It is often unbeknownst to society on the long term effect that ambition has on clouding an individual’s perspective and the altercations it will have on their story. In the play, Macbeth, written by William Shakespere, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are power-driven individuals who scheme to reign over Scotland. Moral strength can be temporarily broken down due to someone's personal egos and desires. Despite this, guilt is as equally overriding as ambition is, and one’s conscience will negatively impact them. This guilt can cause hopelessness, and eventually, destiny will play out the way it is meant to. In Macbeth, Shakespeare illustrates the idea that an individual’s values are significantly affected by their unchangeable perspective, which can …show more content…
When an individual is influenced by those close to them, the peer pressure can make it easy to fall into doing evil actions for self-gratification. In the quote, “What beast was’t then/That made you break this enterprise to me?/When durst do it, then you are a man” (1.7. 52-54), it is prominent that Lady Macbeth is further pressuring Macbeth's originally evil idea. Shakespeare uses comparisons to empathize with the characters' powerful emotions. Macbeth, already tempted to murder King Duncan, is being shamed and pressured by his wife to do so. His desires already align with her request, and his ego is being …show more content…
Further bad decisions can be made by an individual immorally fueled by ambition, which can drive one to overexerting their emotions in unhealthy manners. This can be seen as such through the slow decline of Lady Macbeth’s sanity. In the quote, “These deeds must not be thought of/After these ways. So, it will make us mad.” (2.2.43-44), Shakespeare uses foreshadowing to indicate that although “What’s done/cannot be undone” (5.5.59-60), the consequences of their actions will be prominent in the psychological stress they induce. An individual’s emotions are not easily tempered with, despite that, their actions are laid within their hands. When one makes a decision that they know is dangerous, they’re putting themselves and others at risk for long-lasting alterations in their destiny. Morals may always linger in the back of an individual’s mind, no matter the way they decide to allow their temptation overtake them. When one allows desire to trump logic, their guilty conscience may straggle with them. For example, right after murdering Banquo, Macbeth goes to the banquet. He starts hallucinating, and says, “Thy bones are marrowless, thy blood is cold/Thou hast no speculation in those eyes (3.4. 111-112). Macbeth’s guilt begins tormenting him to the point that he loses his grasp on reality. He has gained
English 12 2/27/2023 William Shakespeare's Macbeth is a tragic play that explores the themes of ambition, guilt, and the consequences of one's actions. The main character, Macbeth, is a tragic hero whose ambition leads him to commit heinous crimes, which ultimately lead to his downfall. Throughout the play, Macbeth attempts to control the future and bury the past in various ways, which ultimately contribute to his tragic fate. One way in which Macbeth tries to control the future is through his attempts to control the future is through his interaction with the witches and manipulation of the prophecies given to him by the three witches.
Shakespeare presents the theme of ambition in Macbeth. Ambition is a strong desire to do or achieve something, ambition can also be presented in a positive and negative way. Shakespeare presents ambition in a negative way through some characters who are Macbeth, Lady Macbeth and King Duncan. The reason these characters present ambition in a negative way is because they end up dying. Ambition is also present in a positive way through some characters who are Macduff, Witches and Malcolm these are the characters who survive in the play showing that you can be ambitious but not too ambitious.
When in a relationship, one's quest for power, can result in an endless effort to satisfy this desire, producing a tragic outcome. In the tragedy of Macbeth, William Shakespeare explores how greed and ambition has an influence on one’s actions, leading to the occurrence of a tragedy. In the case of Macbeth, greed and ambition results in Macbeth becoming a highly manipulative, and dangerous individual. The dominant status Lady Macbeth owns, allows her to influence Macbeth into committing harmful acts. When Lady Macbeth’s dominant status begins to deteriorate, Macbeth begins to mature, gradually becoming the more dominant individual within their relationship.
“Our conscience is a measure of our honesty of our selfishness” (Richard Bach). As people go through their days, they make millions of decisions with the help of that little voice in their head that tells the difference between right or wrong: the conscience. The conscience is sometimes called the moral compass, not only because it points us toward what is right, but also because the holder of the compass must choose whether or not to follow the direction it is pointed. Macbeth’s decision to kill Duncan teaches us what happens when we ignore our consciences, which steer us towards what is right, because our conscience is a voice to help us resist temptation.
In the play, Macbeth, by William Shakespeare, Macbeth can be related to modern day problems. One of the problems present in Macbeth is selfish desires that humans have. While every human can be selfish, Macbeth takes his selfish desires to a whole other level. His selfishness was not created by only himself, but the people around him. Selfish desires can take over a person’s true self, cause them to be someone they are not, and commit acts they would not normally do.
