The first time we meet Macbeth is when he is walking with his friend, Banquo, to Forres. On the way they meet the witches who appeared out of thin air. They report that he, Macbeth, will be Thane of Cawdor and King very soon. Macbeth is driven by his ambition and demands them tell him more about this possibility.
"Stay you imperfect speakers, tell me more."
"Say from whence you own this strange intelligence...or why... do you stop our way with so prophetic greetings?- Speak I charge you. (witches vanish)
Macbeth is impatient, and when the Rosse and Angus come to deliver the message of King Duncan decision to honour him with the title of Cawdor, he starts thinking about the assassination of the king.
His inpatients is a reason why he makes mistakes later. Another reason is his guilt. He feels guilty, so he becomes scared and thoughtless. He is scared also, to lose his reputation. People think great of him and he enjoys this feeling of power, and is set to increase this to a high status. There reason why he wants to become kind as soon as possible.
Lady Macbeth
In Act 1 scene 5, Lady Macbeth demands the devil and black spirits to take over her body.
She says:
"Come you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts,"
This would suggest that Lady Macbeth is also influenced by something higher, the supernatural. So both cannot be accused i.e.. Are nor responsible for their actions, however could as she called upon them.
"come unsex me here,... and fill me with direst cruelty! ... Stop up th'access and passage to remorse;"
She wants to be a man or maybe no gender at all, because as a woman you are weak and don't have any killing instincts. She wants to play the dominate character. Together with Macbeth(who is underlying he control) she will become queen.
"That my keen knife see nit the wound it makes, nor heaven peep through the blanket of the dark, to cry "Hold,hold."
She does not want to fell guilt
This is probably the biggest problem Macbeth has. He cannot live with the fact that he has committed treason against God, something that was seen as the worst thing to do, as religion was the most important thing in some ones live, in this period of time.
Her personal opinion of her husbands character is that he is too kind and not ambitious enough to commit the Murder of Scotland's leader, he does not take the shortest way and is not infected by this murderous illness/instinct. She says that he can only be king if he has this illness.
" - Yet I fear thy nature: It is too full o'th' milk of human kindness, to catch the nearest way. Thou wouldst be great; art not without ambition, but without the illness should attend it."
"Hie thee hither, that I may pour my spirits in thine ear, and chastise with the valor of my tongue all that impedes thee from the golden round."
She wants to pour all herself into him so she can control him and manipulate him to commit the deed. She wants to use him, as she desperately wants to become queen. She will punish Macbeth with the valor of her tongue. This shows/suggests that Lady Macbeth is a strong character. She is a typical Shakespeare woman, as they are always exaggerated either in being strong or weak. While Macbeth looks weak next to her.
He is actually a traction, is, however, put under pressure by his wife to rush into the act.
She is changing his character, telling him to present himself differently.
"Your face, my Thane, is like a book...:Look like th'inoccent flower but be the serpent under't"
She is commanding him to be evil. She could be whispering this into his ear, so pouring darkness and evilness into him. Macbeth replies that he wants to think, or not discuss the murder right now. He is set to do it his way, like does in the war.
"We will speak further"
When we meet Macbeth the next time he has decided to commit the assassination of King Duncan. We do not know if he did this voluntarily or through super natural influence. Macbeth has a soliloquy. (a speech made only by one person, used to express thoughts or feelings, it helps to develop the plot and lets the audience know about the characters thoughts.) He is not completely certain in his actions/he has a bad conscience. This could result from the fact that he did not conjure up bad spirits, and is now showing signs of guilt and unsureness and doubt. It is a moral problem. He does not want to kill the king, as it would be like committing a crime against God, because they believed in the divine right of kings, as the king was said to be chosen by God. He wants to stay loyal to his God, not really a sign of evilness.
This tells us that Macbeth is not evil (at this moment) he is just a man driven and encouraged by his own unsatisfied ambition, which can only be satisfied by becoming king. He is also convicted that he have a down fall from power
"I have no spur to prick the side of my intent, but only vaulting ambition, which o'erleaps itself and falls on th'other"
"...that his virtues will plead like angels...against the deep damnation of his taking-
of; and pity like a naked new born babe,"
"Shall blow the horrid deed in every eye, that tears shall drown the wind."
What Macbeth is saying is very pure and good, showing us that he does have a good/innocent/holy heart. He thinks that everyone will see the horrible deed that he is about to commit and will cry so much to even drown the wind.
Macbeth changes his mind often, just after his soliloquy, he tells his wife:
"we will proceed no further in this business: he hath honour'd me of late; and I have bought golden opinions"
He does not want to lose his good reputation.
We can see how Macbeth's character is changing and re-changing. Being a loyal soldier, who believes no one but himself, with no fear and ambition, to someone who believes some ugly witches and wants to commit treason against his country to which he owed his loyalty, and back again to where he started off, until he is jet again changed by the heavy mental influence of Lady Macbeth.
