Was Macbeth Responsible For Duncan's Death

276 Words1 Page
bulb-icon

Recommended: Prophecy of macbeth as king importance

Who truly was responsible for King Duncan’s death in William Shakespeare’s “Macbeth”? While yes we do know that Macbeth was the one who killed the king, had he not talked to the witches he would have never learned about the prophecies that would impact his life. On the other hand, it is said that these prophecies were destined to happen, so at some point in time fate “kicks in” at some point in the beginning of the story, I believe it happens when Duncan learns of the former thane’s treachery. After Macbeth learns of these prophecies he writes his wife, Lady Macbeth, telling her of the three sisters and what they told him. Ecstatic that she will become queen based off what Macbeth told her, she was the one to implant the idea of murder in

Show More
Related

  • Why Macbeth Decided to Kill King Duncan

    380 Words  | 1 Pages

    At the start of Act 1, Scene 2 Macbeth is shown brave and loyal with

    Read More

  • Who Controls Macbeth's Mind

    783 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...s were the ones who told him the prophecy that he would become king. If they did not give him this information, he would not have had the idea to even kill King Duncan in the first place. Lady MacBeth only continued to convince MacBeth that murdering King Duncan to gain power was the right thing to do. She is the one who filled his head with nasty thoughts, and persuaded him to kill Duncan. The amount of pressure finally got to MacBeth, and caused him to go insane. The hallucinations prove that he has gone insane, and no person that has such a condition can be blamed for any wrongdoing. If anyone should be held responsible for MacBeth’s crimes, it should be Lady MacBeth for persuading him to vicious, and the Weird Sisters for putting the idea of him becoming king in his head.

    Read More

  • Prosecution Of Macbeth (if He Was Tried For The Murder Of Duncan)

    1245 Words  | 3 Pages

    However ladies and gentleman, what some of you may not know is that Macbeth was in-fact the King?s cousin. Before Duncan?s untimely death he stated to Macbeth: ?O valiant cousin! Worthy gentleman? (pg 32) which confirms that Macbeth was in-fact Duncan?s cousin. Therefore Macbeth was in the same bloodline as Duncan, and therefore could take the throne if Duncan had no sons who were able to ascend to the throne. But since Duncan had already named Malcolm as heir to the throne, Duncan had to be murdered. This was always in the back of MacBeth?s mind from the very beginning. The prophecy of the three witches, only fired his imagination to confirm the terrible deeds he was already planning, the death of king Duncan and tearing the throne from his dying hands.

    Read More

  • Free Essay on Macbeth - The Guilt of Lady Macbeth

    617 Words  | 2 Pages

    At the beginning of the play, Macbeth is a trusted soldier, who is honest and noble. Unfortunately, he meets three witches who tell him three prophecies; that he will become thane of Cawdor, that he will become king and that Banquo’s sons will become kings. These three prophecies slowly change his opinions on life and turn him into a greedy, dishonest, tyrant, full of ambition. Lady Macbeth’s thoughts change as well when she is told about the three prophecies that were told to Macbeth. In the beginning of the play, Lady Macbeth is ambitious, controlling and domineering. She is the one who encourages him to kill the king, she not only encourages him, she makes all the plans herself, which shows her determination and persistence."Yet I do fear thy nature, it is too full o’th milk of human kindness. To catch the nearest way thou wouldst be great. Art not without ambition, but without the illness should attend it." (Act 1, scene 5). Lady Macbeth is the force behind Macbeth’s sudden ambition and she tries to manipulate him into feeling guilty and unmanly for not following through with the murder, by using her husbands emotions, she manages to convince Macbeth to murder Duncan.

    Read More

  • Who Is Responsible For Duncans Death?

    957 Words  | 2 Pages

    We certainly know that the direct cause of Duncan’s death is Macbeth. However, this does not necessarily mean he is to blame, for his violent death is obviously the consequence of certain influences that forced Macbeth to perform his fatal deed. Furthermore, to unearth the truth about who is really the guilty for Duncan’s murder, we must explore the influences the different characters have on Macbeth’s impulses and the overall scenario of the slaying. Firstly, we shall consider Lady Macbeth and Macbeth, as they are the two who planned and performed the murder. Although after the witches told Macbeth that he was to be king and he was burning in desire to be so he, in first instance, decided that if fate had determined that he was to be the sovereign of Scotland he shouldn’t try to reach the throne by his own actions, that it would come eventually: “If Chance will have me king, why, Chance may crown me, / Without my stir”.

    Read More

  • Lady Macbeth's Influence Upon Her Husband in William Shakespeare's Macbeth

    1177 Words  | 3 Pages

    This immediately makes him forget all his attempts of loosing his part in the killing, and from then on there was no moans or disagreements between the two, with her clearly taking leadership. With all this evidence one could conclude that Lady Macbeth is 'partly' responsible for the death of King Duncan because she was the sole planner of his murder, but Macbeth is always going to be the one holding the knife when it pierced Duncan's throat, so he will also always be slightly responsible for the murder as he committed it. Macbeth was naive and is simple used by Lady Macbeth as a tool, which can gain access to the male dominated court of the time. ' It takes two to tango' would be an appropriate motto to this story.

    Read More

  • Fate in Macbeth

    988 Words  | 2 Pages

    It was predetermined by fate that Macbeth would believe the witches' words. When Macbeth does in fact become thane of Cawdor, he then believes fully in the witches and is willing to do anything it takes to become king. This willingness to do whatever is necessary to become the king of Scotland is also what causes Macbeth to commit so many murders, the first of which is Duncan. In order for Macbeth to be king, the current king must die and his successors must be unavailable for the throne. Fate plays a huge hand in the way that Duncan's murder plays out.

