...William Shakespeare's Macbeth, is a tragic story that centers around a brave Scottish general named Macbeth; whose motives and actions were driven by the need and/or want of power. This was greatly shown when Macbeth's life changed when he was given his prophecy from the three witches, his sociopathic tendencies throughout the play, and how he takes extreme measures to protect his crown. In the beginning of the play, they describe Macbeth as a brave and worthy soldier, whom King Duncan thanks for his heroic service in the battle. As it states in Act 1, Scene 2: Duncan. "O valiant cousin! Worthy Gentleman!" Proving at one point, Macbeth was an intelligent, and dignified man who deserved everyone's respect. However, when both generals Macbeth...
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...Shawn M. Henry Mrs. Berger The play “Macbeth” by Shakespeare takes place mainly in Scotland, this is the place in which the late King Duncan ruled and he was killed by his former general Macbeth, over power to rise as king of Scotland. Macbeth however was never intending to kill the king, it all started when Macbeth and his good friend Banquo meet three strange women who they later found out to be witches, they told Macbeth of a prophesy that he will be given the title of Thane of Cawdor and soon after be crowned king of Scotland, and as for Banquo his children will become kings. Even though the two wish to hear more the three witches disappear and as predicted King Duncan proclaimed Macbeth Thane of Cawdor. Lady Macbeth hears the news of her husband becoming the Thane of Cawdor, when Macbeth reaches home he tells his wife of the prophesy of the three witches and this enables the wife to produce a plan in order to kill the king in their own home and make it look as if they were the witnesses to the crime rather than the doers of the crime by framing the kings guards and claiming it on the fact that they had too much to drink making Macbeth the King of Scotland and making Lady Macbeth Queen of Scotland. This however introduces the themes of the play which is corrupting power and destiny/ prophesies. Lady Macbeth elaborates on corrupting power when she speaks to the doctor “I still have the smell of blood on my hand. All the perfumes of Arabia couldn’t make my little hand...
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...and unchangeable. Whatever happens in life is meant to be and cannot be changed by mankind. The play Macbeth by William Shakespeare displays ambition, fate, deception and treachery. Fate is a supernatural force that controls the actions and choices of others. In Macbeth fate plays an important role in the lives of Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, and Banquo. Macbeth’s fate is unavoidable and unchangeable. Macbeth’s fate is sealed as soon as he meets the witches’. Macbeth’s fate is tragic. Macbeth and Banquo are together...
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...Macbeth Summary Act 1 The play takes place in Scotland. Duncan, the king of Scotland, is at war with the king of Norway. As the play opens, he learns of Macbeth's bravery in a victorious battle against Macdonald—a Scot who sided with the Norwegians. At the same time, news arrives concerning the arrest of the treacherous Thane of Cawdor. Duncan decides to give the title of Thane of Cawdor to Macbeth. As Macbeth and Banquo return home from battle, they meet three witches. The witches predict that Macbeth will be thane of Cawdor and king of Scotland, and that Banquo will be the father of kings. After the witches disappear, Macbeth and Banquo meet two noblemenRoss and Angus, who announce Macbeth's new title as thane of Cawdor. Upon hearing this, Macbeth begins to contemplate the murder of Duncan in order to realize the witches' second prophecy. Macbeth and Banquo meet with Duncan, who announces that he is going to pay Macbeth a visit at his castle. Macbeth rides ahead to prepare his household. Meanwhile, Lady Macbeth receives a letter from Macbeth informing her of the witches' prophesy and its subsequent realization. A servant appears to inform her of Duncan's approach. Energized by the news, Lady Macbeth invokes supernatural powers to strip her of feminine softness and thus prepare her for the murder of Duncan. When Macbeth arrives, Lady Macbeth tells him that she will plot Duncan's murder. When Duncan arrives at the castle, Lady Macbeth greets him alone. When Macbeth fails...
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...The Tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare tells of a man who is driven by ambition, greed, and equivocations which leads to his own demise. Many times through the play, equivocations are spoken to evade the truth and deceive the listener. A prime example of those who speak equivocations are the three witches. The three witches constantly visit Macbeth and tell him of his fate through rhyme and ambiguous language rather than tell Macbeth exactly what his fate entails. As Macbeth is lured by the fate that these witches speak, he is deluded of the truth about what will occur. Fueled by his current ambitions and greed for power and promotion, Macbeth looks forward to his destiny, to become king of Scotland, with feelings of positivity. However,...
