What drove Macbeth to ruin? Was it greed? Was it his desire for power over the entire kingdom? Or did he in fact suffer from the mental illness identified today as Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). The symptoms shown by Macbeth include his need for perfection, his need to be in control, and the fact that he caused great harm and death to others. In fact he couldn't control everybody in his world. He could not stop his mind from foretelling or predicting the events which lead to the downfall of this tragic hero Macbeth. Macbeth wanted to be king but was told that he would never achieve that goal. His desire to be in control at all times pushed him to commit terrible acts against anyone who stood in his way. And yet, he could not control …show more content…
His urge for perfection leads him to hire murderers to kill Banquo, instead of doing it himself. He feared being caught in the act or not doing it right. Macbeth Macbeth later discovers that the witches aren't playing around considering the first prophecies have come true, now Macbeth feel he has to kill Banquo and Fleance to stop the second part of the prophecies. Just like anything else this takes a wrong turn. “An urge for perfection can manifest as an obsession with maintaining order. It can also take other forms such as dread of losing important items or forgetting important details”(Promises treatment center.com). Macbeth did not forget about Fleance but he thought he was going to be killed along with Banquo, this is a relatable way to show that his OCD is obviously starting to take over a big majority of his thinking. With Macbeth knowing that the prophecies aren't perfect he seeks the urge for perfection he decides to kill banquo but it has to be perfect in the act Macbeth says, “I will advise you where to plant yourself, Acquaint you with the perfect spy o’ the time,The moment on ‘t for ‘t must be done to-night And something from the palace; always thought That I require a clearness: and with him to leave no rubs nor botches in the work Fleance his son, that keeps him company, Whose absence is no less material to me Than is his father’s must embrace the fate of that dark …show more content…
During the play Macbeth sought to control everything. Macbeth needed everything to be perfect in order for him to rise to the top as time went on he continued to March towards what he wanted with more stuff standing in Macbeth's way his OCD aroused coming out in all different ways but the most noticeable symptoms might possibly be the age for perfection and the obsession to be at the top and nothing was standing in Macbeth's way now these words and thoughts were going through his mind he had his mind set on what he wanted and that was to be king and nothing was standing in his way Lady Macbeth and the witches also pushed him a majority of the way. Lady Macbeth in the witches fed him lies and put him to do what he did causing a mental illness and if not causing it String the mental illness up making it more easy to commit the foul behavior Macbeth knew he didn't want to do. He told Lady Macbeth that he was backing away from killing Duncan and Lady Macbeth had a idea at hand and was controlling Macbeth at this time. Lady Macbeth and the witches caused Macbeth's mental illness to come out. The witches told Macbeth the three prophecies making him think he knew everything that was going on he thought he had it all planned out. Macbeth's OCD is shown when he first committed to killing Duncan. What is known as the want and obsession. The witches continued to tell him things and making him think. The witches told him no
He develops a strange sense of superiority, which is common among schizophrenic patients. These disturbances cause most patients to fabricate ideas that they are someone famous, of authority, or superior to loved ones. His impulses of sovereignty allow him to murder anyone who impedes him from making his kingship happen. He convinces himself that “present fears are less than horrible imaginings” (Act 1, Scene 3). In other words, Macbeth is trying to make himself believe that murdering in order to achieve his goal cannot be as bad as it seems.
William Shakespeare’s Macbeth is a tragedy in which the main characters are obsessed by the desire for power. Macbeth’s aspiration for power blinds him to the ethical implications of his dreadful acts. The more that Shakespeare’s Macbeth represses his murderous feelings, the more he is haunted by them. By analyzing his hallucinations it is possible to trace his deteriorating mental state and the trajectory of his ultimate fall. Throughout the play Macbeth is never satisfied with himself. He feels the need to keep committing crime in order to keep what he wants most: his kingship. The harder Macbeth tries to change his fate the more he tends to run into his fate. His ambition and struggle for power was Macbeth’s tragic flaw in the play.
Throughout the play, Macbeth’s actions are controlled by the emotions of greed, fear, and jealousy. Macbeth was very jealous and his jealousy cost him his wife and caused her to eventually die. For example, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth's actions caused Lady Macbeth to hallucinate and feel guilty. This proves Macbeth's jealousy, murders and actions caused his wife to hallucinate and go crazy. Another
Lady Macbeth struggled with mental illness, believing that the only way to get the crown was to kill the king. This showed signs of unbridled hostility. She negatively influenced her husband Macbeth into believing he wanted more power, and their collective mental health worsened after they murdered king Duncan. The extreme lifestyle changes of becoming king and queen so fast became a tipping point to what cruel events were yet to come for the two
In the beginning of the play, Macbeth was in a great state of mind, he won the war for the people of Scotland, and was seen as a hero. On the way home from war, Macbeth meets three witches who prophesied that he will become The King of Scotland, which led to the ultimate downfall of his mental health. Throughout the rest of the play, you start to see him struggle with insomnia, hyperarousal, hallucinations, paranormal schizophrenia, and anxiety which we see throughout the play, that gradually gets worse. Just before Macbeth goes into Duncan‘s room, he envisions a bloody dagger which is one of the many psychotic episodes that he’s bound to have. Macbeth's actions, thoughts, and need to keep his masculinity in order, lead to the fall of
In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the main character starts off to be loyal and caring towards his wife and friends. Later in the story, Macbeth betrays all of his friends and becomes a murderous tyrant. The events that occurred in this play cause him to begin to have symptoms of mental illnesses. Macbeth could have been born with an illness or later developed one because of what he does throughout the play. Mental disorder is deterioration of one’s mind. This can be caused by stress, drug abuse, or disease. Macbeth ends up developing multiple different, but similar, mental illnesses. Some of the disorders he begins to display are Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Schizophrenia, Psychosis, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Borderline Personality Disorder and depression. Macbeth develops symptoms for each of these disorders/illnesses. Multiple events that go on in Macbeth’s life cause him to see things that are not there, and eventually make him go crazy. Towards the end of the story, he becomes very lonely because he had betrayed everyone.
