If you desire something, would you sacrifice logic and reason in to obtain it? Will you give up your needs for your ambitions? William Shakespeare’s tragedy, Macbeth, takes readers through a journey which has them constantly asking themselves these questions. Macbeth’s biggest enemy is himself, as he frequently gives whim to what he wants, rather than what he should do. This ultimately leads to Macbeth’s downfall, from once a great individual, to now a tragic hero. Shakespeare has readers questioning, what has Macbeth done to stimulate such a drastic change in his character? It can be supported that, because of his interaction with the supernatural, our protagonist turns from someone that no longer is driven by thought and reasoning, but rather
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When Macbeth was written, society followed the Great Chain of Being. This was the belief that whatever social class someone was born in, they stayed in. Macbeth is predestined as an excellent soldier, not rising in nobility and becoming Thane of Cawdor. He had no plan to oppose the Great Chain. However, once he meets the witches for the first time, they tell him differently. As soon as they feel his presence, they shout, “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor!/All hail, Macbeth that shalt be king hereafter!” (1.3.52-53). While Macbeth does not realize this himself, the audience is aware of his growing ambition. The witches’ prophecies were his outlet to express his hamartia. Coupled with Lady Macbeth’s persistence of believing the witches’ words, this becomes the start of an inescapable path, in which Macbeth gives in to his …show more content…
We can however, analyze the text and provide an explanation for why he did, what he did. His interaction with the supernatural led to his change in character and his destiny. Macbeth may have become Thane of Cawdor even if he had never met the witches, because it was predestined. Macbeth may have always been as ambitious as the play portrays him to be, because it’s not clear what happened before the play begins. He gave in to what he wanted, and this led to his death. Macbeth had already been killing enemy soldiers in the battlefield with no remorse, so why does he act so different towards Duncan and Banquo? Inevitably, the most important thing is to look at Macbeth through different perspectives and consider, is Macbeth so different from the beginning of the play, to the
When Macbeth was written, society followed the Great Chain of Being. This was the belief that whatever social class someone was born in, they stayed in. Macbeth is predestined as an excellent soldier, not rising in nobility and becoming Thane of Cawdor. He had no plan to oppose the Great Chain. However, once he meets the witches for the first time, they tell him differently. As soon as they feel his presence, they shout, “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor!/All hail, Macbeth that shalt be king hereafter!” (1.3.52-53). While Macbeth does not realize this himself, the audience is aware of his growing ambition. The witches’ prophecies were his outlet to express his hamartia. Coupled with Lady Macbeth’s persistence of believing the witches’ words, this becomes the start of an inescapable path, in which Macbeth gives in to his …show more content…
We can however, analyze the text and provide an explanation for why he did, what he did. His interaction with the supernatural led to his change in character and his destiny. Macbeth may have become Thane of Cawdor even if he had never met the witches, because it was predestined. Macbeth may have always been as ambitious as the play portrays him to be, because it’s not clear what happened before the play begins. He gave in to what he wanted, and this led to his death. Macbeth had already been killing enemy soldiers in the battlefield with no remorse, so why does he act so different towards Duncan and Banquo? Inevitably, the most important thing is to look at Macbeth through different perspectives and consider, is Macbeth so different from the beginning of the play, to the