Why does Macbeth become a traitor determined to murder Duncan by the end of act one?

William Shakespeare often started his plays with a powerful essence. Act 1 of Macbeth, is no exception to the traditional Shakespeare introductions. This act displays the deceptive environment in which Macbeth lives, depicts the characters’ personalities and motives, and finally portrays the constant struggle between good and evil. The first act of Macbeth is important as it draws interest to the play by revealing the forces of good and evil. By opening the play in this manner, Shakespeare entices his audience to maintain interest in the whole play as Macbeth’s fate is not clear. Macbeth’s world is a place where the good is bad and the bad is good. From the very first scene, the deception within Macbeth’s world is clearly defined. When the witches say “fair is foul and foul is fair” in scene one, the play’s theme is quickly introduced to the audience. The quick introduction of the deceptive world gives the audience excitement as they are left in suspense.

        During scene two the audience starts to become more familiar with Macbeth as an army captain who inputs courageous efforts in the war in support of King Duncan. The general, talking about Macbeth, says, “If I say sooth, I must report they were/ as cannons overcharged with double cracks, so they/ doubly redoubled strokes upon the foe/”.  Through this, Macbeth is portrayed as a valiant soldier. In scene one, the witches present a world in which the forces between good and evil are not easily identified. Macbeth is described as a valiant and noble person however the audience cannot simply accept this to be true because fair is foul and foul is fair. Although Macbeth is portrayed in this way, his character changes throughout the play, and I think Macbeth turns from human, to killer. He starts off very human (valiant soldier) but the seed of change is planted when he has his encounter with the witches, and he learns of his prophecy, he becomes ambitious and this leads to his demise.

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        Lady Macbeth is portrayed as a very well mannered and well-groomed housewife when in reality, she is an evil witch. When King Duncan comes to the Macbeth residence, she seems as though she is happy and delighted to see the king saying, “All our service/ in every point twice done and then done double/”. Lady Macbeth demonstrates hypocritical traits through her behaviour, actions and speech. The audience is introduced to the interesting idea that a housewife could force her will upon a supposedly strong-minded husband. In Elizabethan times, women were portrayed to be weaker than men as the men were ...

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