The Renaissance was a time of artistic and literary revival, in fact, the word renaissance actually means “rebirth”. The many artists, authors, and playwrights of this time are known to relate their works to the religion they practice. Shakespeare is no exception to this, as his play, Macbeth, can be viewed as a Renaissance version of the Biblical story of Adam and Eve. The witches of the play strongly resemble the snake in the Genesis story, and Lady Macbeth is similar to Eve. Further, there is a great presence of sin and the dichotomy of good and evil in both the Scripture tale and the play. Finally, the act of betrayal, with the feeling of fear, is prominent in both pieces of literature. The witches wickedly provide Macbeth with information
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Macbeth is a loyal thane under the king with an honorable military background, and Banquo is his best friend. These trusts and friendships are shattered by terrible acts of betrayal. Even though he was pressured into killing Duncan from his wife’s beratement of his manhood, Macbeth still follows through. During his his murderous path of destruction, Macbeth hires assassins to take out Banquo and his son: “And with him… / Fleance, his son, that keeps him company, / Whose absence is no less material to me / Than his father’s, must embrace the fate / Of that dark hour” (91). He never poses an immediate threat to Macbeth, but still kills him because, according to Johnston his “mind is not at ease, and that is Macbeth’s overwhelming concern. The emphasis here is totally psychological rather than political”(7). He betrays his own best friend just to release some pressure from his mind, fueled by wild conspiracy. These thoughts that dwindle in his head are byproducts caused by the distrust he created when he first thrust the knife into Duncan’s chest. When God gave Adam and Eve life and the Garden of Eden, he only asked of them to never eat from the Tree of Knowledge. They had perfect lives, but wanted more; they wanted to be more powerful, like God. In order to do this, they had to betray their covenant with the
Macbeth is a loyal thane under the king with an honorable military background, and Banquo is his best friend. These trusts and friendships are shattered by terrible acts of betrayal. Even though he was pressured into killing Duncan from his wife’s beratement of his manhood, Macbeth still follows through. During his his murderous path of destruction, Macbeth hires assassins to take out Banquo and his son: “And with him… / Fleance, his son, that keeps him company, / Whose absence is no less material to me / Than his father’s, must embrace the fate / Of that dark hour” (91). He never poses an immediate threat to Macbeth, but still kills him because, according to Johnston his “mind is not at ease, and that is Macbeth’s overwhelming concern. The emphasis here is totally psychological rather than political”(7). He betrays his own best friend just to release some pressure from his mind, fueled by wild conspiracy. These thoughts that dwindle in his head are byproducts caused by the distrust he created when he first thrust the knife into Duncan’s chest. When God gave Adam and Eve life and the Garden of Eden, he only asked of them to never eat from the Tree of Knowledge. They had perfect lives, but wanted more; they wanted to be more powerful, like God. In order to do this, they had to betray their covenant with the