By careful study of the play decide, in committing Duncan's murder how far Macbeth is driven by his own ambition; how far he is dominated by his wife's; and how far he is influenced by the witches.
Macbeth was scripted in 1606 by William Shakespeare. The play was written to engage an Elizabethan audience, and, specifically, King James 1. During this essay, I will explore some of the key factors which may have influenced Macbeth to kill Duncan and gain kingship. These include the equivocal prophesies of the witches, how he may have driven himself to commit the deed, and the extent to which Macbeth was pressured into the murder by his wife, Lady Macbeth.
Macbeth was driven by his own ambition into killing king Duncan. He was prepared to do such deeds so he could gain kingship and become a greater man. We can tell this, not only because of the ambition associated with men of power and position like Macbeth, but also by what he said in Act 1, Scene 7: " I dare do all that may become a man; who dares do more, is none."
The fact that Macbeth actually committed the murder suggests that he must accept primary responsibility. Nobody else took the dagger, placed it in Macbeth's hand and stabbed at King Duncan. He did it himself. He was also responsible for planning the murder with his wife, Lady Macbeth. In act 1, scene 5, after Macbeth sends the letter. Lady Macbeth says: "bear welcome in your eye, your hand, your tongue: look like the innocent flower but be the serpent under 't."
Lady Macbeth is a very manipulative woman who would do anything to increase her husband's power and influence. Here, Lady Macbeth tells Macbeth to act friendly and welcoming on the outside, while on the inside the true person, who will be the murderer, lies. This shows they plan the murder together and indicates how Macbeth will act when Duncan arrives.
Macbeth was Thane of Glamis, and then got told by the witches that he would be Thane of Cawdor, followed by King of Scotland: "All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis. All hail, Macbeth! Hail ...
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Lady Macbeth is a very manipulative woman who would do anything to increase her husband's power and influence. Here, Lady Macbeth tells Macbeth to act friendly and welcoming on the outside, while on the inside the true person, who will be the murderer, lies. This shows they plan the murder together and indicates how Macbeth will act when Duncan arrives.
Macbeth was Thane of Glamis, and then got told by the witches that he would be Thane of Cawdor, followed by King of Scotland: "All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis. All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor. All hail, Macbeth! that shalt be king hereafter."
He wanted to kill Duncan so that he could be granted the ultimate position in leadership. After the witches' prophesies he thought it was his destiny to get rid of Duncan and to take up the position of King. The prophecies appealed to his ambition and lit the fuse that led to the murder of Duncan.
Lady Macbeth also plays a major part in influencing Macbeth to commit the murder. She uses her femininity and sexuality to pressurise him. Once she had found out that Macbeth could be King she belittled him by questioning his manhood: "When you durst do it, then you were a man; And, to be more than what you were, you would be so much more the man".
When Lady Macbeth says this, she means that when you were thinking about killing Duncan, you were a man, but to be more than the Thane of Glamis and Cawdor, you must commit the murder, and this will make you the greater man.
As well as persuading Macbeth to kill Duncan, Lady Macbeth also helps with planning the murder. She comes up with the idea of blaming the servants, so Macbeth may feel it is safe to commit the deed; he will become King and the servants will get the blame. This comes up in Act 1, Scene 7: "Soundly invite him, his two chamberlains will I with wine and wassail...his spongy officers, who shall bear the guilt of our great quell?"
This quotation shows that it is Lady Macbeth's idea to get the two servants drunk so they can be killed easily by Macbeth, who will then use the servants daggers to murder Duncan, making it look like the servants have killed Duncan, before taking their own lives.
When Macbeth tells Lady Macbeth that he isn't sure about killing the King, she won't take no for an answer. She says that she would: ".... have plucked my nipple from its boneless gums and dash'd the brains out, had I so sworn as you have done to this." Here, using all her sexual power, she states that she would, even while breast feeding her own baby, have smashed its brains out, if she had committed to something as Macbeth had done to the murder of Duncan.
As well as Macbeth, and Lady Macbeth, I feel that the "weird sisters" are also responsible for Duncan's death. They are some what manipulating and are influencing Macbeth to do the deed. When Macbeth first came upon the witches, they told him that he would become Thane of Cawdor, and soon become King. They put the idea of Kingship into his head, which could have prompted him to murder Duncan: "All hail, Macbeth! hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor! All hail, Macbeth! that shalt be King hereafter."
They tell him he will be King, fuelling Macbeth's ambition for higher status and power. Macbeth responds to the prophecies very differently to Banquo. He chooses to believe the witches, because he wants to believe them. Banquo is less impressed with what is said and reacts accordingly.
Another way in which the witches may have encouraged Macbeth to kill Duncan is that they could have perhaps put a spell on Macbeth, making him do the terrible things. In Act 4, Scene 1, the witches are making a curse. Could it be on Macbeth? "Fillet of a fenny snake, in the cauldron boil and bake; eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat and tongue of dog...for a charm of powerful trouble, like a hell-broth boil and bubble."
The witches also use equivocation to trick Macbeth. An example of this is: "Fair is foul and foul is fair." The witches often say things which make Macbeth think they mean something else. This could also lead Macbeth into committing the murder on Duncan.
After looking in depth at each of the various influences on Macbeth, and their role in the killing of king Duncan, I have come to the conclusion that although Lady Macbeth helped and persuaded Macbeth to commit the murder, and the witches put the idea of kingship into his head, I think Macbeth is most responsible for the murder of Duncan. He planned the murder, he wanted kingship and he committed the murder.
Macbeth was a great man whose character was fatally flawed by over-powering ambition. He convinced himself of the meaning of the prophecies rather than the witches convincing him: he heard what he wanted to hear. Lady Macbeth used her sexuality and womanhood to serve her own ambitions but she knew her man and what drove him. She knew the fierce and ultimately uncontrollable ambition that lay within and she was pushing at an open door. In the end Macbeth must take responsibility for his own actions and accept the consequences. He murdered a King and therefore he must die. The Elizabethan audience, and especially King James, would expect no less.