Macbeth: The Downfall of a Violent King

The Tragedy of Macbeth (1606) could be considered one of the most violent plays composed be renowned classical English author William Shakespeare. It is a tale of cunning, of deceit, of ambition, and greed of one Scottish general and his spouse who long for power in greatness. The play is driven by super natural beliefs and entities, opposing polities, but violence is the front running influence motivating the characters of the drama. While Macbeth was a brilliant leader and tactician, he was a foolish king because he used violence a means to take the throne and cover his mistakes by using brute force and underhanded methods.

The Fact that Macbeth was a general in the army makes it clear that he was good at hand to hand combat. Therefore it

is reasonable to believe that Macbeth preferred to meet his enemies to face in order to dispatch his enemies brutally and without remorse. Evidence of his efficiency as a killer can be seen on the battle field when he captures the king of Norway and kills young Siward. Siward is given a part in the drama due to the fact that he is killed by Macbeth in battle. Though not a main character he is an unlucky foot soldier who happens to be in Macbeth’s way, and incidentally is the last killing Macbeth performs in the drama prior to young Siwards death. Additionally he killed the murderers he hired to kill Banquo, Lady MacDuff, and Lady MacDuff‘s sons in an attempt as he attempted his tracts he thought that by making the three murders disappear, that the twisted nature of his crime will not be discovered by hid subjects. One final example of Macbeth’s nature of brutal killing is a combination of force and crooked behavior. Upon the discovery of Duncan’s body Macbeth uses the ruse his wife created to blame the guards and execute them under false pretenses. This murderers demonstrated Macbeth’s effectiveness as a killer as well as his ability to carry out dishonorable proceedings.
Underhanded behavior by Macbeth was seen when he hired murders to kill his enemies in order to avoid the consequences. Lady Macduff and her son, although not aware of his actions, were killed by the assassins Macbeth hired in order to make a point to MacDuff. Here the clandestine action was not to protect the innocence of Macbeth but rather to hurt MacDuff and gain his loyalty through fear. Macbeth’s assassins are also responsible for the death of Banquo under the authority. The malicious act of killing his best friend is driven by fear on two levels. One the one hand, he is afraid that Banquo sons may kill him to gain the throne, Just as he had done to Duncan, to get his. On the other hand, he feared that he would be discovered as the true killer of Duncan, where his execution would be guaranteed.
Perhaps the most underhanded murder in the entire play is the murder of Duncan. Here Macbeth, an effective and intelligent general, choses to murder Duncan while he sleeps, a time when any person is able to defend themselves. Perhaps the most dastardly feature of Duncan’s death is the fact that he was murdered by Macbeth, who swore to protect the king and remain to be a loyal subject under his rule. Yet Macbeth disregards his convictions and troughs cation to the wind for his own personal gain. It is at this point that Macbeth’s character was transformed from hero to villain.
Violence has always been a tragic source of entertainment which continues into today’s modern entertainment industry. Where Zach Snyder, director of 300 (2006), has computer generated imagery to show his audience’s the violent nature of combat, William Shakespeare had only the stage, stage direction, and the imagination of his audience. Violence will continue to shape the world, society, and entertainment for generations to come has always been the past.