...Everyone is capable of committing evil acts and some people take full advantage of this. In the tragedies Macbeth, Dr. Faustus, and The Picture of Dorian Gray the three protagonists make decisions which lead them down the path of wickedness. The supporting characters also act as evil beings by encouraging the protagonists to make bad decisions. With evil acts on their minds, the protagonists have many symbols that represent their conscience in different ways. Though obvious to the readers, the protagonists had to commit many evil acts to realize the errors of their ways. The protagonists of these stories commit many acts of wickedness which all lead to their final damnation in hell. As the age old question goes; Are people born evil or do...
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...In the Play MacBeth, Shakespeare uses many imagery to articulate the theme of darkness in which is discussed throughout the play. Darkness evolves throughout the play that in turn leads the murder of many people. The first imagery of darkness are the three nameless witches. The witches represents the occult, the dark arts and generally known for wreaking havocs and their darkness is a part of MacBeth’s downfall. In act one scene one, the three witches appears in a dark scene that involves three elements; “thunder, lightning, and rain”, (1.1.2) this was also when the battle in happening. They plans to meet Macbeth and they do, later in act one, scene three. They tell of three prophecies, one of which is that MacBeth will become king. In Act 1, Scene 3 Macbeth states, “Commencing in a truth? I am thane of Cawdor...My thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical.” (1.1.132 - 138) When he starts to believe the prophecy, he starts to give into the dark words of the Witches. This darkness grow within him, and due to his ambition, he will be blinded by his action, just like the sailor in the story he will never return to who he once was....
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...mediums. William Shakespeare uses his play, “Macbeth,” to demonstrate the importance of universal human concepts,...
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...very well be the driving force behind any successful man. However, a woman can also use her strong influence in a negative way. This can be seen in Macbeth, where Lady Macbeth is the evil force behind Macbeth's cruelty and evil doings. In Shakespeare's Macbeth, Lady Macbeth is the main reason that Macbeth is transformed from a noble, respected Thane into a ruthless, murderous character. Lady Macbeth fuels his inner desire for power and brings forth his greed and ambition, which both eventually lead to his downfall. The tactics that Lady Macbeth use to drive her husband to this downfall are manipulation, dominance, and her evil nature. Lady Macbeth manipulates Macbeth into believing that he is a coward and a bad husband, which persuades him to agree to the murder of King Duncan. She dwells on the fact that he is a coward, when she says "My hands are of your colour, but I shame/ to wear a heart so white" (2.2.64-65). This instills feelings of embarrassment into his mind, and manipulates him into believing that if he does not murder King Duncan, he will be a weak, cowardly man. Not only is she challenging his manhood, by appearing to be the stronger and braver of the two, but also, by calling his heart "white", she is criticizing his cowardice. The fact that his wife is undermining his masculinity causes Macbeth to want to be stronger, and not to appear weak and timid. When Lady Macbeth yells "Infirm of purpose! Give me the daggers. The sleeping and the dead/ are but as pictures. 'Tis...
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...a higher mental state than the rest of the people around them, then they suddenly lose that mentality, who is it to blame for their downfall? It could be a number of different instances, including internal and external influences. Internal influences would include their own thoughts and thought processes and external influences would include other people’s influence. Internal influences are the major ones here for they cannot be dealt with easily as the person is the only one who can fix it. While with external influences can just be ignored, internal cannot be ignored. In the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare, the downfall of Macbeth includes external influences by his wife, the witches, and internal influences from himself....
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...Oral Presentation Macbeth as a tragic hero Macbeth is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, that is set in Scotland and is believed to have been written around 1606. Macbeth is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy, and tells the story of a brave Scottish general named Macbeth that let himself conducted by a consuming ambition that leads him to a tragic end. The play dramatizes effects produced when evil is chosen as a way to fulfill the ambition for power . Before we can tell if Macbeth is it, or not a tragic hero, we must to know what the traditionally definition says about that that: Aristotle, an ancient Greek philosopher, a tragic hero is a literary character who make judgement errors that inevitably leads to his/her destruction. The hero also must to fallow certain characteristics that we have attached on a separate sits that the teacher gave to us and is named : Characteristics of a Shakespearean tragic hero. There are about 14 condition that one tragic hero should have. I will try to give examples for all this characteristics that i believe that Macbeth have and he is the perfect tragic hero. Macbeth was born a Scottish nobleman who was a recognized solider with an appetite for his opposing enemy`s blood in order to protect his country and gain his valor. At the start of the play, we were introduced to Macbeth by the injured sergeant recount about Macbeth war-time battlefield valor and heroics, so we were given an impression that the main protagonist was supposed...
