Similarities Between Macbeth And Bill Clinton

Macbeth and Bill Clinton: A Warning About Egos

What do Bill Clinton the 42nd President of the United States and Macbeth the former King of Scotland have in common? More than you think. Macbeth by Shakespeare is a tragedy that dramatises the effects of political ambition. Bill Clinton is the 42nd President of the United States and was the former governor of Arkansas. Focusing on the similarities and differences of Macbeth and Clinton reveals that having a large ego may lead a reader to not think about the consequences of their actions. Macbeth and Bill Clinton are similar because they both have a similar downfall, a behind the scenes facilitator, a very different rise to power, and similar weaknesses. Macbeth and Bill Clinton are a lot alike

but have some differences
Macbeth and Clinton both experience similar downfalls; except Clinton was not assassinated.

Clinton was impeached by the House of Representatives for a charge on perjury and a charge on obstruction of justice. A quote from history.com says “Less than a month later, on September 9, Kenneth Starr submitted his report and 18 boxes of supporting documents to the House of Representatives. Released to the public two days later, the Starr Report outlined a case for impeaching Clinton on 11 grounds, including perjury, obstruction of justice, witness-tampering, and abuse of power, and also provided explicit details of the sexual relationship between the president and Ms. Lewinsky.” Bill Clinton was acquitted by the Senate so he did not end up leaving office. I believe this shows downfall because his people were trying to remove him from his position of power. Macbeth's downfall began when people started to realize that he may have killed King Duncan. But we also knowing that killing King Duncan in the first place was

the beginning of the end for him. Shakespeare says “Thou hast it now: king, Cawdor, Glamis, all, As the weird women promised, and, I fear, Thou play'dst most foully for't: yet it was said It should not stand in thy posterity, 1005 But that myself should be the root and father Of many kings. If there come truth from them— As upon thee, Macbeth, their speeches shine— Why, by the verities on thee made good, May they not be my oracles as well, 1010 And set me up in hope? But hush! no more.” In this quote Banquo is suspecting Macbeth of murdering King Duncan. Banquo was not the only one though; the rest of his court also believed he murdered King Duncan and were trying to remove him from his position of power which eventually started a war and ended with him being killed.
Both Macbeth and Clinton had their wives behind the scenes giving them advice and supporting them. Bill Clinton’s wife, Hillary Clinton, stood beside Clinton throughout his whole presidency. Including all of the scandals, and his impeachment. A quote from buisnessinsider.com says “According to the book, Hillary "routinely" missed afternoon appointments and made Bill sleep on a couch in the study attached to their bedroom for three or four months in 1998.” Even though Clinton had cheated on her with Monica Lewinsky, she still stood by his side. You can see that she did have resentment towards him but she did not leave him. She handled all of Clinton's situations very professionally. Macbeth’s wife, Lady Macbeth, was the mastermind behind the killing of King Duncan. She did what she believed was best for her and her husband’s future. Macbeth was very motivated by her advice that she gave him. Shakespeare says “Only look up clear; To alter favour ever is to fear: Leave all the rest to me.” Lady macbeth says this after she makes plans with Macbeth to kill King Duncan. She is a very loyal wife and does not leave when things get rough. Though like her husband the guilt consumes her. Also like her husband, she dies in the end.
Macbeth and Clinton rose to positions of power in very different ways. Bill Clinton rise to power started when he became the governor of Arkansas. He was governor for about 4 terms and gained a lot of recognition as a new type of democrat. In 1991, he announced that he was the democratic nominee for President. He did better than George Bush in campaign and won the election. Two quotes from go.grolier.com says “While serving in that office he was elected, at age 32, the youngest governor in Arkansas history” and “In October 1991, Clinton announced his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for president” These quotes show that Clinton had a steady rise to power unlike Macbeth. He was patient, and took the proper steps into becoming president. He did not cheat his way there. Macbeth however, took the “easy” way into becoming the King of Scotland. Shakespeare says “Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood/Clean from my hand? No, this my hand will rather/The multitudinous seas incarnadine/Making the green one red.” This quote was said after Macbeth had killed King Duncan. He felt a great amount of guilt at first. Macbeth thought he would never be clean of his guilt; and he was not wrong. Macbeth took the easy way to becoming King by killing King Duncan. The witches ingrained this idea in his head that he would be king without saying how or when. So, Macbeth and his Lady did what they thought they had to do in order for him to become King quickly. It was done out of greed and a need for power.
Ego was the weakness of both Macbeth and Clinton.

Clinton lied about his affair with Monica Lewinsky. Clinton is in a position of power, and when you are in a position of power you believe you are allowed to do things without dealing with the consequences. People in power like taking advantage of that power to do whatever they please. A quote from go.groiler.com says “He now admitted that he did have an intimate relationship with Lewinsky that was not appropriate, but denied that it had been a "sexual" relationship.” He lied multiple times in front of a jury saying that he did not have sexuak relations with Moncia. It wasn’t until they found evidence that he did, that he told the truth about it. Clinton lied because he believed he could get away with it. That people would believe him because of who he was. Macbeth’s weakness was his ambition and his ego as well. After killing Duncan he began to kill anyone that may get in his way; he even went as far as killing Macduff's wife and children. Shakespeare says “The castle of Macduff I will surprise; Seize upon Fife; give to the edge o' the sword His wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls That trace him in his line. No boasting like a fool This deed I'll do before this purpose cool. But no more sights!—Where are these gentlemen? Come, bring me where they are.” This quote shows how Macbeth is at the peak of his ego. He went as far as killing women and children to try to eliminate a threat to his power. Like Clinton, he also

believes that what he does will have no consequences. This may be because of what the witches had told him, but he could have chosen to interpret what they said differently.
In conclusion, Macbeth and Bill Clinton have a lot more similarities and differences than one would think. They have downfalls that are similar, but one more fatal than the other. Their wives are always there to back them up regardless of the messed up things that they do. All in all, their egos are what cause them to have these downfalls, and expose their weaknesses.