The Debauched Power of Rampant Ambition In Shakespeare’s “Macbeth”, destruction is wrought when ambition goes rampant by moral constraints. “Macbeth” amplifies the fight amidst good vs evil, analyzing the psychological effects of King Duncan's murder. This tragedy concerned the plunge of a great man (King) from his position of nobility to humility on behalf of his ambitious pride. This pride causes the downfall of Macbeth that triggers a series of deaths down the line. Ambition is the driving force of the play. The three witches or “weird sisters”, are only one of the contributions to Macbeth's destruction and downfall. The prophecies that the witches make are merely temptations for Macbeth. The weird sisters never tell Macbeth what to do with these suggestions, leaving him curious and in disbelief about what the witches have to say. The witches make predictions about the future of Macbeths kingship: "All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor” (I.III.50). Macbeth becoming Thane of Cawdor increases his thirst for ambition and eventually drives him into demise. They also tell Macbeth that no man born of woman can kill him, making Macbeth believe that he is invincible. "The power of man, for none of woman born shall harm Macbeth" (lV.I.81-83). Macbeth and Lady Macbeth take the prophecies too rigorous and try to put them into action immediately. The prophecies predicted by the witches do result in the end, however not exactly how either of them imagined. Lady Macbeth- the malicious mastermind, and the second driving force behind the murders done by Macbeth, had believed that by portraying a man’s ways, she would attain power-for her and her husband, and gain whatever they needed without remorse or sorrow. Lady Macbeth urges Macbeth to frame two guards by getting them intoxicated and even prepares the murder scene for Macbeth to take King Duncan's life. Macbeth even questions his loyalty and righteousness in this moment by saying, “But in these cases, we still have judgment here…bloody instructions…return to plague the inventor” and . . .” He is here in double trust; first as I am his kinsman and his subject, strong both against the deed; then as his host” (I.VII.7-14). This just
Ambition has been a driving force of humanity since the beginning of time. Emotions have always had a strong influence on humanity, specifically emotions that tend towards the ruin of others and the gain another. Throughout the history of humanity there have been many examples of people abusing their position of power, to gain something they more than likely did not deserve. Whether it be Hitler and his repulsive ascension to becoming chancellor of Germany, or Kim Jong Un’s obsession with obtaining nuclear weapons at the cost of the people, humanities struggle with greed is unceasing. No one better illustrates this unrelenting thirst for power more than Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Macbeth is a good, brave, and beloved man at the beginning of the play with the end of his latest battle heralding a new title for him. Fate though, seems to have different plans for the good, albeit, ambitious Macbeth. He is told by the 3 weird sisters that he will one day become king. Thus igniting the flame of greed within Macbeth, signaling his descent into madness and the guilt he feels towards the deeds he has done. Lady Macbeth is much the same in the sense that once she knew of Macbeths own ambition, it hatched her own deep seeded desire for the crown as well. However, there various similarities end with the death of Duncan and the way they both deal with the guilt over what they did. In the play Macbeth and Lady Macbeth have similarly great ambition, but this intense avarice in the end leads to their ruin in differing ways.
Both Shakespeare's Macbeth and Ridley Scott's gladiator, cleverly establish the unfavorable effect and repercussions of the blinding ambition through antagonists Commodus and Macbeth. Macbeth transforms from a noble soldier to a tyrant ruler due to his unbridled ambition to become king. Likewise, gladiators ruler Commodus, is depicted as ambiguous as he is controlled by his irrepressible ambition, instigating his undoing. Through both texts, antiheroes 'Maximus' and 'Macduff' render the great chain of being. Through techniques, the composers acknowledge how ambition can often result in having adverse consequences.
From the beginning, Lady Macbeth is seen as greedy and prepared to do what her husband will not in order to get what she believes they are destined for. She is more willing to get blood on her hands, even in the most literal sense, so Macbeth will become king and she be the queen of Scotland. To make sure the king's assassination will not trace back to Lady Macbeth and her husband, Lady Macbeth says to her husband, " Give me the daggers. The sleeping and the dead are only like pictures. It is the eye of childhood that's afraid of a painted devil. If he bleeds, I'll smear the faces of the grooms with it, because it must seem that they are guilty" (Act 2 Scene 2) Lady Macbeth's greediness led her to convince Macbeth to kill, and her to convict others of murder by spreading blood. The cycle of her greed leading to blood spilling, and leading to an increase in power throughout the play had terrible consequences for her mind though. After Macbeth
Death, insanity, despair: these are the consequences of ambition gone awry. Devastating downfalls can befall a heroic character if they are too ambitious. Ambitious characters are common in literature, and the consequences of their ambition are often the moral or lesson of their stories. Ambition can be a negative thing and it can lead to negative events, and for that reason, it is the biggest character flaw heroes have in Anglo-Saxon literature.
The Tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare recounts Macbeth's meteoric rise as a soldier and promising future leader whose megalomaniacal ambition led to his tragic downfall. In addition to Macbeth's ambitions, which initially enable him to be strong leader and soldier, he is influenced heavily by his wife, Lady Macbeth, and the three witches that prophesize his ascent to the throne, as well as warn him of his eventual demise. It can be argued that it is Macbeth's ambition that allows him to succeed in his endeavors, however the goals to which he is working toward influence the results of his hard work. Macbeth's ambitions help him to become a war hero, and as his goals change, his ambitions drive him to become a tyrannical villain.
Ambition can either be to one’s benefit or lead to one’s downfall. In William Shakespeare’s, Macbeth, ambition plays a great role on the characters lives as their actions and ambition shapes their future. Shakespeare showcases how one’s decisions because of their ambitions and overconfidence can lead to their own downfall while examining the actions of Lady Macbeth, King Duncan and Macbeth.
The Influences of Desire Desire means what people really want to do or to have in deep of their heart, sometimes it doesn’t show on their face. Desire can be people's ambitions, freedom of love, or a strong body. Here is an example for ambition, in Shakespeare’s "Macbeth”, the character Macbeth grows his desire of power after he heard from the three witches that he will be the next king soon. His ambitions, the desire of power influenced him so much that it turned him into an evil person.
William Shakespeare’s Macbeth focuses on the subject of ambition and its psychological burdens. He makes it clear that Macbeth did commit to his hateful deeds responding to the psychological burden of his sins. A respected Thane, who has shown great loyalty to King Duncan, goes from a vigorous and worthy soldier to a shameless murderer presents himself as Macbeth
In addition, Aristotle believes themes and type of diction classifies whether or not a play is a tragedy. He states they should includes various themes, speeches that reveal themes and character, and metaphors. (McManus) Macbeth has various themes, such as, excessive ambition leads to one’s downfall, for which they aspire to reach unreachable heights, deception leads to bigger lies and to one’s downfall, and “fair is foul, and foul is fair,” (I, i, 12) meaning there is good and bad in everything. Macbeth perfectly demonstrates how excessive ambition can lead to one’s downfall as it leads to his death.
It is a popular assumption that ambition is not a quality that someone is born with. Alternatively, external influences frequently catalyze the development of ambition. During the play, Macbeth by William Shakespeare, Macbeth, a general from Scotland hears prophecies from three witches. One of these states that he will become King of Scotland. Upon hearing these, his power-hungry wife, Lady Macbeth, manipulates him into murdering King Duncan.
“He who blinded by ambition, raises himself to a position whence he cannot mount higher, must fall with the greatest loss.” - Niccolo Machiavelli William Shakespeare’s Macbeth presents a fascinating discussion of ambition, and what it is capable of. Shakespeare portrays ambition as a trait that is dangerous and demonstrates this through the main characters of this play. As such, William Shakespeare’s
‘Macbeth’ is a tragic play written by William Shakespeare in the sixteen hundred, it dramatizes the physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those who seek power through the character of Macbeth. ‘The Pursuit Of Happyness’ likewise is a film directed by Gabriel Muccino who portrays a man named Chris Gardener who through his hard work and dedicated ambition goes from living on the streets to a rich stockbroker. In Macbeth and pursuit of happiness, both authors explore how ambition can…. (thesis). Macbeth's ambition is portrayed in a negative light as it is aimed to gain power and status, however, Chris ambition is pushed by his desire to gain happiness and a better future for him and his son. Similarly, both characters endure toxic spousal relationships that help them to tap into their ambition but it leads to different portrayal of ambition. Macbeth and Chris eventually both face the outcome of their ambition for Macbeth it being his doom where else for Chris it being his success. Shakespeare and Gabriel Muccino explore the theme of ambition through the protagonists of both plays.
It’s good to have ambition, as it’s the foundation of a successful life. Ambition means to have strong desire towards achieving something. Because of this, it’s true that one without ambition will struggle, however sometimes, our own ambitions and desires can change us for the negative. Ambition in its nature can tempt obsessive behaviour, which has a destructive nature of its own. When an ambition purely of passion turns into obsession, it ultimately forces one to only focus on that and do anything to achieve that goal. Shakespeare’s Macbeth is the perfect example of where the theme of obsessive ambition is prevalent. Shakespeare through the protagonist Macbeth conveys how our own desires, if
Macbeth is a text that I've read. Throughout the story of Macbeth he is brave and ambitious, in the story they first say Macbeth is a loyal warrior, because of the way people speak about him. They also hear that he was wounded because of his bravery in the battlefield. Macbeth has terrible effects like guilt and self-doubt because his conscience got the best of him. After Macbeth associate with the witches, they realize his courage. Lady Macbeth pushes Macbeth to kill banquo, Lady Macbeth threatens him by saying, "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". Macbeth wants to be the king but sadly he dies because he brags to Macduff about how he cant be killed. Then they began
Pauline Tolentino English 20 AP Ms. Donna Yanew December 8, 2015 Macbeth's Black and Deep Desires Having ambition in life means having a purpose in life, but too much of it can also spell the destruction of one's self. Ambition is an unyielding desire to achieve a goal. Most people think that living a life with a yearning of something is a key for success since it can help a person to strive for its attainment.