Macbeth: Hero or Villain?
Nicola Horgan
Macbeth: Hero or Villain?
The first time in the play we hear about Macbeth is in the very first scene. The witches are discussing when they shall next meet again, and one of the witches says 'There to meet with Macbeth'. We are yet to read about Macbeth to discover his character but because of this scene we know somehow he is or will be associated with some kind of evil. Although when we read this nowadays we do not get frightened by this fact but in the sixteenth century when this play was written the audience would have been as they believed in witchcraft.
The second time we hear about Macbeth is in scene two. In this scene he is described by a Captain, he describes him 'brave Macbeth - well he deserves that name'. The captain says this as Macbeth has defended the rebellion of Highlanders and Islanders.
We still haven't heard Macbeth himself but we have two conflicting opinions of him. The first time we hear from Macbeth is in scene three. As the witches said, he met them on the heath. He is with Banquo, his best friend. He is greeted by the witches and they greeted him 'All hail Macbeth, hail to thee, Thane of Glamis' they also say Thane of Cawdor and then the third witch says 'All hail Macbeth, that shalt be King hereafter'. They then tell Banquo his future and how his son will be King. I think that this is the very first stage of the change in Macbeth's future. Their predictions make him fell more and more confident, then when he is made Thane of Glamis he feels superior as he has a strong feeling that he will one day be King. I think if Macbeth had not have been superstitious so he believed the witches he wouldn't think he was so indestructible and then would not have been do evil.
When Macbeth is made Thane of Cawdor after the Thane before was killed for treason, he writes a letter to his wife, he tells her about the witches' predictions. I think this letter is the spark that starts Lady Macbeth's own evil, as she is pleased with what the letter says, however she knows that although Macbeth has ambition he 'is too full o' the milk of human kindness' to act upon the prediction.
When Duncan stays with Macbeth and his wife, Lady Macbeth plans to kill him, she calls on evil spirits to 'unsex' her, so ...
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When Macbeth is made Thane of Cawdor after the Thane before was killed for treason, he writes a letter to his wife, he tells her about the witches' predictions. I think this letter is the spark that starts Lady Macbeth's own evil, as she is pleased with what the letter says, however she knows that although Macbeth has ambition he 'is too full o' the milk of human kindness' to act upon the prediction.
When Duncan stays with Macbeth and his wife, Lady Macbeth plans to kill him, she calls on evil spirits to 'unsex' her, so she is not feminine as women were seen as meek and feeble so she could carry out the murder of Duncan. She tells Macbeth to leave killing up to her. When Duncan arrives, Lady Macbeth greets him warmly; she doesn't seem to show any emotions of remorse at this point. When the banquet is taking place Macbeth thinks over the decision to kill Duncan, finally he decides the murder will not go ahead - this decision shows that Macbeth is not truly evil. However when he tells his wife he doesn't want to go ahead with the murder she talks him around by saying things such as if he were a real man he wouldn't back out and how if she had promised something to him she wouldn't break her promise. The way she says this is very powerful and underlines just how evil she could be, as she says 'I have given suck, and know how tender 'tis to love the babe that milks me - I would while it was smiling in my face have plucked my nipple from his boneless gums, and dashed the brains out, had I so sworn as you have done to this'. I think the baby she describes is maybe a child that they lost, as we do not hear of this child apart from this in the play. I think she used the child as an example in her promise as it is something that they both feel strongly for and it brings them closely together.
Before Lady Macbeth talks Macbeth into backing out of killing, in his soliloquy in Act one scene seven, Macbeth shows his conscience, he feels he doesn't want to go ahead with the murder, although when he talks about killing Duncan he never mentions the word 'murder'. At this point we still don't really know if Macbeth is a villain or hero yet.
Lady Macbeth was suppose to carry out the murder but she saw Duncan sleeping and said that she could not do it as he looked like his father, this shows that she in not totally evil either.
Macbeth hallucinates a dagger pointing towards Duncan's chamber before his murder showing he is unstable mentally and maybe nervous. These nerves make him kill the two guards that slept with Duncan and over react when the murder is revealed. After the murder Macbeth is made King as the Kings two sons had fled from Scotland. Now all of his predictions from the witches have come true, he feels threatened as the witches also predicted that Banquo's son would be king. Now as he has already killed three people he sets out to kill Banquo and his son, Felance. Banquo is his best friend, so this really shows how Macbeth's character is really changing for the worst. This time he doesn't do it himself, he sends two murders that he persuades in such a way we've heard before. He tells them that if they were real men they would carry out the murders, this sounds like the type of persuasion that Lady Macbeth used on her husband so he would commit the murder of the King.
At the banquet he pretends he does not know when Banquo is and is upset that he isn't there, but then he sees Banquo's ghost. He is uneasy and he nearly says too much about all the murders when he gets upset and confused after he sees the ghost, but Lady Macbeth stops him in time and makes up a story of how he is ill so the guests do not suspect a thing.
In Act four he goes back to see the witches. They tell him he is safe until Birnam wood comes to Dunsianane, and never by a man of woman born shall he be harmed. Macbeth can now relax, he thinks, as everyone is born of a woman and the wood will never move. They also tell him another prediction of Banquo's children on the throne, this is still possible as the two murderers failed to kill Banquo's son, Felance. Macbeth's next actions, I think show just how much his mind is evil and he seems not to care or have any conscience left, and he sends an army to kill Macduff's family!
The first description we hear of Macbeth is 'brave Macbeth', but in Act four scene three Macduff describes him as a 'tyrant', his personality seems have to changed.
In Act five scene four Lady Macbeth kills herself. At the start of the play Macbeth and his wife seem very close, but when she dies Macbeth is not moved in any way he shows no emotion at all, he is cold as if he has hardened to people dying. He says 'she should have died hereafter'. His life seems meaningless; he doesn't care for anything or anyone anymore, not even his wife.
The army that are attacking his castle carry bits of trees from Birnam wood - Birnam wood seems to be moving. Now I thing this shows that his superstition has really ruined him. He seems to know he is going to die, he says 'At least we will die with harness on our backs', he wants to die a solider - but as the witches said no man of woman born can kill him.
When the army attacks the castle he fights Macduff - it is then Macbeth finds out that Macduff was born of caesarean - I think now Macbeth is puzzled; should he carry on fighting or just give up? Macbeth's last words are 'Hold, enough!' He almost seems childlike and in a last grasp for breath he shouts this.
Ultimately Macbeth is a villain, but factors that helped to bring out these feelings are his wife, his own ambition and the fact that he was too quick to believe to witches and too trusting.
Macbeth may have been a hero but he died a villain.
