him to kill Duncan. After the death of Duncan, Macbeth becomes ambitious, and hires murderers to kill Banquo without notifying Lady Macbeth. Even though he is a decorated soldier, when Macbeth rises to power, he becomes ruthless. On the other hand, Lady Macbeth becomes weak, and insane. Shakespeare illustrates how Macbeth’s obsession with power undermines his moral judgement, leads to his mental deterioration, and ultimately results in his death.
“O worthiest cousin, the sin of my gratitude even now was heavy on me!”(I. i. 347) the king cannot repay him for what he has done for their kingdom. Macbeth is a highly respected warrior because he is loyal, trusted, and honest man. Macbeth is a vulnerable man; he is weak. Letting other people make decisions for him, he becomes more incapable of resisting how people will view him as a “loyal” soldier since he cannot follow through. In the film Macbeth the setting is right in the middle of war. Macbeth has held the enemy facing him, but he hesitates and looks at his soldiers for the okay to kill the enemy. With that being said, he is seriously self conscious and lets others makes the decisions for him. Before he is going to kill King Duncan, he speaks to himself in the If soliloquy. “If it were done when ’tis done, then ’twere well It were done quickly.”(I. vii. 343) in this quote it shows that he is truly evil since he wants it done quick and easy.
When Macbeth finds out about the witches prophecies, he quickly sends a letter to Lady Macbeth explaining the situation. She rapidly sees that she must help Macbeth become king, so she says “Glamis thou art, and Cawdor, and shalt be What thou art promised. Yet do I fear thy nature; It is too full o' th' milk of human kindness /To catch the nearest way. /Thou wouldst be great,/ Art not without ambition, but without/ The illness should attend it. (1.5.15-20). Right away, Lady Macbeth is going to do everything she possibly can to ensure he becomes king which proves her ambition. Later on in the play, Lady Macbeth makes another decision which shows that her ambition is quickly getting the worst out of her. When King Duncan arrives, Lady Macbeth sees a perfect opportunity to kill Duncan. She is worried that Macbeth will not go through with the plan so she says ¨When Duncan is asleep—/Whereto the rather shall his day’s hard journey/ Soundly invite him—his two chamberlains/Will I with wine and wassail so convince¨ (1.7.61-65). Lady Macbeth reveals that her need for power is taking a turn. She plots to get the “two chamberlains” drunk so she can blame the murder of Duncan on them. The fact that she plots out an entire plan to kill Duncan and that she is willing to blame it on someone else reveals that her ambition has brought out the worst in her.. All in all, Lady Macbeth is a character who does not second
Written by William Shakespeare in 1611, Macbeth is a tragic tale that dramatizes the acquisition of power by Macbeth, a Scottish Lord who becomes King, and documents the effects newfound power has on morality and values. A recurring theme that is demonstrated throughout the play is the idea that a change in status, a gain or loss of power, can have substantial effects on a personals moral standing. This ideology is see in the transition of Macbeth from a subservient lord to a ruthless king that abuses his limitless power. For instance, in the beginning of the play, Macbeth states: “ “We will proceed no further in this business.””(1.7.32), referring to carrying out the plot to murder King Duncan. While, at the the climax of the play, Macbeth’s exercise and power know no limits, as scene in Act 3, “ “For mine own good/ All causes shall give way. I am in blood/ Stepped in so far, that I wade no more,/ Returning were as tedious as go o'er.””(3.4.167-170). During this scene, Macbeth has proclaimed that he has come too far to fall back and will continue to abuse his power. Regarding the citations, Macbeth’s shift in morality can be lucidly seen through his transformation from a subordinate lord to a power hungry tyrant with limitless power. Previous to his coronation, Macbeth was an obedient servant to the King, by way of contrast, after Macbeth
When considering a dilemma, we usually turn towards those we love for advice, since they are the ones to whom we listen. In William Shakespears' Macbeth, Lady Macbeth is greatly responsible for the killing of King Duncan. Lady Macbeth reveals her secret evil nature, which pushes her towards her evil doings. Once Macbeth learns his prophecy to be king, she immediately convinces and persuades Macbeth into following her plan. Towards the end, when the crimes have been committed, Lady Macbeth shows weakness and guilt for her evil deeds.
In these two quotes we see that there is a disagreement that continues through the entire scene. Macbeth decides that he does not want to murder Duncan and that is final and that the discussion is over. Lady Macbeth on the other hand feels that Macbeth is being a coward and that he should think about what he is doing before he makes up his mind. Slowly throughout the scene Lady Macbeth convinces Macbeth that he should kill Duncan and he finally agrees. This goes to show that the relationship produces a sense of trust and openness. This is due to the fact that Macbeth listens to his wife and finally takes what she has to say into thought and carries through with it. The function of this is to create a sense of hostility amongst the audience. Everyone can't believe that Lady Macbeth is encouraging her husband to kill someone and it really makes them uncomfortable and shifts there mood of love towards Lady Macbeth to hate. This mood of the audience is highened in Act 2 Scene 2 when once again Macbeth has decided that he is going to stop what he is doing although he had already killed Duncan;
To begin, Macbeth experiences an internal downfall due to his ambition where he battle between his desires and moralistic values. Initially, the idea of attaining power over Scotland by killing King Duncan sparks a sense of fear and paranoia in Macbeth, however, his conscience struggles to take over his ambition: "that we but teach/ Bloody instructions, which being taught, return/ To plague the inventor. [...] I have no spur/ To prick the sides of my intent, but only/ Valuing ambition, which o'erleaps itself/ And falls on th' other-" (1.7.8-28). At this moment, Macbeth contemplates on killing King Duncan as he visualizes the long term consequences of committing the crime. The reader can grasp his moral judgement as he understands that by proceeding with the murder, he is only causing his own demise and punishing himself. With that b...
