Macbeth marks the conclusion of the period in Shakespeare's career which produced the four "great" tragedies: Hamlet, Othello, King Lear and Macbeth. Like many of Shakespeare's plays, Macbeth is significantly open ended: it raises more possibilities than it determines issues. The play Macbeth is singled out from Shakespeare's other plays because it focuses its attention on the flawed, guilty, pitiful character of Macbeth.
Is the hero responsible of for his crimes or he is he a victim of fate? Was Macbeth to blame for his ambition and lust, or was he manipulated by supernatural forces? Today I will show you how ambition, supernatural forces and fate in Macbeth convey a message that for every action there will be consequences.
Macbeth is the story of Macbeth and his Lady's attempt to attain the throne of Scotland. Macbeth is a gifted leader and a fierce warrior, but he wants to be king, even if it requires doing something drastic. His wife, Lady Macbeth, has an even stronger lust for power that pushes her relentlessly toward both glory and tragedy.
Macbeth's murder of Duncan in Act II represents the point of no return, after which Macbeth feels he is forced to continue murdering his subjects to avoid the consequences of his crime. Our attention is held by Macbeth's anguish and wickedness, until his wife commits suicide, and he transcends into the dramatic, brutal tyranny which gets him murdered.
Shakespeare concludes his tragedy on a hopeful note, for as corruptive as the evil is in Macbeth, it is only temporary; order is restored through time.
Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn and cauldron bubble! Supernatural forces are present throughout the entirety of the play. The supernatural element is used to highlight dramatic, emotional and poetic concerns in the play Macbeth. The dark sense that comes with enchantments, potions, apparitions and ghosts intensify the audience's experience, and also increases pressure on Macbeth. The three witches are evil characters, whose main objective is to wreak havoc.
Macbeth's first experience with the witches is when he's coming home from the battle, as the hero. The witches stop him and predict that he is going to become Thane of Cawdor, even though the old Thane still held his position. The witches also predict that Macbeth will become king.
Macbeth is an easily manipulated character, and is excited at the witches' predictions. He is not sure wether to believe them or not, until the Thane of Cawdor is put to death and Macbeth is crowned the Thane. Being crowned Thane, Macbeth thinks about the other predictions that the witches had made, and realised that he could become King.
Throughout the course of the play, many elements of the supernatural other than the witches are presented, such as apparitions and ghosts, which all play a part to make the play seem scarier.
Macbeth begins as a courageous Scottish general who does not want to commit evil deeds, though he deeply desires power and this ambition causes a transformation for the worse. He kills his King, Duncan, against his better judgment and afterwards is guilty and paranoid. This progresses toward the end of the play as he descends into a frantic, boastful madness.
Lady Macbeth is quite different to Macbeth in this respect. She pursues her goals with a larger determination, but she is less capable of surviving the consequences of her acts. As the strongest female character in Macbeth, she encourages her husband mercilessly to kill Duncan and urges him to be strong afterwards. She eventually breaks under the pressure when Macbeth kills more and more people. In each case, ambition is what drives them to more terrible killing.
Was Macbeth at blame for his murder? How much control did Macbeth have over his own actions? You could say that he wouldn't have killed the king if the witches hadn't put the thought into his head. You could also say that Macbeth wouldn't have had the courage to kill the king if it wasn't for his wife pushing him.
Macbeth is seen as a "free agent", a man who uses his ability to choose and therefore suffers the consequences of that choice. He is his own destruction: the terror of the tragedy is in his decision to perform his crime even though he is knows its implications.
I think that Shakespeare was trying to convey a message though his play. Macbeth was bombarded with pressure from supernatural forces, from his wife, and even is own ambition. He takes advantage of free will by using it for the worst. Macbeth followed selfish ambitions, and killed many people. He became so arrogant and egotistical, that he thought he was immortal, but died because of his actions.
I think that Shakespeare is trying to convey the message that you should make your choices rationally and carefully because for every action there will be consequences.