Macbeth held his fate in his hands since the beginning, but the witches made an appearance and foretold his future which drove Macbeth insane by contemplating whether or not to kill King Duncan. In addition, the revolving thoughts of becoming king corrupted his mind and was quenching for power. Though there were others who helped convince Macbeth to murder Duncan, it was in his control to acknowledge his path in which would grant him the throne or loyalty to the king. Consequently, following others had an aftereffect which resulted in the death of his wife and his own.
At the beginning Macbeth didn't want to hurt anyone, but in the middle of the play his wife Lady Macbeth had wanted to be queen so she had convinced Macbeth to kill King Duncan. He was going to go through with the plan but she made it to where he was convinced even more. The downfall was that he had been under her control so much that Macbeth had not only killed King Duncan he had also kill seven other people that had been in his way of the King. And the full change of Macbeth was that he had once been a nice man and then he had been changed into a killer just because his wife wanted to be queen. I believe that If Lady Macbeth didn't get full control over Macbeth he would still be a nice man who doesn't want to hurt anyone and if he did he
MacBeth and Lady MacBeth plotted to kill King Duncan so they could take the throne of Scotland. At the time, they just wanted more status and wealth. However, this came with a price. The once happy couple became enveloped in guilt. MacBeth became mad, and he displayed a constant paranoia. MacBeth continued to murder in an attempt to cover his tracks and secure his position as King. He did not let his guilt overrule his greed for power. MacBeth could not rest, and was even said to have “murdered sleep.” Lady MacBeth initially tried to control her husband’s strange behavior, but eventually she became mad as well. Lady MacBeth could not rest either. She would sleepwalk and mumble strange things. Lady MacBeth had influenced MacBeth’s
Macbeth started off as a loyal, strategic brave knight. "What he hath lost, noble Macbeth hath won."(Macbeth 1:1: 67) He was knnown to do anything to protect his king and country in battle. As macbeth gained power his character began to change. Macbeth grew greedy and became power hungry. The only thing that could satisify his need for power was the crown causing him to put
In the play Macbeth, power is shown from the beginning of the play until the end. For one of the characters, that has this demonstration to not let go of that is struggles between keeping and letting go of power is Macbeth himself. Macbeth seeks power over others in ways of showing desperation and anxiety for that power to not be taken away because the way he consumes it is by not only being the king of Scotland, but by killing those who are next in line for the throne, such as the witches prophecy, which that led him to create a massacre bloodbath of killing others for fearing he might lose the throne. However, he has major willing and not be willing in accepting to be the next king of Scotland. Here is how why this character struggles to maintain in keeping this power.
In the book/play Macbeth, the main character Macbeth ruined his life by his determination and greed for power. Back in 1606 a man named William Shakespeare made a play that was a tragedy that starred a character named Macbeth, the main character. In the play Macbeth goes from a man with a decent amount of power, soon to become the Thane of Cawdor, to a man with the most power in the world, the king. Macbeth was dragged down by his desire for power and was the cause of his downfall and corruption. Macbeth was also let down by his own greed, his own ambitions, and his wife telling him what to do.
His emotions controlled him, causing him to sway back and forth like the wind tossing the ocean. Wicked thoughts consume him and his very one wife temps him into murdering the king. His key to success equalled violence and murder. Interestingly enough, “this is hugely inaccurate as Macbeth was actually very well-liked by his people,” (www.teenink.com). In contrast, the historical Macbeth acted nothing like the fictional character.
His desire to stay in power overcomes him as he realizes that Banquo’s son may take his place. Shakespeare reveals Macbeth’s feelings about his best friend after becoming king in another soliloquy: “To be thus is nothing; but to be safely thus. Our fears in Banquo stick deep, and in his royalty of nature reigns that which would be fear’d…” (3.1.48-51). Macbeth’s fears of Banquo are expressed, and it all started because he heard that prophecy about Banquo. Macbeth does not see much point in becoming king if he in not “safely thus”. In order to preserve his power, he feels the need to sacrifice other people’s lives. The murderous path he has chosen will only lead him to death, as people will find out and kill him for it, contributing to the theme that death is inevitable. In conclusion, Macbeth’s desire to stay in power is what made him choose to take another life; however, if it was not for the witches, he would not have felt a need to carry out any of the deeds he has done.
The choices that Macbeth makes during his pursuit for power ultimately result in his descent into madness. This all begins when he meets the witches at the beginning of the play. “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis! All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor! All hail, Macbeth! That shalt be king hereafter!” (1.3.51-53). By choosing to believe what the witches preach, Macbeth takes destiny into his own hands. Every decision he makes from this point on is so that he can take over the kingship and retain this position. The witches drive Macbeth into creating his own destiny by planting the idea that he is going to be the king into his head. Once he gets it in his head that he is going to be the king, he will stop at nothing to make it happen. After Macbeth has killed King Duncan and become the king, he still has the threat of Banquo’s line of kings looming around him. Even though Banquo is one of Macbeth’s friends he decides Banquo needs to be killed. Macbeth is so controlling of his own destiny that he doesn’t want to leave anything up to chance. He won’t leave his fate in the hands of anyone else. He decides that he is going to kill people in order to solidify his kingship. “So is he mine (enemy), and in such bloody distance that every minute of his being thrusts against my near’st of life.” (3.1.132-234).