The tragedy of Macbeth opens up with him returning home from a victorious military battle, displaying his honor and excellence. This is, also the first time he is presented with the opportunity for power. His success covered him with glory in defense of the crown. Macbeth is busily basking in his own glory and soaking up credit when Duncan basically steals his spotlight from right over his head, proclaiming Malcolm, Duncan's son, as the heir-apparent. This action also belittles Macbeth's achievement, since the procession of the throne is not necessarily dictated by bloodlines. Duncan is basically announcing that Macbeth, while noble, is inferior to his son Malcolm. This is where Duncan provokes Macbeth to hate him and also points out what Macbeth must do to become King. Duncan even tempts Macbeth, by pronouncing him as the Thane of Cawdor. This gives Macbeth a taste of power and he begins to have a desire for more. This desire or ambition is his fatal flaw. Shakespeare, by using Macbeth as a guide, shows that even the honorable men can fall into the hands of evil just like everyone else. No one is safe from his or her own ambitions of power and success. It is clear that Macbeth ends up a far more brutal and simple...
Perhaps the most fundamental theme of Shakespeare’s Macbeth is the inherent corruptibility of even a seemingly good man when ambition turns to greed, and Macbeth himself exemplifies this concept throughout the play. While at the outset he is seen to be loyal to his king, generally considered trustworthy, and displaying numerous other laudable qualities, Macbeth ultimately succumbs to the influence of those around him and becomes unequivocally evil, setting aside all his previously held morals and coming to be driven only by his lust for power. This transition is brought about by a wide variety of factors and plays an integral role in the development of the plot. In his tragedy Macbeth, William Shakespeare employs
William Shakespeare’s Macbeth tells the story of a general who commits regicide in order to become king. Early in the play, Macbeth is conflicted as to weather or not he wants to kill his kinsman the king. In the first two acts Macbeth is not portrayed as a ruthless killer; he is a sympathetic character who succumbs to the provocation of his wife and a prophecy foretold by three mysterious witches. In contrast, Lady Macbeth is a manipulative, immoral woman. Her ambition is so strong that she is willing to do anything to see her husband succeed. However, in the third act things begin to change. The death of the king and lord and lady Macbeth’s rise to power catalyze profound transformation in their personalities.
Lady Macbeth is the first to strategize a way to kill Duncan. As a character foil to Macbeth she juxtaposes their possession of guilt and ruthlessness, which creates irony and excitement to the play. Originally, she is very power hungry and wants to utilize her husband’s position in status to become queen. Macbeth objects to the plan to kill Duncan because he believes Duncan is Macbeth’s kinsman, host, and an overall virtuous ruler (Act. 1 Scene. 7) and thus feels very guilty for taking advantage of Duncan’s trusting quality towards the Macbeth family. She refers to Macbeth as weak and rebukes his manhood (Act 1. Scene 7.) . As the play progresses, Lady Macbeth and Macbeth have a character role reversal of their possession of guilt and ruthlessness. The character foil is extant, however Macbeth’s ruthlessness overcomes his guilt, and Lady Macbeth’s guilt vanquishes her drive for power. In addition to an alteration in character foils, Shakespeare introduces situational irony because now Lady Macbeth succumbs to the weakness Macbeth once possessed and Macbeth is the one who is formidable and ambitious. Macbeth’s ability to transcend his guilt exemplifies his struggle for power and reinforces the theme of evil ambition because Macbeth is able to secure the throne and power only by mass
In Act 1, Scene 7 of this play, MacBeth begins a monologue. In this soliloquy, the character shows, as Shakespeare’s characters are known to, a human truth: he is conflicted with morals of killing his king; the mind’s battle between personal want and acting ethically. He states an ethical appeal to himself, saying, “First, as I am his kinsman and his subject, Strong both against the deed,” meaning that he should act as a dutiful subject and not slaughter his good king. MacBeth is aware that his only motivation to kill the king is his ambition, and that ambition drives people to disaster. At the end of MacBeth’s monologue, he had chosen not to kill King Duncan, and shares his decision with his wife Lady Macbeth once she enters.
The main theme of Macbeth-the destruction wrought when ambition goes unchecked by moral constraints-finds its most powerful expression in the play's two main characters. Macbeth is a courageous Scottish general who is not naturally inclined to commit evil deeds, yet he deeply desires power and advancement. He kills Duncan against his better judgment and afterward stews in guilt and paranoia. Toward the end of the play he descends into a kind of frantic, boastful madness. Lady Macbeth, on the other hand, pursues her goals with greater determination, yet she is less capable of withstanding the repercussions of her immoral acts. One of Shakespeare's most forcefully drawn female characters, she spurs her husband mercilessly to kill Duncan and urges him to be strong in the murder's aftermath, but she is eventually driven to distraction by the effect of Macbeth's repeated bloodshed on her conscience. In each case, ambition helped, of course, by the malign prophecies of the witches is what drives the couple to ever more terrible atrocities. The problem, the play suggests, is that once one decides to use violence to further one?s quest for power, it is difficult to stop. There are always potential threats to the throne?Banquo, Fleance, Macduff?and it is always tempting to use violent means to dispose of them.
In Shakespeare's Macbeth, the focus that is placed on the character of Lady Macbeth helps to convey the play's theme of the strife created by the struggle for power and control that is present throughout the entire work. Shakespeare presents her character in great detail and shows her to be a dominating, authoritative woman who thrives on the power she holds over her husband. He then shows the principle character, Macbeth, rise up and join his wife in a struggle for power of his own. It is the actions that Macbeth takes in attempt to achieve ultimate authority that lead to his downfall, and it is Lady Macbeth's loss of control over her husband as he gains this independence which causes her own weakening and eventually leads to her demise as well.