Examples Of Greed In Macbeth

In William Shakespeare's play Macbeth, Macbeth's greed is what eventually killed him. His ambition combined with overwhelming power took him over and took his life. Macbeth is Thane of Glamis and of Cawdor, and the general of the army, but he still thirsts for more power. He attempted to wield the power of a king, but he was not suited for that kind of responsibility. He killed others out of paranoia. Due to his corrupt nature, he was killed. He was killed out of his greed to handle power he could not contain.

Power can change people for the good or for the bad. It can make one so greedy that they will do anything for it and won’t let anything stand in their way for power. The play Macbeth illustrates this well, it shows the impact and consequences that the greed for power has on some people. However, it also shows that there are still some who are not sucked in by the greed that power can bring.

Macbeth’s ambition is powered by the sisters. Through the sisters he learns that he is to be king, he does not know how he is going to become king however. Ambition is the key to his downfall. Before he had this ambition he said that he would never have dreamed of killing the king to become king. The ambition drove him to kill the king, so that he could become then king.

One of the main themes in William Shakespeare's play, Macbeth is ambition. Ambition can build up a person as they drive towards a goal, but it can also cause a person to destruct. In the cases of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, ambition is a dangerous weapon with which they harmed many people. Ambition can be healthy and even beneficial usually, Shakespeare develops the idea that ambition is dangerous to oneself and others and leads to extreme repercussions. In the play, Macbeth, William Shakespeare explores the negative impacts of ambition on oneself and others when an individual’s motives are near sighted and selfish.

Ambition is something that needs to be controlled by each individual person because it can be expressed in an evil way and when done so it can lead down a destructive path. The play Macbeth is a perfect example of this when it comes to the two main characters, Lady Macbeth and Macbeth, allowing ambition to control their lives. Their driving ambition for power tears their marriage apart and shatters their chances to ever gain kingship outside of their land. In some ways, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth reversed roles during the course of the play, yet they both changed in drastic ways making them both dynamic characters. William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, uncovers a noble man and an ambitious wife who yearn for power, as they go down a path full of sinful temptation foreshadowing their tragic deaths.

The reason why Macbeth commits the evil and disgusting deeds that he has done can be mostly contributed to the witches prophesies, Lady Macbeth pressuring him to commit these actions and finally the root to all this is Macbeth's ambitions. "But screw your courage to the sticking-place,/And we'll not fail."(1.7.60-61) Lady Macbeth is pressuring Macbeth by saying to be more courageous and by being more courageous we won't fail and through out the whole tragedy Lady Macbeth was forcing and pressuring him to do the horrendous acts. Which will allow the audience to sympathize with Macbeth they understand that he truly did not which to commit this crime. Witches prophize “Macbeth! Macbeth! Macbeth! beware Macduff/ Beware the thane of Fife. Dismiss me. Enough.” (4.1. 71-72) The witches give Macbeth another prophecy which is to be wary of Macduff, by doing that and manipulating him they force Macbeth to make bad decision and murder Macduff's family. By manipulating him they caused his demise and his loss of sanity. Which makes the audience sympathize with Macbeth because it looks like he can't do anything about it.

This shows that Macbeth has become very corrupt and that he will not let anything get in his way not even friendship for his desire to be king. “If the destruction of friendship is not a symbol of how strong Macbeth’s ambition is than the manslaughter of an innocent man’s entire family.” (The Ambition of Macbeth). Also learning that Macduff fled to England, Macbeth responds by killing his entire family. A wife and children symbolize purity and love in a man’s life, but killing Macduff’s family determines that Macbeth’s ambition is really corrupt.

Ambition is a good thing only when it doesn't hurt an individual or the people around him or her. In Macbeth, Shakespeare uses Macbeth as an example of bad ambition by harming others for his own gain. Macbeth goes to an extreme by taking the lives of others who seemed to be an obstacle that would jeopardize his plans. With the help of his wife, Lady Macbeth, he goes through with his diabolical plan and uses violence to take several innocent lives to achieve his goals of becoming an important and successful man. In the famous play Macbeth the main character is struggling to deal with his unmanliness.

