Shakespeare’s play, Macbeth, shows how murder and corruption disrupts natural order through the outcomes of his characters’ decisions in the story. In the beginning of the play, the protagonist, Macbeth, and his good friend, Banquo, is confronted by three witches who give them both prophecies foretelling the future. Macbeth is told that he will be promoted to Thane of Cawdor and King of Scotland, and Banquo’s descendants will become kings. After hearing these prophecies, Macbeth makes poor decisions to make sure they come to pass. As the play progresses, the intense guilt of the character’s lead to insanity, and murder seems to be the only option in their situations. In Act II of Shakespeare’s play, characters commit a gruesome and corrupt crime that cannot be reversed. By murdering King Duncan, Macbeth will fulfill his prophecy of becoming King of Scotland. Because Macbeth knows what he is about to do is wrong, he is approached by a floating dagger before entering King Duncan’s room, “art thou not, fatal vision, sensible to feeling as to sight … a dagger of …show more content…
As previously stated, there are consequences for wrong doings, and an example of this is seen in Act III when Macbeth is planning to murder Banquo. In order to make sure Banquo’s descendants do not overthrow Macbeth, he sends out three murderers to kill Banquo and his son. Because fate is inevitable, Fleance, Banquo’s son, escapes. In response to hearing this news, Macbeth says, “[t]hen comes my fit again: I had else been perfect” (3.4.22), which indicates his worry and trouble. The Macbeths have a banquet the night of the murder, and as a result, Banquo’s ghost appears at the table. Macbeth states that “[t]he table’s full” (3.4.47), however, it is revealed that there “is a place reserved, sir” (3.4.48), said by one of the courtiers. This is proof of another unnatural occurrence taking place after a
Because of this he also killed the servants. When told of Banquo's death he is seemingly delighted but upon return he sees Banquo's ghost. Macbeth’s repressed guilt shows up as a ghost that steals his seat from him. He tells him to leave and cease bothering him, representing how he doesn't want to feel guilty but the ghost doesn't leave until Lady Macbeth takes him out of the room. Macbeth’s guilt pressures him to face consequences and shows his lack of
(V, viii, 80-82). At this point in the play Macbeth and Lady Macbeth have both died and everyone is overjoyed that they are both dead, and even calling Macbeth a butcher instead of a murder just further proves their hostility and distaste for him. Macbeth's wicked ending has finally come due to his
Most people in power in the world are corrupt due to money and political positions. Not so unlike in Macbeth, a play by William Shakespeare, where the main character Macbeth after three witches give him, a prophecy saying he would be king and his friend Banquo’s sons would be king Macbeth begins his ascension to the throne through unnecessary means of which lead to his own downfall. Ultimately the pursuit of power not only led to the downfall of Macbeth but to those around them. From the beginning of the play, we can immediately see the cycle of corruption taking hold of the characters, mainly Macbeth. In the first scene Macbeth is in battle and is fighting the rebel traitor who is the thane of Cawdor.
As Macbeth approaches the unsuspecting king Duncan, he hallucinates a floating dagger aiming towards the king’s chamber, which he yearns to clutch. In his mind, the “false creation” of the blade is smothered with “dudgeon gouts of blood” (Shakespeare 2.1.38, 2.1.46). The blood-stained dagger, a premonition of Duncan’s death, causes Macbeth to question the border dividing fantasy and reality. The idea of murdering his king frightens him, yet he voluntarily reaches out to the murderous weapon. He proceeds to kill Duncan in cold blood, before realizing the weight of his actions.
