Theme Of Ambition In Macbeth

1244 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Macbeth character analysis

Grace Stafford
Mr. Tappy
English 1-2
9 December 2013
The Darkness of Ambition
President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s wife Eleanor Roosevelt once said, “Ambition is pitiless. Any merit that it cannot use it finds despicable.” Ambition can be an emotion that can drive people to madness and this character flaw is seen in William Shakespeare’s play Macbeth. Macbeth is about a Scottish Thane that decides to kill the King of Scotland to get the crown. This murder starts a chain of evil acts by Macbeth because he doesn’t know how to handle his ambition. By the end of the play the reader learns that ambition was really Macbeth’s downfall. In the renowned play Macbeth, Macbeth’s character flaw of ambition causes him to self destruct over anything else.
At the very beginning of the play Macbeth is already starting to be overtaken by his yearning for power. Macbeth’s ambition starts to blind him when three witches tell him that he will be Thane of Cawdor and King. The reader can see his desire for power begin to grow and blind him in this quote, “This supernatural soliciting
Cannot be ill, cannot be good. If ill,
Why hath it given me earnest of success,
Commencing in a truth? I am Thane of Cawdor,”
(Act I.Scene III.134-137).
This quote explains how Macbeth thinks how could killing the King be bad or good? If anything the witches say is bad then why am I Thane of Cawdor? If he wanted to do the right thing he wouldn’t even think about killing King Duncan. Ambition is already starting to show as his flaw. Later into the act, Macbeth’s lust for power comes into full swing when he decides that he will kill Duncan. This lust blinds him to what he really should do. The audience can see this greed in this quote, “If it wer...

... middle of paper ...

...eactions of ambition such as lying, cheating, and stealing to get ahead.
Everyone has flaws but very few peoples’ flaws end in their destruction. This ,however, is not the case in Macbeth. The main character, Macbeth, uses his flaw of ambition and ends up getting killed for it. His ambition starts out small such as just thinking of the idea of killing Duncan but then turns into to actually killing him. After that, he kills his friends,innocent women and children, and he brings pain and suffering unto his country. However, in the end he is finally able to see that he has been blinded and he hasn’t taken the right path. Like when Eleanor Roosevelt once said, “Ambition is pitiless. Any merit that it cannot use it finds despicable.” Ambition doesn’t pity anyone and it devours every good aspect of people. Macbeth is a famous example of what ambition can do to a person.

Show More
Related

  • Mental Deterioration In Macbeth Essay

    1310 Words  | 3 Pages

    After a long and hard battle, the Sergeant says to King Duncan, “For brave Macbeth,-well he deserves that name,- disdaining fortune, with his brandish’d steel, which smok’d with bloody execution , like valour’s minion carv’d out his passage till he fac’d the slave;” (1.2.16) . This quote shows that Macbeth is viewed as a valiant soldier and a capable leader. However, it does not take long for the real Macbeth to be revealed- a blindly ambitious man, easily manipulated by the prospect of a higher status. His quest for power is what drives his insanity, and after having been deemed the Thane of Cawdor, Macbeth’s ambition can immediately be seen. In a soliloquy, Macbeth says, “Present fears are less than horrible imaginings; my thought, whose murder yet is but fantastica, shakes so my single state of man that function is smother’d in surmise, and nothing is but what is not” (1.3.140). Macbeth has just gained more power, and his immediate thought is of how to gain an even higher status as king. He imagines how to kill Duncan, and then is troubled by his thoughts, telling himself it is wrong. This inner struggle between Macbeth’s ambition and his hesitation to kill Duncan is the first sure sign of his mental deterioration. Although Macbeth does kill Duncan, he questions whether or not he should to do so, which is far different from how Macbeth feels about murder later in the play. Macbeth becomes king, and this power leads

    Read More

  • Macbeth Insanity

    872 Words  | 2 Pages

    Ambition plagues Macbeth over the course of the epic tragedy, conveying his sanity progresses to a state of mental illness through his murderous measures. At first, Macbeth is aware of the outcomes of murdering King Duncan, and contemplates whether to enact Duncan’s deposition. Consequently, Macbeth’s hamartia of determination causes him to formulate a strategy for the execution of Duncan, even though no other true motive is apparent: “I have no spur / To prick the sides of my intent, but only / Vaulting ambition, which o’erleaps itself / And falls on th’ other,”(Shakespeare 1. ...

