Inner Turmoil and Ambition in Macbeth

Shakespeare’s famous play, Macbeth, is a work that describes one’s inner turmoil to commit murderous acts to achieve what he dreams of having. The main character, Macbeth himself, hears a prophecy from three witches, describing him becoming King of Scotland. The only drawback is he must commit a series of dastardly acts to become King. The guilt Macbeth hides inside is a driving force in the play, giving him the strength he needs to complete the horrible crimes. When Macbeth’s wife, Lady Macbeth, hears of this prophecy from him in a letter, she is excited. She would just LOVE to become a Queen. Though when they discuss the matter in person, Lady Macbeth discovers he is unsure if he even should, as Macbeth is on very good terms with the King

already. She makes him feel lesser than he is, by belligerently insulting him: “[...] And live a coward in thine own esteem, \Letting “I dare not” wait upon, “I would,” \Like the poor cat i’ th’ adage?” (1:7:43-45).

He begs her to stop, feeling sorry for himself. Lady Macbeth herself wishes she was a man, so she could do it herself, saying, “Unsex me here, \And fill me from the crown to the toe top-full \Of direst cruelty” (1:5:42-44). Macbeth, overcome with guilt finally decides to side with his wife, and kill the King. Later in Macbeth, the main character invites the King to stay in his castle/fort. A party for the end of the war ensued, after which the King retired to bed. While he is enjoying his night, Macbeth, feeling once more a shred of doubt, began to see a ghostly apparition of a dagger: “Is this a dagger which I see before me, \The handle toward my

hand? Come, let me clutch thee” (2:1:33-34).

The dagger lead him to the chamber in which the King slept. Macbeth finally made the choice to kill the king, and take his place. Further on in the script, Macbeth had a character named Banquo murdered to keep his original murder a secret. Later that same night, he held a dinner for the lords and their ladies, making a point to describe Banquo’s empty seat. After he called a toast, he “saw” the ghost of Banquo: “Avaunt, and quit my sight! Let the earth \hide thee.” (3:4:92-93). He started babbling on and on, going slightly mad in front of guests, who could not see this spectre. The guilt of killing a good man to cover another murder plagued his thoughts, going partially crazy. After doing this a number of times, his wife finally called the dinner to an end, asking them all to leave. The guilt inside Macbeth was slowly eating him away. Committing acts such as these will do that to anyone. Guilt played an important role in the story, allowing Macbeth and others to do things they were previously unable to do. The guilt Macbeth himself hid inside was one of the main driving forces in the play, one that gave him the strength he needs to complete the horrible

acts.