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...play “Macbeth” by William Shakespeare, the element of sorcery play many roles such as dealing tragedy, and often stirring up the truth in the physical form of the witches. The three witches that Macbeth stumbles upon were man-like by appearance and offered very difficult discernment for both Macbeth and Banquo to tell whether they were woman or not. Like their appearance, their roles offered the same discernment. Although some critics offer that point that the witches have nothing to do with the play, it can be argued that the weird sisters in fact take control of the outcome of the fates of many. The setting of the play is like the netherworld setting, which is known by the rule of uncertainty. The only thing set in stone was evil, hence the weird sisters. With that being said, the role of the weird sisters was to create an uncertainty, to open up the doors to an unknown realm, and to cause the scattering of ideas. This is seen throughout the play such as when the witches plant a seed into Macbeth’s head to cause him to think, and to act differently, which ultimately causes the exposure of his true character. The first role that the witches play is made obvious when they deliberately acknowledge Macbeth as not only the Thane of Glamis, but also the Thane of Cawdor and all hailing King. This, most likely being the most important event in the poem due to its initiation of the actual purpose of the story, is what really leads Macbeth to believe that he has to kill King Duncan...
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...confront Macbeth. We hear about Macbeth before we meet him. It is reported that he kills the traitorous Macdonwald by cutting him open from his belly button to his throat, because he betrayed Scotland. The king hears of Macbeth’s victory and decides to give him the title of thane of Cawdor. - Scene 3 + 4 The witches meet Macbeth and Banquo on a heath and give them a prediction of the future. They predict that Macbeth will become Thane of Glamis (his current title at the time of meeting with the witches), Thane of Cawdor, and eventually King. For Banquo, the witches say he will be lesser and greater than Macbeth, not as fortunate, but happier, and his sons will be king. Macbeth inquires more, but the witches dismiss him. Macbeth can’t believe that it comes true when he becomes Thane of Cawdor, and wants to become King but Malcolm, the prince of Cumberland, stands in his way. - Scene 5, 6 + 7 Macbeth sends a letter to his wife, Lady Macbeth, and after she reads it, she fears that his nature “is too full of the milk of human kindness.” She believes that Macbeth will not take the actions necessary to become King without her help. She plans on killing Duncan that very night and tells Macbeth to “look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent under it”. When Macbeth becomes reluctant, Lady Macbeth persuades him by questioning his manhood, saying that she would go to extents such as bashing her own child’s brains out if it meant Macbeth would become king. She tells Macbeth that he...
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...An Ill-fated time has befallen upon Scotland with the murder of our beloved King Duncan last night in Cawdor castle, home of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. All evidence as to who murdered the king leads to his groomsmen. They were found covered in blood and hiding their bloodstained daggers. Not only has our dear king passed on, but his sons have fled, leaving no descendant of the kings to be crowned, so the noble Macbeth has now been chosen to take the throne. King Duncan’s lifeless body was discovered by MacDuff in the early hours of yesterday morning. He had been stabbed repeatedly in his sleep. This gory scene caused Lady Macbeth to faint at the gruesome sight when entering King Duncan's chambers. The king was due to leave the Macbeths’ castle in Inverness that...
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...In the play “Macbeth” written by William Shakespeare, the main character Macbeth was faced with Misplaced Ambition. Shakespeare's character Macbeth was a brave and faithful soldier. King Duncan was very fond of Macbeth who admire his bravery and consider Macbeth and outstanding general. The prediction that was preordained by witches was that one day Macbeth would be King and the mistake of confiding to Lady Macbeth about his destiny drove her to become power hungry. This mistake lead to Macbeth killing his cousin and close friend King Duncan. Macbeth’s decision to kill the king drives him mad and eventually leads to his timely demise. William Shakespeare uses Irony and Satire to show how Misplaced Ambition can lead to the rise and fall of...
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...Tragedy of Macbeth is a play written by William Shakespeare in 1606.This play was written for James VI of Scotland who went on to occupy the English throne. The story is based in Scotland and is connected to James VI via the character Banquo who is supposed to be James’s ancestor. Macbeth is Shakespeare’s most powerful and emotionally intense play. It is one of the shortest and bloodiest tragedies written by Shakespeare. It is not as complex as other plays like The Merchant of Venice, Othello and Hamlet which explores the fine nuances of the characters but is a drama with a sharp and jagged theme which flows rapidly from the beginning to the end. Macbeth is a story of a brave and courageous Scottish general (Macbeth) who on receiving a prophecy of becoming the future king (by witches) and instigated by his wife goes on to murder the king (Duncan) and seize the throne. The fear of losing the throne and to protect himself from enmity and suspicion, Macbeth commits even more murders and soon becomes a tyrant. The bloodbath finally drags Macbeth and his wife to madness and death. Character Analysis: Of the many characters in the play, two characters form the core of the whole play namely Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Macbeth – The play introduces Macbeth as a Scottish general and the thane of Glamis. Macbeth’s initial image from the play is that of a brave and courageous soldier. The following speech from the Captain illustrates Macbeth’s bravery: For brave Macbeth -well he...