    Read More

  • Macbeth: The Tragic Hero

    1040 Words  | 3 Pages

    Throughout the play Macbeth allows his pride to interfere with his judgment and succumbs to the witches’ prophecy, leading to his tragic downfall. “Macbeth orders a slaughter of innocents in a vain and futile attempt to preserve kingships threatened by prophecies” (Hassel). He murders King Duncan, his good friend, in order to secure his fate as king. Although Macbeth knows the difference between right and wrong, he is a victim of his tragic flaw: his ambition. His tragic flaw repeatedly leads him to deceit and murder.

    Read More

  • Macbeth Argument Essay

    783 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the beginning of Act I, Macbeth is regarded by King Duncan and many others as a noble man, more specifically a “valiant cousin” and a “worthy gentlemen” due to his loyalty to the crown and courage in battle. As a reward for his courage and allegiance, Macbeth is to become the Thane of Cawdor in addition to his position as the Thane of Glamis. However, before notified of this “promotion,” Macbeth and Banquo meet with three witches who greet the men with prophecies regarding their futures. At this time, Macbeth is told he is to become Thane of Cawdor and the king of Scotland in the future, but the witches also give Banquo a prophecy that his descendants are also to become kings. In line 78 of scene iii, Macbeth questions their strange knowledge and commands, “Speak, I charge you,” in order to learn more about his future. Catching his attention with news of such value, his natural reaction is to inquire for more information. This can be considered a spark of Macbeth’s tragic flaw because selfishness begins to arise when he demands t...

    Read More

  • Illusion vs. Reality in Macbeth

    1741 Words  | 4 Pages

    Macbeth’s ambition to obtain power convinces him that it is his destiny to become King of Scotland, and that he should do anything to fulfill that destiny, even if it involves him committing tremendously immoral acts such as murder. After Macbeth realizes that the witches may actually speak the truth due to the second prophecy (Thane of Cawdor) becoming true, he begins to have an eerie and frightening thought of him killing his king and friend, Duncan, in order to ac...

    Read More

  • The Corrupting Power of Ambition in William Shakespeare's Macbeth

    1335 Words  | 3 Pages

    Through himself, the relationships he creates and destroys, and the deterioration of nations, Macbeth's character proves the power of ambition and its ability to corrupt one's life. Macbeth realizes that his motivation is his ambition is stronger than his will to act upon what is morally just, mentally deteriorating him inside. Furthermore, his ambition not only affects himself, however destroys his relationships with those around him as his selfish goals hurt others when achieved. At last, his tyrannous manner developed from his ambitious goals corrupts Scotland, the country he leads, as well as his connection with other countries. When one is driven by a want, happiness is attained through achieving this goal; but by willingly choosing to put forth desires before moral judgement, ambition holds the power to corrupt one's life.

    Read More

  • Macbeth, a Noble Man Gone Astray

    1559 Words  | 4 Pages

    In the beginning of the play we are first introduced to Macbeth as a Scottish general and thane of glamis, is led to wicked thoughts by the prophecies of the three witches he begins to change especially after their prophecy that he will be made thane of Cawdor comes true.

    Read More

  • Macbeth: A Tragic Hero

    1162 Words  | 3 Pages

    Seeking for greater power, Macbeth murders Duncan who is the king at that time, which caused a great pain for the kingdom. Duncan is a great king, but just not a so good human reader. He has never been aware of Macbeth. He never have a thought that Macbeth might be a danger, who is willing to kill him for the throne. On the other hand, Macbeth does not accept to be just a general for the rest of his life. He wants a greater power, higher position than he is having at the time. Because of the suggests from the trio witches: “ All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor!/ All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!”(1.2.49-50), Macbeth has the thinking about killing the king to take his throne. By calling Macbeth the Thane of Cawdor, they give Macbeth the thought that being a king is his fate. On the night Macbeth is planning to murder Duncan, the Old Man see many strange events: “And Duncan’s horses (a thing most strange and certain),/ Beauteous and swift, the minions of their race, /Turned wild in nature, broke their stalls, flung out/ Contending ‘gainst obedience, as they would/ Make war with mankind” (2.4.14-18). It creates a scary feeling in the kingdom, and means something bad will happen to the kingdom.

