Ambition is the driving force of the actions and decisions people act towards their impulses to get what they want. Human nature tends to carry the trait of ambition everyday. Within the play of Macbeth, the characters face the challenges of what ambition may bring a person. Macbeth is a Scottish General, who has been influenced by the Prophecy of Three Witches. The witches prophesied Macbeth’s future, that he will be “Thane of Cawdor” and king. 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 …show more content…
She was more of an influence towards their ambition rather than an actual wife. Macbeth tells the messenger “She should have died hereafter./There would have been a time for such a word./Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,/Creeps in this petty pace from day to day/To the last syllable of recorded time” (V.5 Nineteen-Twenty One). Macbeth’s lack of empathy is a result of his overpowering ambition. It leads to him pushing away his previous obligations in favor of his own selfish goals. Macbeth’s only ambition is to keep his throne and survive. Macbeth also states, “Direness, familiar to my slaughterous thoughts/Cannot once start me” (V.5 Fourteen-Fifteen). The case that he thought of the death of his wife so callously reveals his insatiable thirst for more power, and how he had become so corrupt that nothing else mattered but his greed. Macbeth’s downfall was clearly visible in his reactions to the consequences of his greed, showing how he slowly succumbed to his unchecked
Macbeth we see him use ambition as a motif to show how when unchecked it can lead to moral decay. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth seek the throne and all of its power which leads to their destruction. In Act 1 Scene 7 Macbeth comes to terms with the fact that killing Duncan is simply a move for power with no moral backings, “ I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only Vaulting ambition, which o’erleaps itself And falls on th’ other-”. Although Macbeth begins to realize that he is committing murders and destroying lives for power there is nothing stopping him. Unfortunately Lady Macbeth was overcome with the guilt of what she had done that she took her own life.
The Destructive Force of Human Ambition In Shakespearean time and within his plays, ambition was viewed as a downfall in character and a defiance to human nature. In today’s world, ambition is viewed as a respectable attribute in both males and females. Yet, In William Shakespeare’s play, Macbeth, the destructive force of ambition transcends time. Although centuries apart, Macbeth, a noble who wants to seize the position of King, and Tonya Harding, a figure skater who wants to win an Olympic gold, are two examples of ambition, its misuses and consequences.
Shakespeare presents the theme of ambition in Macbeth. Ambition is a strong desire to do or achieve something, ambition can also be presented in a positive and negative way. Shakespeare presents ambition in a negative way through some characters who are Macbeth, Lady Macbeth and King Duncan. The reason these characters present ambition in a negative way is because they end up dying. Ambition is also present in a positive way through some characters who are Macduff, Witches and Malcolm these are the characters who survive in the play showing that you can be ambitious but not too ambitious.
These decisions cause not only his death but also deaths of many others. The reasons behind these decisions are what helped the play’s theme to develop. In Macbeth's life he was so focused on his ambition that he was blind to see what he was leading himself into. He becomes so focused on becoming king that he forgets about his family and friends the ones that care and love him.
When Macbeth learns of the loss of his wife, Macbeth shows no remorse nor even a feeling towards her death, showing that either Macbeth has grown to become used to death or he has lost the capacity to give a crap. Yes, this is villainous, not caring about your wife, yet it can be seen as upsetting to learn that a fellow human being has lost the right to such a basic human need, emotion, love, grief. This is where an element of a victim plays part once more, yet again counteracted by the argument that Macbeth himself led this path, nobody but
Macbeths Ambition Macbeth is an ambitious man who wants more than he can actually have, but he is determined to go after what he wants by powerful, compliant, and perseverant ways. Macbeth is a man who is deeply committed to the values of his society and who has invested his pride in living up to them. He has his
Ambition can drive almost anyone to do things that their consciences normally would not let them do. For this tragic hero, ambition is his folly. Macbeth’s ambition causes him to be susceptible to outsides influences, overrides his conscience and ultimately brings his destruction. Macbeth’s actions have a profound effect on his character for the rest of the play.
Throughout the course of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, ambition is the driving force behind all the characters in the story. Ambition fueled them to go after power and to get something that they want. Similarly, ambition is also the driving force behind all the people in the world. Ambition can be good and bad, for many people ambition is wanting to achieve something and doing anything to achieve that. On a more extreme note there are also those who see no more finish line, they keep going and are never satisfied with where they are at.
What is ambition? Ambition is the determination to achieve one’s goals. In the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare the protagonist, Macbeth, possesses ambition, which led to his downfall. In the play Macbeth’s ambition is driven by prophecies from witches and his wife’s aspiration. Ambition caused Macbeth to commit multiple homicides and after those wrongdoings Macbeth is left with nothing.
As soon as she heard Macbeth’s prophecy, she was willing to do anything to get him into the position of king. She was even willing to aid in the murder of innocent people who stood in the way of Macbeth’s ascension to the crown like, King Duncan. Her greed led to Macbeth’s downfall. When Macbeth stated that he was questioning his intentions to kill the king, she pushed him and assisted in the plotting. “We will proceed no further in this business. /
However, before succumbing to this demise, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth were simply selfish characters ambitiously vying for more control. Macbeth's primary goal in the play is to become Scotland's king, and he quickly realizes that there are a few people directly blocking his path to the crown. The clearest
The ambitious and manipulated Macbeth reflects Shakespeare’s message in Macbeth that too much ambition leads to ruin. “Behold where stands Th’ usurper’s cursed head”(5.8,65-66) Macbeth meets his fated end by the hands of Macduff due to his overconfidence from the prophecy the witches told him. Macbeth is influenced by the witches and his wife, but in the end, his ambition and greed for power brought him to his end. From Macbeth as a character, we know that Shakespeare intended to show that too much ambition is bad.
Ambition is a very strong trait to have, whether you use it for good or for evil. Throughout the play of Macbeth, power and ambition are extremely evident. The dark ambition shown in the play can drive some characters to do some hysterical things. Lady Macbeth is quite a dynamic character in the play. In the time of tragedy, an individual’s personality can easily change; this can be extremely dangerous if someone loses their self awareness, as seen by Lady Macbeth
Ambition is a strong force of human nature, which can turn people evil if it takes control of them. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are perfect examples of these type of people. In Macbeth, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are both thirsty for power which leads them to their ultimate demise. People might expect that Macbeth and Lady Macbeth have a mundane husband and wife relationship, but instead they are in a divergent relationship, which causes them to influence each other in a way that lead to their downfall. The ambition that Macbeth and Lady macbeth have for power was portrayed by their motives, morals, goals, relationships, consciousness and personalities throughout the play.
Ambition can not be the blame; in consideration it was the reason for Macbeth’s climb to authority. Macbeth received encouragement for defatting his enemies to begin with. Macbeth’s zeal causes him to become abominable, when he even considers to stop his wife, negotiates him to pursue his actions further. ‘ Ere we will eat our meal in fear and sleep in the affliction of these terrible dreams That shake us nightly: better be with the dead, who we, to gain our peace, have sent to peace Than torture of the mind to lie In restless ecstasy.’ ( Macbeth 3.2 18-21) Macbeth learns that life as an Iconoclast is a life that is embedded in chaos.