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...Weston Balskus Macbeth Thesis Paper 1-2-13 British Lit The Witches in ‘Macbeth’ “Double, double, toil and trouble; Fire burn and caldron bubble” (Act 4 Scene 1). These famous words, said by the three witches, come from one of William Shakespeare’s greatest tragedies- ‘Macbeth’ Completed in 1606, this play is set in Scotland, and dramatizes the corroding psychological and political effects produced when its protagonist, the Scottish lord Macbeth, chooses evil as the way to fulfill his ambition for power. Shakespeare wrote this play when attitudes were completely different to the attitudes of society today, in particular, widespread belief in witchcraft. In the play of 'Macbeth' the witches have an important effect on Macbeth, the characters, the plot, the theme and the audience. They help construct the play and without them it would have been a totally different story line. The three witches effect characters’ lives, orientate the plot, they are related to most of the themes or motifs and appeal the audience's attention. The witches, or three sisters, have a strong effect on the characters of the play- especially Macbeth. When Macbeth meets the witches for the first time, they greet him as the Thane of Cawdor. Macbeth is Thane of Glamis and does not know about Cawdor, he hasn’t heard that the Thane of Cawdor has died. “I know I am Thane of Glamis, But how of Cawdor? The Thane of Cawdor lives” (Act 1 Scene 3). When Macbeth learns that the thane of Cawdor has in fact died...
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...MacBeth Essay The blame for Duncan’s death can be shared upon a variety of characters, although there may be a sole recipient for the majority of fault to fall upon. The three main character’s responsible for the demise of the former king include; MacBeth, Lady MacBeth and the Three Witches. Despite the fact that the Three Witches provoked this implement of the plan in MacBeth’s head, all three characters listed previously are all held responsible for the cause of Duncan’s death. The Three Witches are responsible for the original idea of taking the throne, although it is MacBeth’s ambition that overwhelms him and eventually, Lady MacBeth. When MacBeth initially meets the Three Witches’ after the battle in the scenes following the Witches’ first appearance. The sisters’ initially hail him as Thane of Glamis, and then proceed to hail him for being the Thane of Cawdor and for being King of Scotland. These prophecies implement and open his mind as to being King even though that the audience receives no indication as to what he is thinking. Initially, MacBeth is quite skeptical but then doubt turns to belief after being announced Thane of Cawdor. The Three Witches may have initiated the thought of becoming King, but it is ultimately Macbeth’s own ambition that takes it to the next level. Lady MacBeth is portrayed as a catalyst in the act of regicide for which MacBeth commits. Lady MacBeth is instantaneously overwhelmed by the idea of becoming queen, and thus shows her as ambitious...
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...Shakespeare employs this theme during his widely recognised play, Macbeth. Shakespeare marks the regressive journey of a bold and courageous soldier, Macbeth, as he deteriorates enormously in his murder-filled quest of becoming the King of Scotland. Although Macbeth accomplishes his ambition, fate soon catches up with him in his death. It is apparent that the theme of appearance versus reality is prominent in the play Macbeth by means of the three Witches, Lady Macbeth,...
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...character, Macbeth, is just returning from battle, in which he defeated Fortune and the enemy. As a result of Macbeth’s brave actions, Duncan, King of Scotland, declares Macbeth Thane of Cawdor. Everything in Macbeth’s future seems to have been planned out perfectly. Macbeth is to be Thane of Glamis, Thane of Cawdor, and king thereafter. At least, this seems to be the case until he runs over one problem: If Duncan is king, then how is it that Macbeth could also be king? This question is resolved by killing Duncan. What Macbeth does not realize is his actions will not be followed by a happy life ever after, but instead several repercussions. From this point on, Macbeth’s life changes dramatically....
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...“Macbeth is basically a good man led astray. ” Steven Zhang In the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare, Macbeth appears to be the evil mastermind behind all the murders he has committed, including that of King Duncan and Banquo, his own friend. However, the plot is not that simple, Macbeth isn’t really the evil person, he simply lost his morals and let his ambitions get the better of him. He was first given the prophecy that he will eventually become king by the 3 witches. He decided that it could be true because he became the Thane of Cawdor like their prophecies and let his ambitions overcome his morals; He is a loyal man and he did not make the decision to kill Duncan alone. His wife convinced him that it was for the “good”; Finally, Macbeth...
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