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...Have you ever held back your opinions because of someone? Based on research, some people believe that women are mind controlling over men. Therefore I strongly believe that Macbeth is a tragic hero because he listens to the prophecies of the witches, but also let’s Lady Macbeth’s plan influence him and his blind ambition. A way Macbeth is a tragic hero is that he listens to the prophecies of the witches. The witches have an extreme effect towards Macbeth. They credit his accomplishments which then stimulates his ambitions. Before Macbeth commits these actions the witches they stated a forged statement that left Macbeth convinced. As a result, the witches were the ones who brainwashed him on killing King Duncan to become king. Not only did...
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...in would be Macbeth. Macbeth is a play written by William Shakespeare (Britannica). In the play the character Macbeth is first introduced as a noble man. His nobility slowly began to fall short and turn into evil once he is introduced to three witches. These three witches were able to tell Macbeth his fate. They told him that he would eventually be king. Macbeth, wanting this to come true, would have to go great lengths to make this happen and he did. To meet his fate, Macbeth had to lie, cheat, and steal in a way to get what he wanted. Sound familiar? Like us, Macbeth’s struggle of good and evil became more and more apparent. The relationship between good and evil in the character Macbeth is shown through his morality, ambition, and fears....
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...Macbeth was written in roughly 1606 during the Elizabethan times. During this period, people’s beliefs where different and influential in comparison to the ones we know today. Religion back then was a very big influence; even more so than it is today. It even went to the extent that people believed that if they where to sin, they would go straight to hell upon their own death. Another big influence on people (quite similar to religion) is superstition. Witches especially where a big superstition during the Shakespearian period, they were seen as evil an unholy. Whether or not it was Shakespeare’s intension while writing the play, he created controversy within the audience by integrating scenes that go against religion and the foundation of society- like when Macbeth confronted the witches and partook in an unholy ritual for his personal gain. In Shakespearian times, women were seen as the fairer sex and an accessory to men, which was why it was so unusual for the public audience when Shakespeare presented ‘Macbeth’. It portrays the only female character in the play as having power and influence which women back then where not supposed to have. Women should be powerless and gentle whereas Lady Macbeth is shown to be in control. Shakespeare’s characterization of lady Macbeth was genius because people did not know whether to sympathise or detest her. At some points in the play she was depicted as vulnerable which made you understand her situation and feel sorry for her...
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...Is Macbeth an evil villain or simply a tragic hero? What makes a character a true tragic hero? All tragic heroes have the same qualities; an honorable person who is doomed for a tragic downfall; the situation usually makes them suffer and feel guilty. Would Macbeth be considered an evil villain or noble man? Throughout the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare, it is clear to see that Macbeth is a man who was influenced by the wrong people, and completely driven to have success. Could the drive to success make a person so morally wrong? How could the favorable Macbeth take such an awful turn for defeat? Macbeth is the perfect example of a true tragic hero; possessing great nobility that came crashing down at the hands of his peers, and the single tragic flaw of ambition. The first time the reader was introduced to the character Macbeth, it would be impossible to think he could turn out to be so morally imperfect. For brave Macbeth—well he deserves that name—Disdaining fortune, with his brandished steel, Which smoked with bloody execution, Like valor’s minion carved out his passage Till he faced the slave; Which ne'er shook hands, nor bade farewell to him, Till he unseamed him from the nave to th' chops, And fixed his head upon our battlement (Shakespeare 1.2.16-23). When the caption is talking about Macbeth, it was obvious to understand that Macbeth was a brave and a courageous fighter; he was explained to be a hero very quickly in the beginning. This...
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...two is inevitable. In William Shakespeare’s Macbeth and Robert Bolt’s A Man For All Seasons, passion and power dominate the characters, therefore developing the recurring theme that power leaves no space for moral duty. William Shakespeare’s Macbeth exemplifies the theme of passion and power versus morality. The play begins when three witches promise Macbeth, thane of Glamis, that he will inherit Cawdor and later become King. “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, thane of Cawdor!” “All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!” (14) Once he is named thane of Cawdor, he becomes compelled by the thought of being crowned King. As the current King is still living, Macbeth finds himself thinking of the impossible, murder. As he contemplates whether he should kill the king or not, the desire for power slowly permeates his moral duties, making him more and more ruthless. He is no longer what he seems, “Fair is foul, and foul is fair.” (2) Macbeth, clearly mourning about his contemptuous thoughts, begins to suffer psychologically. He does not want to accept that he is capable of having such horrible thoughts, “Let not light see my black and deep desires.” (28) His deep desire for power and providing his children the guarantee to the throne affects him immensely. As Macbeth is a kind and good man, he does not have the ability to commit murder, however, his wife, Lady Macbeth, has a greater desire for power than he. She knows very well Macbeth would not play false, therefore she decides...