Coinciding with the cycle of the tragic hero, Macbeth contains flaws in his character, his most prominent, being his ambition. In Shakespeare's Macbeth the idea of ambition is served as a vice to cause Macbeth’s tragic downfall. Ambition is a dangerous quality that causes those to go against their morals in order to gain power. Macbeth transforms into a self serving tyrant murdering anyone supposedly threatening his position of power or prophesied fate. ‘’I have no spur, To prick the sides of my intent, but only, Vaulting ambition, which o'erleaps itself. And falls on the other.’’ This quote found early on in the play, reveals that Macbeth recognises his ambition as a flaw, yet not one so serious to leads, to his demise. Macbeth’s ambition is strongly influenced by lady Macbeth. “Letting ‘I dare not’ wait upon ‘I would,’ like the poor cat i’ the adage?” This simile expresses Lady Macbeth’s willingness to manipulate her husband to betrayal. She passes her murderous desires to Macbeth, building up his strong nature. Lady Macbeth’s emotive language helps Macbeth’s already present ambition, truly develop into a overpowering force. Foil is again used between Macbeth and Banquo, as well as Duncan and Macduff. Although Banquo, Duncan and Macbeth all aim to be dominant leaders they contrast from Macbeth as they withhold from the urge to let ambition control their decisions. Macbeth lets go of all sort of moral of social recognition allowing ambition to be his leading and most noticeable characteristic. Ambition is the driving element of the play triggering a series of deaths at Macbeth’s expense. He has spiralled so out of control that he is incapable of knowing any other option then to murder repetitively, to cover up his previous treasons. ‘’For mine own good, All causes shall give way. I am in blood, Stepped in so far that, should I wade no more, Returning were as tedious as go o’er.’’ There becomes a time in the play when Macbeth s completely aware of

The Power of Ambition Ambition is the force that pushes society to make aspirations and dreams a reality. Although this is normally an admirable quality to possess, one’s ambition can easily take over, and cause damage to not only themselves, but others as well. In William Shakespeare’s tragedy Macbeth, ambition is the motivating factor for characters actions. Resembling a cancer, taking over and destroying everything in it’s path.

    Macbeth's ambition is what allowed him to become powerful. Without ambition, it is impossible to achieve goals. Therefore, ambition is what allowed Macbeth to overcome his obstacles and come closer to his final goals. As soon as he developed the trait of vaulting ambition, Macbeth is able to make his life fall into place exactly the way he wants it to. He first murders Duncan so that he will become king. Macbeth's ambition is directly the cause of this tragic incident. This murder is in cold evil blood by Macbeth's own hand; at this point he starts seeking his future on his own and will overcome any obstacles in his

Ambition drives some to hurt others. They see success as excelling by pushing another person behind. Rather than concentrating on enhancing themselves, these individuals endeavor to damage others with an end goal to help their own particular relative position. In Shakespeare’s play, Macbeth, Macbeth is a solid fighter who battles for the King without leniency yet his take a stab at ambition and his inquisitive nature drives him to the witches who welcome him with a prediction (Shakespeare). Banquo understands that there must be a trap covered up in the witches’ predictions some place yet Macbeth declines to acknowledge that, and when Lady Macbeth gets some answers concerning the witches her powerful urge for ambition and her frosty nature drives Macbeth adrift. In the words of the Third Witch “All hail, Macbeth, thou shalt be king hereafter!...So all hail, Macbeth and Banquo!” (1.3.53;70-71). Lady Macbeth's ambition far surpasses Macbeth's’ thus she can inspire Macbeth to concur with her to slaughter King Duncan. A change comes over Macbeth after his meeting; he is at no time in the future substance to be a devotee of the King, he will "be" King at any cost even if it means he will have to taint his success.

An ambition for power can seem to be true perfection, but one should be careful what they wish for, because that power might be exactly what causes their downfall. In the play Macbeth written by William Shakespeare ambition plays a great role and is also a main theme. Ambition is often the motivating force in one's life. It is supposed to be the motivating factor that drives one towards success. The main character, Macbeth has ambition even though it leads him to his downfall. In contrast, Lady Macbeth pursues her goals with greater determination, yet she is less capable of withstanding the outcome of her actions. She becomes guilty which leads to her death since she becomes mentally ill and commits suicide, leaving Macbeth without any

Therefore, ambition is the main theme of Macbeth. He was told by the witches at the beginning of the tale that he was destined to become the Thane of Cawdor, the Thane of Glamis, and the King. Macbeth would do anything he possibly could to assure that he acquired those titles for instance when he said “why do I yield that that suggestion, whose horrid image doth unfix my hair and make my seated heart knock at my ribs” he can’t stop the idea of killing King Duncan, in order to get what he wants, but he is hesitant and knows that there are unruly consequences and he most likely wouldn’t go through with it.

Ambition plays a very significant role in the ultimate corruption of Macbeth’s character. In the play, Shakespeare