Comparing Lust For Power In Macbeth And Lion King

Mahatma Gandhi once said, “The earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s need but not every man’s greed.” Regardless of how trustworthy you may think a person is, the thirst for power can always overcome that feeling of trust. In order to gain authority and dominance, people can forget relationships and responsibilities, and turn into something that even they could never imagine themselves as. William Shakespeare’s play ‘Macbeth’ and Roger Allers’ film ‘Lion King’ demonstrate that a lust for power will always lead to one’s downfall. This is shown through the characters Macbeth and Scar, whose ambitions for power lead to the demise of both at the peak of their power. Banquo’s ghost helps further symbolize Macbeth’s guilt, and the depths of evil Macbeth went into in order to further his selfish cause. In Lion King, the hyenas are used as a symbol to demonstrate Scar’s downfall, when he passes irrational comments to the hyena’s that show his lack of judgement and …show more content…
This is shown through characteristics of Macbeth and Scar throughout the book and the movie respectively. Macbeth’s awful doings prove to us that he became so hungry for power that he began to murder the Scotland’s officials, people who trusted him. Scar’s wrongful doings prove to us that became so greedy for power that he murdered his own brother, so he could rule the kingdom and satisfy his greed. The authors in both texts have used symbols to further prove their plot. In the play, Macbeth, Banquo’s ghost symbolizes Macbeth’s guilt for all the sins he has committed to gain power. Similarly, in the movie, Lion King, the hyenas symbolize lack of judgement and incompetence to become king. Thus, this proves that it is possible for one to get overthrown if they become too greedy for power because they lose touch with reality and they can go to any limit to gain what they