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...Act 5 Scene 1 1.This scene takes place in Macbeth`s castle Dunsinane at a Ante-room in the castle. 2. A doctor and a gentlewoman discuss Lady Macbeth’s strange habit of sleepwalking. Suddenly, Lady Macbeth enters in a trance with a candle in her hand. Bemoaning the murders of Lady Macduff and Banquo, she seems to see blood on her hands and claims that nothing will ever wash it off. She leaves, and the doctor and gentlewoman marvel at her descent into madness. 3. Lady Macbeth has gone mad. Like her husband, she cannot find any rest, but she is suffering more clearly from a psychological disorder that causes her, as she sleepwalks, to recall fragments of the events of the murders of Duncan, Banquo, and Lady Macduff. These incriminating words are overheard by the Doctor and a lady-in-waiting.(Lady Macbeth - Queen/Macbeth-King) Act 5 Scene 2 1.This scene takes place in the country near Dunsinane. There is Menteith, Caithness, Angus, Lennox, and Soldiers. 2. The thanes Menteith, Caithness, Angus, and Lennox march with a company of soldiers toward Birnam Wood, where they will join Malcolm and the English army. Macbeth is fortifying his castle at Dunsinane with heavy defenses. They claim that they will "purge" the country of Macbeth's sickening influence. 3. Macbeth is a lousy king and needs to go. Thos who hate him call it brave anger. One thing is certain that he is out of control. He now feels the blood of his murdered enemies to his hands. Now, rebel armies punish him...
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...Jekyll and Mr Hyde and William Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, I will explore the struggles the main characters’ have within themselves in their fight for good over evil. How Macbeth and Dr Jekyll change throughout the stories and explore the similarities of each of them and why they came to change. These two books are worlds apart from one another. ‘Macbeth’ is about a great warrior who fights for the King and is set in medieval Scotland, while ‘The strange case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde’ is set in the upper classes of Victorian England where everything is done correctly and bad behaviour or wild ways are not tolerated. Dr Jekyll is a Physician who is curious about separating the good side of a personality with the bad and begins to experiment and invent potions to control the evil side of a person. However, both of these books have mystical themes about them, the witches in ‘Macbeth’ that can see the future and plant the seed of success in Macbeth’s head and the strange disappearances of Dr Jekyll and the sudden mystical appearance of a Mr Hyde. These main characters, Macbeth and Dr Jekyll evolve from being heroic, well-respected men into twisted, ruthless killers and their nature completely changes throughout their lives. Both characters become so obsessed with ultimate control they are prepared to remove anyone who gets in their way or tries to stop them from reaching their final goal. The obsession of their ambitions make both, Macbeth and Dr Jekyll eventually turn their back on the...
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...the downfall of Macbeth, which was brought on by unchecked ambition, his hamartia. In William Shakespeare’s great tragedy Macbeth, a man upsets the natural order by committing regicide, simultaneously putting him at war with himself. Macbeth is driven by his lust for power and loss of morals. His unchecked ambition leads to his own self-destruction, and the natural order is restored. Over the course of the play, Shakespeare imparts that ambition will never fulfil a lust for power, and while it can be positive, it has the ability to fundamentally alter one’s...
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...The Tragedy of Macbeth is one of the best known plays by William Shakespeare. Macbeth is a man who has it all, but is driven by his sense of ambition and masculinity. Three witches prophesize that he will become King of Scotland, but be succeeded by his friend Banquo. His mind truly starts to go off when he becomes Thane of Cawdor and Glamis, but is stepped over for his chance at the throne of Scotland by King Duncan’s son. He contemplates what he should do, but one person pushes him over the edge of no return. The biggest influence of Macbeth dive into madness and ultimate demise was his wife, Lady Macbeth, and the cowardice he had toward her. First of all we know Lady Macbeth isn’t exactly a nice lady. She calls on spirits in her “prayer” by saying, “Come, you spirits/ That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, / And fill me from the crown to the toe-full/ Of direst cruelty” (1.5. 30-33). She’s praying for the bad spirits and demons to fill her with absolute cruelty when killing King Duncan. Lady Macbeth also refers to this undertaking as her battlements furthering that this was her idea and she was just undermining Macbeth’s masculinity to get him to do her bidding. They were both ambitious but she was the one who pushed her iffy husband over the edge....
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