I do not think that Macbeth has thought about being king before the witches gave him the idea that it could be a possibility. When the witches told him that not only will he become Thane of Cawdor but he will also be King of Scotland and replace Duncan, Macbeth appeared to be very surprised. One reason why I do not think Macbeth has considered being king before is because Macbeth has had second thoughts about killing King Duncan. In my opinion, if one passionately desired to become king they would do anything to receive the title, and Macbeth was not ready to kill King Duncan until his wife convinced him. However, now that the witches have provided him insight on his future Macbeth desires the throne and believes he will receive it based on
"Macbeth" is a tragic play that was written by William Shakespeare in the early 1600’s. It revolved around the character Macbeth and his urge to become king of Scotland. Macbeth had to do anything possible to become the king including murder, lying, and deception. However, Macbeth committed these evil deeds due to some influential people in his life. Between Macbeth’s wife persuading him to do anything to become king and the witches prophesying over him causes Macbeth to try and bury the past and control the future.
The definition of a good king may vary depending, on one's morals, and values. If a leader has some sort of mental health issue he/she might think in a very corrupt manner, even then usually there are some people that receive benefits from the position a king holds; in that context the people receiving benefits may not think the king is as corrupt as he/she is. In shakespeare's play “Macbeth”, and as well as the epic poem “Beowulf” there are examples of how a “good” or “bad” king should behave. One’s opinion of a king differs, however there is strong evidence that sets near perfect guidelines of how a king should behave. Kings/ leaders should: behave and make decisions in a way that benefits the majority of the people, not just themselves, but most of all they must have good ethics, loyalty, courage, and integrity.
At the beginning of the play Macbeth is unwilling to kill King Duncan while Lady Macbeth is convinced that she must compel him to do so. Macbeth is told by three witches that he will become thane of Cawdor, thane of Glamis and King of Scotland. Macbeth believes the prophecies since he is already thane of Glamis and is Ross later informs him that Macbeth is now thane of Cawdor. Macbeth wants to be king, but hopes
Fate and prediction have played a big part of Macbeth and has persuaded him to become evil and the “Brave” Macbeth had died out as soon as he meets the witches’ and they tell him that his fate is to become the thane of Cawdor and soon become king; “All hail, Macbeth hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor!” “All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!”. Macbeth does not know yet that the Thane of Cawdor had betrayed the king and went against him also he is being stripped of his Thaneship and is being executed, so he was surprised when the witches’ said that. Macbeth at first did not believe in his fate but when he gets the rob to be Thane of Cawdor he starts to believe his fate and then his mind skips to becoming king and killing Duncan this shows
Initially, Macbeth’s emotional and physical journey begins with the prophecy that the three witches had told Macbeth about. Once the witches tell Macbeth that he will become the future king, his ambition become prominent as it is shown in the same scene as the witches when Macbeth says “Why do I find myself thinking about murdering king Duncan?” (21). So, right after the witches tell Macbeth that he will become king he already has this ambitious feeling of needing that power and doing whatever it takes to get it. However, at this point in the book Macbeth still is fighting the urge of wanting that power. To continue, in the next scene Macbeth finds himself becoming more consumed by the thought of becoming king that while with
Who first initiates the idea of Macbeth becoming king to the reader were the three witches who randomly appear to Macbeth and Banquo. They introduce the prophecy to Macbeth by chanting, "all hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!" (Act 1, Scene 3). The witches purposely call Macbeth this, clearly leading him to think of what this could mean and how it could be implemented Without them, it's very much likely that Macbeth would not even have thought to take power from the king as he did. Obviously, Macbeth begins, after the witches' prophecy, to actually consider this and his wife, Lady Macbeth, desperately tries to persuade him into killing Duncan. Endlessly, Lady Macbeth tries to use different persuasion methods to convince Macbeth; however, the seemingly successful method is threatening an already-ambitious man's masculinity. Lady Macbeth challenges Macbeth by arguing, "What beast was't, then, that made you break this enterprise to me? When you durst do it, then you
When Macbeth was told that he was going to be king one day, there were two things that happened. One was that this was going to happen no matter what, whether a few days later, or a few years later. The other is that Macbeth had no intentions of taking over Duncan’s throne by killing him at first. In fact, he just wanted fate to determine his future. We can see this when he states that, “if chance
The witches and their prophecies are the first major influence on Macbeth's actions. Macbeth seems happy and content with himself until the witches tell him he will be king. He begins immediately to consider murdering Duncan. "If good, why do I yield to that suggestion / Whose horrid image doth unfix my hair / And make my seated heart knock at my ribs, / Against
With detailed reference to the characters of Macbeth, Duncan, Malcolm and Edward in the play ‘Macbeth’, analyse William Shakespeare’s ideas and attributes towards kingship and assess what you think the audiences reaction to the play would be at the time.