Macbeth’s greed takes over him as he chases a fool’s dream. Macbeth's ambition leads him to secure his power; he overlooks his guilt and focuses on doing whatever it takes to hold onto his authority. Shakespeare demonstrates, in a variety of techniques, how just ambition alone can bring down the even the greatest of men. “There is something wrong with a individual’s character if opportunity controls their loyalty.” Sean Simmon’s the writer of this quote explains how blinded someone can be when given certain opportunities which can be directly related to the character Macbeth.
Macbeth is the Shakespearean play that features the triumphant uprise and the inevitable downfall of its main character. In this play, Macbeth’s downfall can be considered to be the loss of his moral integrity and this is achieved by ambition, despite this, Lady Macbeth and the witches work through his ambition, furthering to assist his inevitable ruin. Ambition alone is the most significant factor that led to Macbeth’s downfall. The witches are only able to influence his actions through Macbeth’s pre-existing and the three witches see that Macbeth has ambition and uses it to control his action. Ambition alone is displayed throughout the play to be the most significant cause for Macbeth’s downfall.
Greed causes even the best of men to brood immoral intentions. The Tragedy, Macbeth by William Shakespeare, describes the flaws of human nature and the traumatic effects unrestrained ambition may cause. The play commences, featuring Macbeth as an eminent, highly esteemed Thane and loyal warrior to the king; however, after being prophesied by the three witches, a torch of ambition is lit. Furthermore, upon hearing the witches prophecies, his reputation is downgraded as he steps into a realm of evil, and more tragically, finds that he has “in blood stepped in so far that should [he] wade no more, returning were as tedious as go o’er”. After murdering the rightful king of Scotland, Duncan, and therefore subsequently, one murder leads to another; to a point where he cannot return from his life of evil “I am in blood stepped in so far that should I wade no more, returning were as tedious as go o’er”.
Of all the failures human beings experience none are as crushing as those that are a result of following someone else’s desires. In Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, the protagonist self-destructs because of his external forces as well as his own poor choices. An external force that influenced Macbeth includes Lady Macbeth’s strong goals, which she forced on her husband. Additionally, the witches impacted Macbeth’s choices by offering him their tricky prophecies. The blind greed that took over Macbeth’s life also impacted his choices.
Macbeth illustrates the tragic consequences that arise when an individual becomes consumed by their ambitions and loses their sense of morality by becoming possessed and enveloped by their thoughts and
Greed and guilt are two characteristics that can wreak havoc on the human mind and soul, and give someone what they deserve over time. Therefore, nothing seems more satisfying than when the villain or protagonist gets what they deserve for their bad deeds. In The Tragedy of Macbeth, William Shakespeare shows these traits, along with their affects, through the tragic hero of the play, Macbeth, and his wife, Lady Macbeth, also leaving the reader with the question: “Could this happen today?” After gaining the corrupt title Macbeth craves, being king is not as significant as he implies. Macbeth admits to his reign being spoiled saying, “To be thus is nothing, but to be safely thus”(Act III, Scene I, lines 50-51).
People’s conscience’s guide their actions, behaviors, and decisions on a daily basis, but is a person’s conscience powerful enough to determine whether they will live or die? Shakespeare would argue that it is. According to his writing, he would even go as far as implying that a person’s conscience is the reason that one might choose to kill himself. Two of Shakespeare's most famous plays, Hamlet and Macbeth, are prime examples of how a character’s guilty conscience combined with a character’s perceived lack of hope can lead them down a path of ultimate destruction and damnation over time.
From Macbeth feeling “drowned in blood”, to Lady Macbeth not being able to wash her hands, shows how guilt will always come from making bad decisions. One wrong choice can ruin a person's life
Macbeths guilty conscience makes him unable to play the ‘true’ role of a villain of the play. Macbeth begins to see ‘false creations’ before murdering Duncan; the image of a floating dagger taunts Macbeth’s senses. Macbeth is devoured in his anxiety he starts to hallucinate the crime before going through with it. Macbeth is unable to dispose thoughts of his guilt and doubt, which prevents him from being stuck at the point where it is too late to turn back, yet the fear of his nature prevents him from turning completely into a ruthless coldblooded
In today’s society many people possess strong ambition when it comes to getting a job, following a passion and being immensely successful in life. Having an abundance of aspirations can have both successful and faulty outcomes depending on the situation and how individuals respond to the circumstance. For example, in the play **Macbeth written by Shakespeare, a prime example of an excessive amount of ambition is displayed through both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s actions. Essentially, Macbeth becomes power hungry and goes on a rampant killing spree that causes Lady Macbeth and Macbeth to be overcome with guilt. They both contain an excessive amount of desires due to their ultimate goal being for Macbeth to be crowned king.