We, as an audience begin to see Macbeth reveal his evil thoughts in his first soliloquy. Macbeth thinks about taking the prophecies into his own hands to become King. However, while he is thinking about this, I still believe that he wouldn’t go as far as to actually turn his thoughts into actions, as he is too afraid. The use of sibilance when he says, ‘Shakes my single state of man,’ shows this. However, at this point he has not told his wife, Lady Macbeth, who is key to his downfall and him actually committing the murder about the situation.
When Lady Macbeth finds out about the prophecies in a letter to her from Macbeth, she analyses his nature, and then says, ‘What thou art promised, yet so I fear thy nature/ It is too full o’th’milk of human kindness.’ This tells the audience that she does not believe that Macbeth is not capable enough to commit regicide, as he is too kind. It is Lady Macbeth’s pressure that causes Macbeth to commit the murder. She then says, ‘And that which rather thou dost fear to do/ Than wishest should be undone.’ This shows that she thinks that Macbeth’s fear is so great that he cannot carry out the murder.
As soon as Lady Macbeth sees her husband she pressures into killing Duncan. After finding out Duncan is staying at their castle that night, she immediately says, ‘O never/ shall sun that morrow see.’ B7y this she means that Duncan will never see morning again as he will be dead. She tells Macbeth to deceive Duncan by being, ‘…like th’innocent flower/ But be the serpent under’t.’ However, Macbeth temporarily brushes aside her comments, saying, ‘We will speak further-‘ and not paying much attention to what his wife has to say. The audience feel sorry for Macbeth at this point because they see his wife pestering him continuously in a desperate attempt to change his mind; therefore they feel he is a tragic hero.
In Act 1, Scene 7, we see Macbeth seriously think about murdering the King for the first time. He is seen weighing up the consequences of murdering Duncan. Even though, he believes Duncan is a good man, his ambitions lead him on to thinking about murdering him anyway. Ultimately he decides against murder as the bad consequences far outweigh the good, as he is afraid he will trip over his own ambitions. This is shown when he says, ‘I have no spur/ …but only/Vaulting ambition o’er leaps itself…’
Immediately after this soliloquy where Macbeth ponders over regicide, Lady Macbeth enters. She asks Duncan whether he will murder Duncan that night, and when he replies that he will not because, ‘He [Duncan] hath honoured me of late, and I have bought/ Golden opinions from all sorts of people,’ she tries her up most to dissuade him.
She decides to do this by cleverly attacking Maccbeth’s weakness, by asking him whether he is man enough to kill Duncan, and saying that he is too scared to act on his feelings. She says, ‘I dare do all that may become a man/ Who dares more is none.’ She also says that she would kill her own baby if she did not keep her own word, unlike Macbeth. Eventually though Macbeth gives into her constant nagging and pleading and agrees to kill Duncan.
The audience sees Macbeth give into his partners’ constant pressure and evil ambition for them to become King and Queen of Scotland. If not for his partner I do not think that Macbeth would have committed regicide, but at the same time I do not believe that Lady Macbeth is completely to blame for Macbeth’s downfall. Although Lady Macbeth viciously attacks her husband for being a coward, Macbeth gives into her therefore is also to blame. He is driven to kill Duncan partly out of his love for his love for his wife and pleasing her but also because of his greedy selfish ambition to seek more and more power. His ambition seems to overpower his conscience and his innocence. The witches are also to blame as they start of this whole sequence of events leading to the Macbeth killing Duncan and his behaviour afterwards, as they equivocate about his future and deceive him. I believe that this shops that he is not an evil tyrant, but a tragic hero, as others contribute to his downfall.
Shakespeare uses a dramatic device just after Macbeth decides not to kill Duncan by adding a scene where Lady Macbeth enters straightaway to change Macbeth’s decision instantly. I believe that this scene is added as it shows Lady Macbeth’s strength of personality and her ability to overpower Macbeth. In Act 2, Scene 1, we see Macbeth distancing himself from Banquo for the first time by deceiving him. Although, they are supposed to be the best of friends, Macbeth denies that he has been thinking about the witches’ prophecies when Banquo asks him. Then Macbeth decides to try and tempt Banquo onto his side. He says, ‘If you shall clave to my consent, when’tis, /It shall make honour of you.’