Macbeth first shows signs of change when he becomes Thane of Cawdor. While Macbeth first meets the witches they tell him he will be king and he wishes to know more. “Why/upon this blasted heath you stop our way/ with such a prophetic greeting? Speak I charge you.” (1.3.77-78) When Macbeth hears he will be king he becomes instantly curious and sparks a interest on the prospect of becoming king. This is when he first begins to show the signs of his greed. This is shown even further when Macbeth is told he was Thane of Cawdor and acts hopeful, “If chance will have me king,/ why chance may crown me” (1.3.143-144) Knowing the witches said he would soon become Thane of Cawdor now Macbeth has a purpose and a drive knowing what’s next in store for him. This is shown within his letter to Macbeth “that though might’ve not lose the dues of rejoicing, by being integral of what greatness is sponsored thee/” (1.5.8-9) Here he states to lady macbeth he doesn’t want to waste his chance and lose out on the greatness of becoming king. All of these quotes show Macbeth slip to the side of darkness by wanting to become king.
The first thing that Macbeth's desire leads him to do is to kill King Duncan. In the beginning of the play, Macbeth goes to the three witches and they tell him a few things. “First Witch- All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, thane of Glamis! / Second Witch- All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, thane of Cawdor! / Third Witch- All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!”(Shakespeare 1.3.49-51) The three witches’ prophecy to Macbeth is that he will move up from his current position and that he will become king soon. With this information in mind, he realizes that he really wants to become a king as soon as possible. He will do anything to make that prophecy come true. He will do anything to make that prophecy come true. He even decides to kill his king, however, it was not an easy choice to make at first. “We will proceed no further in this business. / He hath honored me of late, and I
Once Macbeth possessed the power of being Thane of Cawdor he began to exhibit more greed. He has just been given such a huge responsibility and once he was given new power, he craved more; especially when he stumbled upon the witches. He liked the power that he had and wanted to gain more, no matter what he has to do to get it. Macbeth had an encounter with the three witches and they had told him that he will become the next king. Although the witches did say this it did not mean that it was certain, it was just a possibility. But when Macbeth realized the opportunity for power he knew he wanted to become the king. This passage was in part of the letter that Macbeth wrote to Lady Macbeth: “Whiles I stood rapt in the wonder of it came missives from the King, who all-hailed me ‘Thane of Cawdor,’ by which title, before, these Weird Sisters saluted me and referred me to the coming on of time with ‘Hail, king that shalt be’” (1.5.6-10). . It seems as if the power and greed now had full control over him, he is doing things that he wouldn’t do when he did not have all this power. This is the first time that we see this side of Macbeth, the side of him that is greedy for power and is willing to kill the king to do so. In the beginning of the play the thought of being Thane of Cawdor never even crossed his mind, and by no means being
Macbeth thought it was a joke; however, when the first prophecy came true, his heart is shaken by desires. At this moment the imagination of himself wearing the crown, and besides is the blood that he must stain in his hand or else he could no longer clutch it. This imagination has ignited the scintilla of guilt thoughts deep in his heart. No wonder before he would hesitates, "If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me/ Without my stir" (i, iii, 147-148), but currently, his eyes only stares at the "resplendent prize" and forgets all the goodness from King Duncan (Rolfe). While Macbeth stick his first foot on the swamp of curses, Lady Macbeth puts his other foot in. Hence, Macbeth could never return to a dedicator, who fights for his beloved king, but now he fights for his own desire. Lady Macbeth lured, "Come, you spirits/ That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here,/ And fill me from the crown to the toe top-full/ Of direst cruelty" (i, v, 37-40). She have overcame Macbeth's uncertainty by her clear willing to murder King Duncan and seize the throne, and her speech showed the real
Macbeth's feels that his destiny is to become King and rule with all the power that goes with kingship. The three witches on his way back to the kingdom, prophesied that he would rise to kingship. They said "All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, thane of Glamis" (I, 3, 48), and then as the thane of Cawdor "All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, thane of Cawdor" (I, 3, 49). At this point in the play Macbeth had just become thane of Glamis, and the thane of Cawdor is still alive. Then, the witches greeted Macbeth as the King of Scotland saying "All hail, Macbeth! That shalt be King hereafter" (I, 3, 50). This is the point in the tragedy where Macbeth starts to think as a villain. If the witches had never greeted him as King on Scotland, then he would probably never have contemplated killing Duncan in the first place. At first, he believes that he will need to kill King Duncan. Though at the end of Act 1, Scene 3, he thinks that perhaps he doesn't need to do anything to become the king saying "If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me without my stir.", showing he is a man of honor and morals. Then, Lady Macbeth hears of the prophecy in his letters and decides immediately for him that King Duncan must die, showing Macbeth's doubt. An
It is human nature to be intrigued by all things mystical and dangerous. We fear the unknown but seek it nonetheless out of greed. Most of Shakespeare’s works hold an element of the supernatural and the play Macbeth is no exception. In this play we see a contemporary morality that warns of the dangers of trafficking with instruments of darkness; the witches in the play prophesize of Macbeths future as king, and Macbeth blinded by his hunger for power fails to recognize that the witches prophecies are luring him to evil . In act 1 scène 3 we see the effect that the excitement of the prophecies has had on his imagination as he begins to contemplate murdering the king. As Macbeth gets closer to