Manipulation and Choice: Insights from Macbeth

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Recommended: The role Lady Macbeth plays in the downfall of the protagonist

Madeleine L’Engle once said, “Because to take away a man’s freedom of choice, even his freedom to make the wrong choice, is to manipulate him as though he were a puppet and not a person”. By not allowing someone to make their own decisions, right or wrong, you are taking away their freedom to understand the evolution of their thoughts and desires. Manipulation, as Madeleine L’Engle stated so eloquently, is a way to treat others as puppets and not as a person with the right to make their own choices in life. We discover in Macbeth that Macbeth is manipulated by Lady Macbeth to commit a horrible deed in order to fulfill his fate and gain a position of power: the King of Scotland. The reader is also shown the destructive nature of manipulation …show more content…

Macbeth is ridden with guilt and is consumed with his inability to “pronounce ‘Amen’” (2.2.34). In response, Lady Macbeth says that “’Tis safer to be that which we destroy/ Than by destruction dwell in doubtful joy”, meaning that it is better to be destroyed then be the murderer, left dwelling on past deeds (3.2.6-7). Lady Macbeth advises Macbeth not to think too long about the crime he has committed, but instead “be bright and jovial”, and show his strengths as the new King of Scotland (3.2.27). However, Lady Macbeth, unwittingly, had set in motion the downfall of Macbeth and the destruction of his mental state. After murdering the King, Macbeth became emotionally unstable. For example, Macbeth fears that Banquo’s descendants will become king as the prophecy foretold; therefore, he decides that in order to protect himself, he must murder Banquo. Moreover, Macbeth becomes guilt-ridden and fearful of all those who might discover his involvement in Duncan’s murder. Macbeth is overcome with an immense feeling of shame and is shaken by his fears, jealous of the “restless ecstasy” that Duncan feels in his grave (3.3.22). In addition, he is visited by hallucinations, further tormenting his state of mind. When news is brought to Macbeth that the queen is dead, he contemplates the meaning of life, reflecting on the fact that “Life’s but a walking shadow; a poor player/ …show more content…

Manipulation is a tool that can be used to achieve certain goals; however, the way one goes about doing so can have both good and bad results. Overall, in William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the reader is shown the destructive nature of manipulation in the form of Macbeth’s unstable emotional state. By giving in to manipulation, the result can be detrimental. One’s emotional and mental state can be altered, leading to the inability to tell the difference between right and wrong. By understanding the destructive nature manipulation can have on the people involved, the reader gains insight into the mental impact that could ultimately lead to someone’s

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