In act four of Shakespeare's "Macbeth" Macbeth murders most of a noble man's family out of impulse and paranoia. He suspected said nobleman of plotting against him, and much like the murder of his friend Banquo, he killed him before he got the chance. But this murder is not like the ones before it, this one is much more sinister. The man Macbeth suspected, Maduff, was suspect because he refused to show up to any events that Macbeth attended, and when Macbeth went to ask the witches they warned him Macduff was to be cautioned. This time Macbeth decides right away that Macduff must go. Previously he had to be encouraged by his wife and think it over before he murdered someone, but this time within moments of learning Macduff was dangerous to …show more content…
The flighty purpose never is o'ertook Unless the deed go with it. From this moment The very firstlings of my heart shall be The firstlings of my hand. And even now, To crown my thoughts with acts, be it thought and done: The castle of Macduff I will surprise, Seize upon Fife, give to th' edge o' th' sword His wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls That trace him in his line. No boasting like a fool. This deed I’ll do before this purpose cool. But no more sights!—Where are these gentlemen? Come, bring me where they are." He is scolding himself for not acting without hesitation and resolves to act with impulse from now on, so he will go through with Macduff's assassination. This is an important decision he makes that completely transforms his conscience. He doesn’t feel guilty about killing people who trust him anymore. This is not at all like how he felt in the beginning of the play, in act one when he is considering Duncans murder he hesitates and says to himself "But here, upon this bank and shoal of time, We’d jump the life to come. But in these cases We still have judgment here, that we but teach Bloody instructions, which, being taught, return To plague th' inventor: this even-handed justice Commends …show more content…
When he orders the murder of Macduff he orders the murder of his wife and family as well, an act of malice, not for his own protection. After speaking with the witches, he says, "Then live, Macduff. What need I fear of thee? But yet I’ll make assurance double sure, And take a bond of fate. Thou shalt not live, That I may tell pale-hearted fear it lies, And sleep in spite of thunder." He is not afraid of Macduff, he is killing him to ease his mind. Notice how differently he talks about Banquo in act three, "So is he mine; and in such bloody distance That every minute of his being thrusts Against my near’st of life. And though I could With barefaced power sweep him from my sight And bid my will avouch it, yet I must not, For certain friends that are both his and mine, Whose loves I may not drop, but wail his fall Who I myself struck down. And thence it is, That I to your assistance do make love, Masking the business from the common eye For sundry weighty reasons." He regards Banquo with a deep fear and is almost casual in his distrust of Macduff. He is not worried about Macduff because he is now confident he can kill anyone who in his way. Instead of killing out of fear he is killing out of
He states, “The castle of Macduff I will surprise Seize upon Fife; give to the edge o' the sword His wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls” (4.1.150-152). At this point Macbeth is out of control and is killing anybody he suspects, showing that he is clearly paranoid and delusional. Once Macduff finds out his family is killed he decides to finally kill
“To know my deed, twere best not know myself.” (2.2.92) Another death caused by Macbeth was the murder of Macduff's family. Macduff was a nobleman who had suspicions about Macbeth's true intentions. He decided he would go to England to speak with Malcom, King Duncan's eldest son. Together they shared opinions about Macbeth's tyranny over Scotland.
Macduff, a thane, was called to go to a party at the Macbeth’s house but choose not to attend. Then, Macduff goes to England to speak with one of Duncan’s sons. Because of these actions, Macbeth believed that Macduff committed treason. While Macduff is the guilty party, Macbeth has Macduff’s children and wife slain because of his suspicions. All these killings, based on the actions and dialogue from the play, can be classified as different forms of treachery.
Later on, Macbeth is then again wanting to kill another person, Macduff. Macbeth knows that he can not get to him, so instead he plans to kill Macduff’s family. The wanting for more power has created him into being wicked and kill innocent lives. While in anger he orders, “give to th’ edge o’ th’ sword his wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls” (iiii.i.152-153).
Macbeth! Macbeth! beware Macduff; Beware the thane of Fife. Dismiss me. Enough.” Macbeth goes out of his way in an attempt to change fate and orders the murder of Macduff’s entire family.
