Macduff Character Analysis

Before Macbeth meets with Macduff, he thinks of ways to handle Macduff so he would no longer be a problem. Macduff was considered to be a problem because he left the kingdom in order to assist an opposing force. Macbeth states “Then live, Macduff: what need I fear of thee? But yet I’ll make assurance double sure, and take a bond of fate.” (Act IV scn i, ln 82-84) He wants to make sure Macduff will not be a problem; he wants to keep Macduff out of his way. In this scene Macbeth is attempting to discover ways to inforce his superiority through the phrase “The castle of Macduff I will surprise; seize upon Fife; give to th’ edge o’ th’ sword his wife, his babies, and all unfortunate souls.” (Act IV scn i, ln 150-152) He hired men to kill Macduff’s family, so he will be depressed and will grieve; he wants to keep Macduff out of the way of him still being King. The main reason he did this, however, was to exert his leadership over Macduff and send a message. This paragraph explains how Macbeth was disloyal to Macduff and how he did anything to keep Macduff out of his way, but things did not turn out as he

While Macduff is in England, Macbeth learns of the abandonment of Macduff's family and resolves to have them murdered. When Macduff learns of the murder of his family, he is motivated by Malcolm to get revenge. It is this that pushes Macduff to the edge and forces him to go after Macbeth himself. The power of Malcolm's taunting that he must take it like a man and his own love for his family makes him hate Macbeth to the fullest extent, and eventually he succeeds in killing him.

Macduff is also a character that deals with guilt. He is guilty of leaving his entire family behind in Scotland which is eventually why they are killed. He uses this guilt to drive him to bring Macbeth down. If Macduff would have thought to bring his wife and children they wouldn't have died. This shows that every action has consequences and those consequences must be taken into consideration.

Macduff is the thane of fife, the foil to Macbeth, and the greatest patriot of Scotland during the play. He first appears in act one scene six, the King Duncan and the nobleman come to Macbeths castle. Macduff’s fellow noblemen marvel about the greatness of Macbeth’s castle, though Macduff stays silent throughout the scene. This is generally how Macduff acts; only speaking when spoken to, and not making unnecessary conversation. In act two scene three Macduff and Lennox come to wake the king and he is the one to make the discovery that the king has been murdered. He exclaims to Macbeth and Banquo what has happened, saying that the King is the Lord’s appointed temple. This is common in the time period

Macduff’s burning desire for revenge towards Macbeth was encouraged by many forces. As it is known, Macbeth murders Duncan which causes Malcolm to flee to England because he fears for his life. Following Duncan’s death, Macduff was the first to discover Duncan dead, and it can be inferred that he was so angry and mortified that it sparks apprehensiveness towards Macbeth’s acquiring the throne. As he realizes that he does not agree with Macbeth’s reign, he decides to leave his family behind in Fife to go to England to find Malcolm, the true heir to the throne. His plan is to conspire with Malcolm to build an army against Macbeth. Macduff was so loyal to Scotland and the true ruler that he was willing to abandon his family in the process of freeing Scotland from tyranny. As he meets with Malcolm, Ross delivers the news that

At this point, Macduff realizes that his mistake of leaving his family in Scotland will cause him a life of pain. Ambition is what ultimately caused this because without the ambition to kill Macbeth then he would of never left his family.

Lady Macduff on the other hand, seems to genuinely love and feel for her husband. She is very upset over the fact that he is leaving home, not because she feels it is cowardly, rather because she knows that he is her protector and her one true love and without him she is lacking. This is an obvious difference between Lady Macduff and Lady Macbeth, which helps to highlight the personality of Lady Macbeth.

"What I am truly is thine, and my poor country's, to command. He has confused Macduff, but achieved his aim of assuring Macduff's loyalty. In battle against Macbeth he has the wisdom to disguise the size of his army by getting them to hide behind the boughs of trees. He gives the worthy Macduff the honour of leading them into battle.

