The Most Evil in Macbeth

The Most Evil in Macbeth

Shakespeare's play, Macbeth is the tragic story of a once loyal

soldier's quest for the throne of Scotland. He is fuelled by his

'vaulting ambition' and spurred on by his determined wife. Macbeth

eventually gets his wish, but at the cost of assassinating the

country's leader, and spreading also suspicion and hatred throughout

the kingdom. He is eventually overthrown and killed when he is

discovered. Lady Macbeth is the one who encourages him to commit the

murders, and she was the one who gave him the idea of assassination.

She even blackmailed him to commit the crime when his conscience got

the better of him. Lady Macbeth is thought to have committed suicide

after going mad from the guilt and horrors that have taken place.

Macbeth at the beginning of the play was a heroic and valiant soldier

in King Duncan's army. Accounts are given of his bravery and courage

in battle against the rebel Macdonwald.

"For brave Macbeth (well he deserves that name),

Disdaining Fortune, with his brandished steel,

Which smoked with bloody execution,"

Because of Macbeth's great valour and gallantry, Duncan declares that

Macbeth should be the new Thane of Cawdor.

While returning from the battle Macbeth and his fellow Scottish

general, Banquo, encounter The Witches who address him as Thane of

Glamis, Thane of Cawdor, and 'king hereafter'. The witches promptly

vanish and Rosse arrives with the news that Macbeth has been made

Thane of Cawdor. Macbeth is already Thane of Glamis, and has just been

made Thane of Cawdor; he begins to see the witches' words as a

prophecy that he will become king.

"If Chance will h...

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... death. He resolves not to "play the Roman fool, and die on mine own

sword" He would rather die in a fight than commit suicide like his

late wife. Macduff meets Macbeth and Macbeth is slain in the ensuing

fight.

To conclude, both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth were evil to some degree.

Macbeth was not born evil but turned that way by the witches

influence, but when the net started tightening on him he ordered his

rivals murdered, although he felt guilt. Lady Macbeth forced her

husband to murder the king even though he was against it, this was the

major evil in her life, and she too felt guilt though she went mad

from it.

I believe that Lady Macbeth was the more evil character in the play,

this is mainly because if she hadn't forced Macbeth to murder the king

the ordeal that they went through would never have started.