Macbeth Notes :: essays research papers

Macbeth - Macbeth is a Scottish general and the thane of Glamis who is led to wicked thoughts by the prophecies of the three witches, especially after their prophecy that he will be made thane of Cawdor comes true. Macbeth is a brave soldier and a powerful man, scarcely he is not a virtuous one. He is easily tempted into executing to fulfill his ambitions to the throne, and once he commits his first crime and is crowned pouf of Scotland, he embarks on further atrocities with increasing ease. Ultimately, Macbeth proves himself better suited to the theatre of operations than to political intrigue, because he lacks the skills necessary to rule without being a tyrant. His answer to every problem is violence and murder. Unlike Shakespeares great villains, such as Iago in Othello and Richard III in Richard III, Macbeth is never comfortable in his billet as a criminal. He is unable to bear the psychic consequences of his atrocities. dawn here for In-Depth Analysis. Lady Macbeth - Mac beths wife, a deeply ambitious woman who lusts for power and position. Early in the play she seems to be the stronger and more ruthless of the two, as she urges her economize to kill Duncan and seize the crown. After the bloodshed begins, however, Lady Macbeth falls victim to guilt and madness to an even greater degree than her husband. Her sense of right and wrong affects her to such an extent that she eventually commits suicide. Interestingly, she and Macbeth are presented as being deeply in love, and many of Lady Macbeths speeches imply that her influence over her husband is primarily sexual. Their joint alienation from the world, occasioned by their partnership in crime, seems to gird the attachment that they feel to one another.Click here for In-Depth Analysis. The common chord Witches - Three "black and midnight hags" who plot mischief against Macbeth using charms, spells, and prophecies. Their predictions prompt him to murder Duncan, to company the deaths of Ban quo and his son, and to blindly believe in his own immortality. The play leaves the witches true identity element unclearaside from the fact that they are servants of Hecate, we know little about their place in the cosmos. In some ways they resemble the fabulous Fates, who impersonally wove the threads of human destiny. They clearly take a obdurate delight in using their knowledge of the future to toy with and set down human beings.