Once Banquo leaves there is another soliloquy, in which Macbeth hallucinates about a dagger, even though he hasn’t killed Duncan yet. This shows that he is having second thoughts about the deed he is to commit. This is not a characteristic that is commonly associated with evil tyrants, as they kill without any remorse. The audience also sees this and feels sorry for Macbeth as he has been forced into murdering Duncan and is now suffering the consequences.
Macbeth as a character completely changes after Duncan’s murder. He fears that after his deed he has been doomed to eternal damnation, because when Malcolm and Donaldbain, Duncan’s sons, see their father, ‘One cried, ‘God Bless us!’ and ‘Amen’ the other’ and Macbeth could not say Amen.
Macbeth suffers a breakdown but Lady Macbeth stays strong and she tells him to pull himself together, and again questions his manliness. Macbeth has a guilty conscience and begins to fear as he becomes paranoid. He says that he hears a voice in his head that cries, ‘Sleep no more: Macbeth does murder sleep…’
Having judged his reactions after he kills Duncan, I do not think that at this point, Macbeth is an evil tyrant, as I do not believe an evil tyrant would have any guilt after killing somebody. Although two attributes Macbeth does possess of an evil tyrant are greed and ambition to become more and more powerful, which eventually lead to his downfall. Also, Macbeth seems to be mentally weaker than his wife, she is the stronger one of the two. While Macbeth is suffering form a breakdown, she is pulling him back together, and seems to have complete control over him because he is so afraid, he doesn’t know what to do. He follows her every command without any complete. For example when he hasn’t washed the blood off his hands, she says, ‘Go get some water/ And wash this filthy sickness from your hand’ He does this straightaway without any reply.
In Act3, Scene 1, we see Macbeth acting like an evil tyrant for the first time. He cleverly plans Banquo’s murder, by asking him to attend hi banquet, even though he knows Banquo will not be there because he will be dead. He also asks Banquo, ‘Ride you this afternoon?’ to find out where he is going. Then he says, ‘We should else desired your good advice?’ He does this to show Banquo he is being friendly and so that Banquo will not suspect him of Banquo’s murder.
Having established where Banquo will go, Macbeth call three murderers he has hired to kill Banquo. In order to persuade them to kill Banquo, he asks them to prove whether they are men or dogs. He says, ‘Ay, in the catalogue ye go for men/ As hounds and greyhounds…/ All by the name of dogs.’
I think that here Macbeth shows both characteristics of an evil tyrant, as he plans to kill Banquo without any remorse even though they used to be best friends, but also characteristics of a tragic hero, as at this point Macbeth is totally out of control and paranoid. This is because he thinks that everyone is against him. His paranoia emerges after he kills Duncan.
It is ironic Macbeth uses this technique to persuade the murders to do what he wants, as Lady Macbeth used the same technique on him. Macbeth must have noticed how this technique can persuade people to do things for you. This method must have stuck into his subconscious, from when Lady Macbeth attacked him for being a coward.
Macbeth then begins to reveal his hatred for Banquo, telling the murderers that Banquo is his enemy, but he cannot kill Banquo openly. He says, ‘…I could/ With brave-faced power sweep from my sight/ …yet I must nit…’ Then, he arranges a time and place for the assassination, so there are no links or suspicions that may fall on him. Macbeth says, ‘I will advise you where to plant yourselves, / And something from the palace…/ …I require a clearness…’
I believe that while explaining Banquo’s death, Macbeth shoes no signs of any remorse or sorrow for what he is about to do, even though Banquo and he were best friends. He plans the murder with precision, indicating to me that he may even be getting pleasure from it. These characteristics tell me that in this instance Macbeth has similarities with an evil tyrant.
These characteristics are shown again in Act 3, Scene 2, when he hints to the audience about the terrible acts he is about to commit on that night. He asks for the cover of darkness to disguise his fear, we see this when he says, ‘Come, seeling night/ Scarf up the…pitiful day/ cancel …that great bond/ which keeps me pale.’