    Read More

  • Macbeth’s Fault or Lady Macbeth’s Fault

    677 Words  | 2 Pages

    Lady Macbeth seems like the right person who the most at fault. It is true that Lady Macbeth is the one who tells Macbeth to murder Duncan, and with her words in her aside, “unsex me here, and fill me from the crown to the toe top-full of direst cruelty,” (I.v. 391-392) along with many other horrible scenes Lady Macbeth gives. It gives the audience a purpose to accuse her for all the murders. Lady Macbeth is argued to be in control of Macbeth. John Turner, coauthor of two books on Shakespeare, says, “Until her sense of time dissolves and Macbeth seems crowed already,” (Johnson) which shows that the image of Macbeth being King and having power is driven by Lady Macbeth’s ambitiousness. This is not entirely true. Lady Macbeth does have an ambition for power but not to the extent to be killing everyone. She only wanted Duncan off the throne, she was not aware of the other men in authority, such as Macduff, suspecting her and her husband. She was not paranoid like Macbeth, which is why he killed so many people. It’s reasonable to argue that Lady Macbeth was the influence; therefore she is to be at most at fault. She also was not the one to kill Duncan and the other people, Macbeth did.

    Read More

  • Why Do We Have Power In Macbeth

    1620 Words  | 4 Pages

    Macbeth can not blame anyone else, nor can the witches or Lady Macbeth be to blame when he has the ultimate power to do as he wishes. Another example is that the witches never say anything to Macbeth about murdering Duncan or anyone else. When Macbeth first hears the prophecy about being King, his thoughts turn to “murder” all on their own. This tells readers that somewhere along the line he had thought about it or had an idea as he turned to it immediately. He didn’t even wait and see what would happen, instead he becomes brutal and kill the noble king.

    Read More

  • Macbeth Argument Essay

    783 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...ophecies and the active role of Lady Macbeth, Macbeth cannot be considered solely responsible for his wrongdoing and ultimate tragic end. Although it was his tragic flaw that ultimately destroys him, Macbeth is deceived, tricked, and persuaded throughout the play into believing and doing a variety of things that would lead to this destruction. Because the witches spark Macbeth’s interest through the hopeful prophecies of his future, his natural reaction is to have more curiosity and to want to fulfill the prophecies by any means. Lady Macbeth’s blunt advice to just perform the action without thought is what numbs Macbeth to realizing how his ambition is affecting him. Finally, Macbeth does eventually face his death due to his tragic flaw, but his downfall involved many others who should also claim some responsibility regarding this downfall and Macbeth’s tragic end.

    Read More

  • Lady Macbeth Is More Ruthless

    1149 Words  | 3 Pages

    In order for somebody to commit such a heinous act as murder, the conspirators must be ruthless, and this is what Macbeth and Lady Macbeth were, ruthless. Lady Macbeth’s is more ruthless than her spouse, and her ruthlessness is what fueled Duncan’s murder. However, some may claim that this is not so and that Macbeth is more ruthless than his wife.      “Present fears are less than horrible imaginings. My thought, whose murder is yet but fantastical, shakes so that my single state of man that function is smoldered I surmise and nothing is but what is not.” Macbeth as you can see is thinking about the witches’ prophecy of him becoming king.

    Read More

  • The Free Will of Macbeth

    751 Words  | 2 Pages

    The prophecy of the witches was that Macbeth would become king. Nowhere did the witches predict the following events in Macbeth's life before he reached the throne. The prophecy of Macbeth becoming Thane of Cawdor had already come true, enhancing Macbeth's aspirations of becoming king. The second prophecy would certainly come true for him, but he has to choose how to get there. Macbeth was destined for the throne, however obtaining that destiny was completely up to him. Killing Duncan seemed to be the only way for him, even though he knew it was wrong. Macbeth was well-aware his actions were immoral and unjust, and he continued with the murders anyway. He contemplates the reasons for why it would be wrong to kill Duncan, showing he could have ...

    Read More

  • Motivation In Macbeth

    832 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the novel, Macbeth, King Duncan was killed by Macbeth with the assistance of his better half, Lady Macbeth. In the arranging of the murder of King Duncan, Lady Macbeth was more dependable than Macbeth himself and is viewed as a more hazardous character than her significant other. Lady Macbeth had more effect on executing King Duncan than Macbeth in light of her desire and hurry to end up Queen, which was the driving force of the King Duncan murder.

    Read More

  • The Importance of Duncan’s Murder in Macbeth

    3066 Words  | 7 Pages

    In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the repercussions of Macbeth murdering his King are very numerous. Through themes that include, imagery, soliloquies, atmosphere, and supernatural beings, Shakespeare enforces the magnitude of Macbeth’s crime. Most of these factors are linked together.

    Read More

  • Lady Macbeth in William Shakespeare's Macbeth

    1715 Words  | 4 Pages

    Shakespeare manipulates the audience’s opinions on whom was most responsible for the death of Duncan in many ways, I feel he does this to create question and surprise to the play. Shakespeare leads you along one path of thought, to then divert your thoughts onto another. Many people have different opinions and interpretations to this play; A.C Bradley once wrote “Lady Macbeth is the most commanding and perhaps the most awe-inspiring figure that Shakespeare drew. Sharing, as we have seen, certain traits with her husband she is at once clearly distinguished from him by an inflexibility of will, which appears to hold imagination, feeling, and conscience completely in check. To her the prophecy of things that will be becomes instantaneously the determination that they shall be:

    Read More

More about Was Macbeth Responsible For Duncan's Death

Open Document