Key Themes Of Macbeth

Macbeth is a wonderfully written story full of action and adventure. It takes place in Scotland, in the medieval times. In the play, a Scottish nobleman named Macbeth and his friend Banquo are told by three witches that Macbeth will become king of Scotland, but Banquo’s descendants will rule after. Macbeth tells his wife of this, and she plans to kill the king, Duncan, so Macbeth will be king sooner. The plan succedes, but Macbeth is afraid the Banquo will take over. Macbeth sends assassins to kill Banquo and his son, but the son, Fleance, escapes. Macbeth then sees Banquo’s ghost in his hall, and starts to go crazy. He revisits the witches who tell him that only Macduff can kill him. Macbeth then orders that Macduff’s family should be killed, and their home destroyed. Macduff …show more content…
These themes are frequently shown throughout the play, and are the reasons for many of the character’s actions. Three themes shown in this play are revenge, greed, and tyranny.
Revenge is a key theme for many reasons. First, it is the cause of many deaths and disputes. It is first seen when the ghost of Banquo appears. The ghost haunts Macbeth because it wants revenge for Macbeth’s actions. Revenge appears a second time when Macduff hears the news that Macbeth killed his family and burned his home. Macduff wants revenge against Macbeth, and this want fuels Macduff’s actions for the rest of the play.
The second theme is greed. Greed is important because it caused all the problems in the first place. Greed caused Lady Macbeth to convince Macbeth to murder the king. This greed also causes Macbeth to turn against his best friend, Banquo, and have him murdered. Greed, however, can quickly turn to guilt. In the aftermath of the king’s murder, Lady Macbeth was plagued with visions of a bloody knife, and kept washing her hands because she thought they were covered with blood. Macbeth also saw Banquo’s ghost, something no one else could