Macduff's only ambition is to kill Macbeth, the man who has murdered his wife and children. He has no interest in personal gain and is the first character in the play to understand that Fortune rules you, you don't rule Fortune. This is a certain indicator that he'll be the one to take down the tyrant, who is always challenging

The script says, “But yet I'll make assurance double sure, and take a bond of fate: thou shalt not live; that I may tell pale-hearted fear it lies, and sleep in spite of thunder.” (Shakespeare 77). Although the weird sisters’ prophecy has convinced Macbeth that Macduff is not a threat to his life, Macbeth reveals that he will kill Macduff to ensure his fate and properly conquer his own fear. I think that Macbeth’s merciless decision to execute a family of innocent people shows he has reached the height of his tyranny, having been fueled by his fear of losing power. In his decision, I can see that Macbeth has truly plummeted into madness. He has no logical reason for killing Macduff’s family alone from his own irrational fear. Reading the script, I am able to see the banter between Macduff’s wife and son. For me, seeing this sweet exchange makes Macduff’s family appear more realistic and relatable, helping to create a greater understanding behind the injustice of their murder. In the film, the amusing conversation between Macduff’s family is not shown. I believe that neglecting this simple moment decreased the characters’ authenticity as ordinary, innocent victims. Devoid of this scene, I believe that I do not truly realize the caliber of the atrocity Macbeth has committed as a result of his deranged

Another flaw of Macbeth’s readers can learn from was his internal conflict and jealousy of anyone who could possibly come in between him and crown. Macbeth was often threatened by other people who could possibly take the crown from him. The first time the reader can see this jealousy arise was when Macduff said, “Our eldest, Malcolm, whom we name hereafter, Prince of Cumberland;” (1.4.38-39). Macbeth’s first reaction was to fear the whole family line of Macduff. This intimidation lead to one of Macbeth’s most careless destructive decision when he

After Macbeth becomes king he became worried that his position would be compromised by a traitor. He is increasingly worried about Banquos prophecy and has Banquo murdered to protect his power. “My lord his throat is cut, that I did for him” (Shakespeare III.iv.41) Macduff one of the nobles leaves the county to organize a revolt against Macbeth. Macbeth has Macduff’s family and castle staff killed to protect against further betray. “The castle of Macduff I will surprise; Seize upon fife; give to the edge o’ the swords his wife, his babes and all unfortunate souls that trace him in his line. (Shakespeare IV.ii.56). This choice to kill Macduff’s family led to Macbeth’s fall.

At Macduff’s castle, Lady Macbeth is angry at Macduff for leaving his family behind. She thinks Macduff is a coward. Ross says that Macduff left because of wisdom, not fear. Ross leaves, Lady Macduff tells her son that his father is dead. He doesn’t believe her, she asks if he thinks he is a traitor.

Macduff, a Scottish nobleman, is a figure of morality in the play. He is the first one who suspects Macbeth of regicide, therefore does not participate in his coronation. Although at first he seems insignificant as a character, towards the end of the play he is the one who serves a great contribution in saving Scotland from Macbeth’s tyranny. His traits, of being trustworthy to his country and morally upright, do not change throughout the play and do not become complicated, as a result, we can say that he has respectively a static and flat character. At the beginning of the play, Macduff discoveres Duncan’s dead body and is shocked at the horror of murder.

Macduff is always suspicious about Macbeth for Duncan’s death. He decides to leave his family and going to find Malcolm in England. Even though Shakespeare did not describe Macduff’s feeling when he is on his way to England in the play, but I can imagine that he must be worried, desperate, and uncertain, about his family, country, whether he can find Malcolm and convinces him to fight against Macbeth. And I can also feel his determination and hope to save his country from Macbeth, because if he doesn’t have a firm faith, he would stay with his family and would not be contrary to Macbeth. Instand, he go on “an unknown road and embrace [his] fate” until he find Malcolm.