Macbeth Ambition Essay

Macbeth knows that if he wants to become king then King Duncan must die, as he is the main person preventing this from occuring. This quote foreshadows the murder of King Duncan which ultimately results in Macbeth being crowned king since Duncan's sons flee the scene for protection, in order to prevent getting murdered themselves since they're next in line for the throne. This shows Macbeth's ambition because he is willing to do anything to get to the throne and become king even if it means murder. Macbeth even realizes that he is beginning to have “black and deep desires” in Act 1, Scene 4, and this shows his ambitious thoughts to murder the

Macbeth’s conscience tells him again to resist temptation to gain the crown and not kill Duncan because he is a man Macbeth should defend and protect. Even after this nudge towards moral correctness, Macbeth kills Duncan. He begins to feel intense guilt about his decision, and lives in fear of

As a result, Macbeth, after being heavily influenced by his wife and his own greed, kills King Duncan. Once he finishes killing the king he feels a huge sense of regret and guilt after committing this murderous act. However, he still achieves his aspiration of becoming king in which he is very possessive of. While Macbeth is king, he reminisces about the original

Macbeth doubts his plan to murder Duncan and is unable to motivate himself to take action. There is tension between Macbeth's unwillingness to move ahead with his plan and his acknowledgment that his ambition is leading him down a dangerous path. Macbeth notes, “I have no spur to prick the sides for the intent, but the only vaulting notes ambition, which o’erleaps itself and falls on th’ other” (1. 7. 25-29). Macbeth knows that he has lacked motivation and ambition, and he knows that it’s the only thing preempting disasters to come his way as he makes mistakes.

There are many reasons to have ambition, having good ambition can help a person go a long way in life, but having bad ambition can also be harmful or a major threat to others. Being a person with ambition is great, but be sure to use it for the right reasons. Ambition can be really motivating like in the epic poem Beowulf where Beowulf himself risked his life many times to save the lives of others, but could also go to the extreme and leave people making irrational decisions, such as Macbeth, who became senseless trying to become king for his wife who was power hungry. To be that person that carries ambition inside of them at all times is a great character trait, and being that person to carry ambition for the right reasons is even better because it could take someone a long way in life.

Like all of Shakespeare’s other plays, “Macbeth’s” protagonist Macbeth is incredibly successful but suffers from one fatal flaw, his great ambition. His ambition will be the cause of his great success but ultimately also of his downfall. The man’s ambition drives him to seize every opportunity to promote his own agenda. His ambition hurts him the most when he decides to kill King Duncan and Macduff.

Impact Of Ambition on Self and Others Ambition is often defined as the driving force that pushes individuals to overcome or attain the impossible. Possessing the character trait is a milestone in one's path to success. However, ambition can become one's doom. It can corrupt individuals, impact their relationships or build a ruthless force leading them to catastrophic failure. Consequently, Shakespeare, in his play Macbeth, which features the conquest of a Scottish nobleman to become the king of Scotland, articulately highlights how ambition can be dangerous to both an individual and others around them.

Macbeth was aware of his actions and poor choices but he still continued to race towards his yearning. Shakespeare creates the characters of Lady Macbeth and Macbeth to portray the harm that ambition can create while being influenced to gain power. Throughout the play, Shakespeare develops the character Macbeth to be a strong leader that is heavily influenced by others through his actions by allowing Lady Macbeth to guide him in the path of wrong doings. Not

At the end of the play Macbeth ambition was too big and it made him went to the wrong path which led to his death. First reason, Macbeth was thinking about murdering the king and it’s not a good choice. Then he finally did his unforgivable move which is kill the king when the king was visiting his castle. He couldn’t control himself because his ambition was getting too big and it swallow him. A quote in the play said ”

In Shakespeare’s play The Tragedy of Macbeth, the main character, Macbeth, had many different characteristics, but the one that surpassed all others was his ambition. As the story progressed, there are many examples that can be seen where his ambition has influenced his perspective on right and wrong. His ambition consumed him to a point where he was more monster than mortal as seen when he went on a murdering spree. He then lost people of Scotland’s favor and they rebelled against him leading to his death. While ambition may not necessarily be bad, his blindness to the consequences caused it to become a pernicious trait.

Ambition is a natural part of human existence, every person has it at least a little. It is when ambition grows too large and takes control of us that it becomes dangerous. It becomes obsessive and soon nothing will stop the person obsessed. Just by looking around at our world today, one can clearly see the results of unchecked ambition. Unchecked ambition can be destructive to a society and cause the society's downfall.

Macbeth’s ambition is one of the most prominent things that drive Macbeth in the play and truly becomes evident when he hears of the Witches prophecies. When the witches stop talking, he demands to know more. “Stay you imperfect speakers, tell me more” (I, III, 73-74). This portrays his excessive curiosity on the subject as well as his craving for more desirable prophecies. This ambitious nature and craving for power is also demonstrated only moments after hearing the witches, when he starts formulating a plan to kill Duncan in order to make the third prophecy come true.

In Shakespeare’s Macbeth the witches informs Macbeth of his fate that he will become the king in the future. Macbeth believes the witches words and Lady Macbeth persuade him to become the king and murder all the people that get in the way. Shakespeare shows us that fate is complicated by our actions, Macbeth will do anything to meet his fate that in the end lead him to his death because of his greediness.

Finally, Macbeth 's greediness and committing murder drives him to experience guilt and causes his mental decline. To begin, when he decides to kill Duncan, Macbeth hallucinates and questions “is this a dagger I see before me” (Shakespeare II.i.33). Even before this murderous act, Macbeth is shown to be affected mentally at the thought of killing. After stabbing King Duncan, he starts hearing strange voices in his mind “[he] hears a crying voice, sleep no more”(Shakespeare II.ii.32-33) suggesting that already regrets the murder. Macbeth considers himself a sinner,“Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash...”(II.ii.58-59) and the inability to say “ Amen...”(Shakespeare II.II.24).

Macbeth is also a power hungry man who would do just about anything to achieve his goal of becoming King. When Macbeth first hears the prophecies from the three witches he instantly became invested with the journey to become king. Similar to Lady Macbeth, nothing was going to come between him and his potential power, “My thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical, shakes so my single state of man. That function is smother'd in surmise, and nothing is but what is not” (1.3.52-55). This quote exemplifies how Macbeth’s initial solution to becoming king was murder.