The Tragedy of Macbeth is a well known story that revolves around the word “ambition” but this ambition isn’t always self driven by someone, but rather through the influence of someone else who maintains control of the situation. The story is about a man whose desire to be the king and have power leads to the murders of those who might stand in his way. Throughout the story we see many characters who play major parts in how one event follows another, and how some characters seem to completely have control of the events in the story. Although in Macbeth the Three Sisters and Macbeth exhibit some control over the events, Lady Macbeth has the most responsibility.
In Document D, Macbeth states, "Then live, Macduff: what need I fear of thee? But yet I'll make assurance double sure, ... thou shalt not live…” In this quote, Macbeth is expressing his confidence that he does not need to fear Macduff, a Scottish nobleman who he suspects may be a threat to his reign. However, even though he believes he has no reason to fear Macduff, he wants to eliminate any potential threats to his rule.
He thinks that if he dies like this, all is not lost and that, despite his reputation, he may still be admired for certain qualities. He also refuses to be affected by the death of this wife either. He says, “She would have died hereafter”. He pushes it to the back of his mind and focuses on the battle rather than Lady Macbeth’s demise. In Scene 8, before Macbeth is slain, the last thing he says is “Lay on Macduff, / And damn’d be him that first cries, ‘Hold, enough!”.
Frantic, he orders a group of murderers to kill Macduff’s family. Consequently, when the time comes for Macbeth to encounter Macduff on the battlefield, he exhibits a moment of hesitation before proceeding to the duel. Feeling remorse for having Macduff’s entire family violently killed, Macbeth admits that he has a guilty conscience that he does not want to kill Macduff as well. “Of all men else I have avoided thee: / But get thee back; my soul is too much charged / With blood of thine already,” (Shakespeare 5. VIII.
In this scene, Macduff comes to Macbeth’s castle, looking to awake the King. He begins to say how the night was a ruthless one. It was so bad that chimneys were blown down and that Macduff can’t remember a night as terrible as that. Macbeth continues to deceive Macduff by acting that he has no idea that King Duncan is murdered in his room. When they open the door to his room, Macduff is horrified by the murder of his King.
In the play The Tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare, Macduff proves to be the true hero. Macduff proves to be the true hero of the play for being loyal to his country and killing Macbeth. Macbeth and Macduff differ because Macbeth is conceded and a killer, while Macduff is not. Macduff, the Thane of Fife, proves to be a loyal man when it comes to his country and his people. For example, Macduff deserts his family in order to go to England to meet with Malcolm and the king of England, so all three of them can go back to Scotland to defeat Macbeth for once and all.
With every death, Macbeth has become more and more ruthless, he hasn’t even let it set in that he just ordered the murder of another of his friends. After this, Macbeth goes to see the witches demanding information, where he decides to murder Macduff until learning that he has fled to England. The second apparition tells Macbeth that no one borne of a woman can harm him, and Macbeths courage is spiked again, before he decides to murder Macduff's entire family. This is where Macbeth is officially at his worst, killing Macduff's entire family just because he
Lady Macbeth wasn’t involved in the death of Macduff’s family, yet she still feels the guilt for his losses: “The Thane of Fife has a Wife. Where is she now? What will there hands we’re be clean? No more o’ that. You mar all with this starting.
Even though Macbeth felt guilty after killing Duncan, he continued his journey through the wrong path. “Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood.” Macbeth felt no guilt at all in killing his close friend, Banquo. He sends an army to kill Macduff and his family. Towards the end of the play, Macbeth became a person completely different.
Eventually, he then acts upon his greed and abandons his morals through the vile words of Lady Macbeth. After the king 's death, Macbeth expresses his hatred towards killing the king "I have no spur/To prick the sides of my intent, but only/Vaulting ambition, which overlaps itself/And falls on the ' other. " Specifically, under his new state of power, he was taking extra precautions to prevent anyone from taking his dignity and bloodline. Simultaneously becoming apprehensive of his throne for this purpose he kills Banquo otherwise his descendants will inherit the throne, and the killing of Macduff 's family since Macbeth was suspicious of his downfall might be coming. "