In this scene, Macbeth questions the reality of the world around him and even sees a dagger in front of him that is not truly there. And, although this may seem like damning evidence that he is not mentally stable, parts of this scene showcase the
Shakespeare’s story Macbeth is a play that contains guilt, pleasure, and manipulation. The character Macbeth was always loyal to his king that he had served, King Duncan, until Macbeth’s wife Lady Macbeth manipulated him into killing his king that he has been so loyal to. Macbeth thought that it was absurd to think that way, but she made it possible to make him think that it is a good idea to get him what he wanted, to be king. Macbeth made a deal with three witches to that he could become king if he completed his three prophecies, they gave him. He completed the job of murdering the king and has become king, but he was reminded of something, that his friend Banquo were still here and that he also made a deal with the witches to make his son
Because Macbeth’s and Lady Macbeth’s decision to murder Duncan, Both face the guilt of the power they abused portrays on the shadows that reflect on them as well as the natural consequences they will face. During the first half of the play, Lady Macbeth expresses her unnatural feelings and this is demonstrated through the corruption of power when she want’s to hire people to kill Duncan because she thinks that Macbeth is too scared. At first, when Lady Macbeth hinted “Their drenchèd natures lies as in a death”(1.7.78). This demonstrates that Lady Macbeth is characterizing corruption of power due to the fact that she want's to kill Duncan, therefore she can be queen of cawdor while Macbeth is king.
Macbeth’s demise is eventually met by the hands of Macduff in a duel between the two. This plot connects to the thesis because of the heavy undertones of corruption in the story by Macbeth and those around him. In Macbeth, by William Shakespeare, corruption is used to show how power can lead one to do things that could be seen as wrong to gain or maintain power, which can be seen in Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s actions and speech. Macbeth’s actions help to show his corruption by the actions he commits to maintain his power by abusing the amount he has. This can be seen in what Macbeth says when he makes his decision on what to do to Banquo when he realizes that Banquo’s bloodline is destined to become king, which is when Macbeth says, “It is concluded.
Macbeth come across the three witches, there they state, “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor” (Act 1, Scene 3). In reply to the three witches, Macbeth demanded “stay you imperfect speakers! Tell me more”. With just these few statements announced, Macbeth’s thirst for power and glory arises and is clearly seen.
Is burning ambition the driving force of corruption? This powerful question leaves many pondering the good or bad stigma of ambition, illustrated in Shakespeare's masterpiece, Macbeth. Looking into how modern film renditions help prove Shakespeare's stance on this thought, Kayla Ram reports. Correct me if I'm wrong but the memo of Macbeth seems all too familiar, does it not? This extravaganza still seems very relevant today even if this literature was created 400 years ago.
Finally, the vision of a bloody dagger that emerged right before the murder emboldened Macbeth to kill King Duncan. Prior to murdering Duncan, Macbeth was hesitant about following through with his wife 's merciless task. He doubted that he was able to murder one of his most loyal friends, until he saw the vision. On page 43, Act II, scene I, Macbeth sees the apparition: "Is this a dagger that I see before me with its handle turned to my hand?" Macbeth contemplates whether it is a figure of his imagination prompted on by his already guilty conscience, or a supernatural encounter that is compelling him to do the deed.
In scene three of act one, Macbeth and Banquo meet the weird sisters, who give them prophecies. They tell Macbeth that he will be king of Scotland, and by the end of the act, he decides to murder Duncan, and he is more worried about “if [he and his wife] should fail” than the morality of the act (1.7.68). This is often seen as the moment when Macbeth becomes a bad person, but any person who puts up so little resistance to murder was never a great person. This, however, is not the only murder this so-called great man commits without a second
In the play, Macbeth, William Shakespeare uses the theme of the corrupting power of ambition, Macbeth’s character flaws, and the theme of cruelty versus masculinity to show Macbeth’s misdeeds were a direct result of external influences. Throughout the play, Macbeth commits several wrongdoings including, killing King Duncan, his friend Banquo and manipulating others into carrying out his wishes. By appealing to Macbeth’s strong desires to become king, the witches’ prophecies leads Macbeth to commit several murders. Through fueling Macbeth’s inner insecurities, Malcolm prompts Macbeth to irrationally continue wrongdoings. Similarly, Lady Macbeth’s manipulative persona, encourages Macbeth to commit wicked actions.
As evidenced through past political figures, when an individual holds an abundant amount of power it only results in their own downfall. Corruption, the defining factor of their downfall, is dishonest or illegal behavior especially by powerful people (such as government officials or police officers) (Merriam-Webster). The theme of corruption is explored throughout The Tragedy of Macbeth. Shortly after Macbeth becomes king his conscience slowly starts to deteriorate as he orders the death of others.