macbeth

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William Shakespeare's play, The Tragedy of Macbeth, was based on the life of Macbeth. However, Shakespeare made up or changed many things in his play to make the idea of Macbeth more interesting. Many of Shakespeare's characters, settings, and events differ from the facts of Macbeth in history. Macbeth, Banquo, and Macduff are three examples of characters in the play differing from how they were and what they were like in history. In the play Macbeth was a cruel and greedy leader: "I'll call upon you straight...Banquo, thy soul's flight, If it find heaven, must find it out tonight"(III, i, 140-142). In history Macbeth was not as harsh as he was thought to be in the play: "Macbeth seems to have ruled equably, imposing law and order and encouraging Christianity"(Macbeth). Another one of Shakespeare's characters that contrasts with history is Banquo. Banquo is portrayed as a friend of Macbeth who knows too much about him and his secrets so he is murdered by people Macbeth hired to make sure his secrets were kept safe and Banquo was not in the way: "Is Banquo then...My Lord, his throat is cut; I did that for him"(III, iv, 14-17). When looking in history, there is no proof that Banquo even existed:(Catherine Wells). Macduff was also different from his Character in Macbeth. Macduff was a nobleman to King Duncan and he is the one who discovers King Duncan dead after he is murdered by Macbeth:"Banquo! Our royal masters murdered"(II, iii, 88-89). Like Banquo, there is no proof of Macduff existing in history (Wells). Macbeth, Banquo, and Macduff all differ from their characters in Macbeth. There are settings in the Tragedy of Macbeth, that in reality did not happen like they were told in the play. An example of this is the scene where M... ... middle of paper ... ...hanged made the play more interesting for readers. The Tragedy of Macbeth and history contrast in many different ways. There are many characters, settings, and events that differ in his play. Shakespeare changed or made this up to make Macbeth sound more interesting than he actually was. Works Cited Works Cited Macbeth Biography." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, 1996-2013. Web. 10 Nov. 2013. . Taylor, Doreen. "Real Story of the Three Witches Imortalized by William Shakespeare." Suite 101. N.p., 23 Oct. 2013. Web. 10 Nov. 2013. . Wells, Catherine. "Will the Real Macbeth Please Stand Up?" Sff.net. SFF, 2007. Web. 10 Nov. 2013. . Wiggins, Grant P. Prentice Hall Literature. New Edition ed. NJ: Upper Saddle River, 2014. Print. 12 Grade.

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