    Read More

  • Natural Vs. Supernatural In Shakespeare's Macbeth

    897 Words  | 2 Pages

    Firstly, Ambition was one of the main themes in Macbeth,Whilst ambition can be a positive motivating force, we see its negative effects in the play as well. However, one of the good examples of this is When Lady Macbeth’s manipulate Macbeth to kill the king so Macbeth can be the king. “To be the same in thine own act and valor as thou art in desire? Wouldst thou have that Which thou esteem’st the ornament of life, And live a coward in thine own esteem,

    Read More

  • Macbeth Tragic Flaws Essay

    534 Words  | 2 Pages

    Initially as a brave and confident character Macbeth had a natural ambition that did well for his country. He identified traitors and used his ambition in a positive way to continue doing good and proving himself. The witches prophecy sparked Macbeth’s ambition and his thirst for power. As he received the forecast of his future, “All hail Macbeth, Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor. All hail Macbeth. That shalt be king hereafter” (1.3.4-8 ). It gave him a false vision and confidence of what could possibly be his. Stated in the prophecy was Macbeth receiving the title of Thane of Cawdor and later on becoming the King of Scotland. With Macbeth catching a traitor to Scotland and being given the title Thane of Cawdor he did not make the connection that he earned this position, he thought the witches gave it to him. Although Macbeth was still questioning the prophecies and what he should believe, his ambition followed through and made him think the prophecy was real. The witches simply gave Macbeth a vision and played with his mind that was easily tricked. This first error Macbeth made was being

    Read More

  • Aristotle's Tragic Hero in Shakespeare's Macbeth

    1037 Words  | 3 Pages

    Vaulting Ambition is Macbeth's only flaw; it disables him to achieve his utmost goals and forces him to face his fate. Without this ambition, though, Macbeth would never have been able to achieve his power as King of Scotland or have been able to carry out his evil deeds. In these instances, ambition helped Macbeth do what he wanted to do. But, consequently, Macbeth's ambition has another face and is what led him to his tragic downfall. Had he not been so enveloped with becoming King and remaining powerful, he would not have continued to kill innocent people in order to keep his position.

    Read More

  • Does Ambition Cause Macbeth's Downfall

    436 Words  | 1 Pages

    Ambition is a great quality to have when pushing for the right goals. Ambition helps when wanting to achieve something great. But, if used selfishly or for the wrong thing; ambition can lead to terrible things. Ambition caused Macbeth’s downfall because it caused him to be motivated to kill, go insane from guilt of the actions, and get selfish with his goals.

    Read More

  • Examples Of Ambition In Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde

    762 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the play ‘Macbeth’, Shakespeare expresses the idea that ambition can have a negative effect on others, resulting in their downfall too. In Macbeth, ambition is presented as a dangerous quality. It causes the downfall of both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth and triggers a series of deaths in the eponymous play. Ambition is therefore the driving force of the play. His wife is the driving force that encourages Macbeth to overcome his strong sense of guilt and take action on the prophecies. They are tempted by the idea that Macbeth will become king - Macbeth is not sure what to do but his wife is ruthless in getting what she wants - she views her husband as a coward and appears ready to do anything. Ambition leads to evil - it makes Macbeth stronger

    Read More

  • The Nature Of Ambition In Macbeth

    199 Words  | 1 Pages

    Almost every person in the world can say that desires to posses certain things have driven them to take action, but at what point are people hindered by their inner moral compasses to suppress their ambitions for the best interest of society and themselves? William Shakespeare examines this question and the nature of ambition in his play Macbeth. In doing so, he suggests that acting upon unnatural ambitions and desires without morals and mindfulness leads to a manifestation of a deeply rooted evil that manipulates people’s characters and causes unforeseen results. In the play, Macbeth is told by witches that he will become Thane then King. After the first statement comes true, Lady Macbeth persuades Macbeth to kill King Duncan. He does so,

    Read More

  • Theme Of Ambition In Macbeth

    954 Words  | 2 Pages

    Ambition is an underlying theme throughout Macbeth, it is the tragic flaw in human kind, bound to lead to disaster. In Act 1 scene 7 this is one of the most interesting scenes of the play. This is the last time as we see Macbeth a freeman, he can still make the decision whether he wants to be good or evil. The choices that are preventing Macbeth are committing the murder, fear of the consequences on this earth, variety of feelings of kinship, loyalty, and hospitality he admires Duncan’s goodness as he is not the most moral character but hes power is what urges him on that are motives of good A soliloquy, which is found in Act 1, scene 7, in the lines 1-28, Macbeth debates whether he should kill Duncan. The imagery that is in this speech can be dark and moody for most people. Some examples we hear of imagery are “bloody instructions,” “deep damnation,” and a “poisoned chalice”—and suggests that Macbeth is aware of how the murder would open the door to a dark and sinful world. When the soliloquy ends, Macbeth goes to resolve to not kill Duncan but this only...

    Read More

More about Theme Of Ambition In Macbeth

Open Document