In that last lines of Act 3, Scene 2, he again hints at more evil deeds, as he says, ‘Things bad begun, make strong themselves by ill.’ I believe that Macbeth shows more characteristics of an evil tyrant in this scene, as he plans to kill more people to stay in power. He tries to rule by fear, which isn’t what a tragic hero would have done.
In Act 3, Scene 4, at a banquet held by the Macbeths, Macbeth consoles himself that Fleance; Banquo’s son is too young to do any harm to him. He wanted Fleance dead, as the witches said, ‘Thou shalt get kings, though thou be none,’ to Banquo at the beginning of the play. This meaning that not Banquo but his son would become king. This to me is showing again that he can adopt the characteristics of an evil tyrant.
However, Macbeth than shows fear again, when he sees the ghost of Banquo. He becomes unnerved by it, but Lady Macbeth again stays strong to let Macbeth recover his composure. She says, ‘…become/ A woman’s story at winter’s fire…’ This comment shows that Lady Macbeth thinks that Macbeth is behaving like a woman. This also shows Macbeth’s mental weakness, which you wouldn’t associate with an evil tyrant.
Although at the end of the scene, Macbeth again finds his ruthlessness again by vowing to kill anyone who stands in his way. He says, ‘I am in blood/ Stepped in so fat that…/ Returning were as tedious as go o’er.’
In my opinion, this scene shows both sides of Macbeth’s character, he displays characteristics of both an evil tyrant and of a tragic hero.
In the next Act, Macbeth returns to the witches to find out more about this future. The three witches show him their apparitions. The first witch warns Macbeth about the threat of Macduff. The second apparition tells him, ‘…for none of woman born/ Shall harm Macbeth.’ Then the third apparition promises Macbeth he will not be defeated until Birnam Wood comes to Dunsinane. Finally, the witches show him a procession of eight kings and Banquo, showing that Banquo’s descendants will be kings.
When the witches disappear, Macbeth decides to kill all of Macduff’s family, as he has been reassured by the witches that no man woman will be able to kill him. Although, he doesn’t know Macduff was born by Caesarean Section and is therefore one of the only people who can kill him. Macbeth tells his men to, ‘…seize upon Fife…/His wife, his babes and all…’ This is totally unnecessary, and the audience feel sorry for him, as he is really paranoid and has completely lost control of himself. He stops murdering for a reason and begins to kill for the sake of it.
Scotland is being poisoned by Macbeth’s rule and is not safe anymore, as Macbeth seeks to defend his throne at the expense of anybody.
At the end of the play, Macbeth is no longer afraid of anything, he says that he, ‘Shall never sag with doubt, nor shake with fear.’ He also says he will not commit suicide like his wife and die fighting for his beliefs, ‘Why should I play the Roman fool and die/ ON mine own sword? This shows that he is not afraid of anything.
I the scenes Macduff reveals to Macbeth that he was born by Caesarean Section, dashing Macbeth’s beliefs that he is invincible. But Macbeth is still determined to die fighting for what he believes in. He is eventually slain by Macduff and Scotland is freed again with Macbeth removed from the throne.
I believe that Macbeth’s final soliloquy reflects his won life and his regrets. He finally realises that life is just a stage and we are the actors in it. He says if somebody doesn’t achieve something in life, it is a waste. This is the philosophy by which Macbeth lives. He wants to make something of his life and believes the only way to do this is b becoming King, but unfortunately he goes the wrong way about it.
In conclusion, I believe Macbeth was a tragic hero as he kills Duncan to please his wife and is pressured by her and the witches to kill him. Although if he had thought of himself and stood up for himself, he would not have killed Duncan and none of this would have happened, so he is also partly to blame for his own downfall. After killing Duncan, he becomes paranoid and believes everyone is against him and kills anyone he wants, even if he has no motive. He becomes afraid of fear itself and lets his guilty conscience take over his life. The audience feels sorry for Macbeth as all he wants to do is have a successful life, but chooses the wrong method. He dies fighting for his beliefs even though they change throughout, and ends the play like he starts it, being brave, strong and full of confidence.