The Importance Of The Downfall Of Macbeth

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Macbeth Essay Many strive to achieve goals set in their minds, but some may lose control of their actions while doing so. In William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, Macbeth’s overconfidence and unrestricted ambition causes his humanity to deteriorate as the play progresses, ultimately leading to his demise. This is shown through the significant events surrounding the murders he commits, especially the murders of Duncan, Banquo, and Macduff’s family. First, Macbeth shows these characteristics through the murder of Duncan, in hopes of becoming king. An example showing this is when the idea of murdering the king first comes into Macbeth’s mind, after hearing the prophecy of the three witches. He asks himself, “Why do I yield to that suggestion…”, …show more content…

An example of this is his initial decision to kill Macduff’s family, including the kids. At this point, Macbeth is truly mad; he plans to murder innocent people, that do not threaten him in anyway, with no strategic purpose. This is extremely illogical, and shows his lack of mercy. Another example of Macbeth’s arrogant behavior is when he himself, states, “To crown my thoughts with acts, be it thought / and done”, meaning he plans to act without thinking (4. 1. 147, 148). This signifies that his overconfidence has taken over him, making him believe that he can pursue anything without consequences, unlike his attitude near the beginning of the play, when he was plotting the murder of Duncan. Finally, the most striking example of this is when Macbeth is slain by Macduff, finally experiencing the consequences of his actions. It was the grief and rage that Macbeth had caused Macduff through killing his family, that caused Macduff to cut off “The usurper’s cursed head”, putting an end to his life (5.8. 55). Because of Macbeth’s irrational decision to kill off Macduff’s family, he was killed as

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