Macbeth Essay, Research Paper

Are you stronger than your ambition?

Ambition is a strong desire for fame or success. One automatically thinks that ambition is a good and honorable trait; many of us also consider ambition to be successful. In William Shakespeare s tragedy Macbeth, Macbeth has great ambition, which in end leads to his demise. In the following essay you will understand how all of Macbeth s ambition lead him to a life of pain and also a quick death.

Macbeth s Ambition began with three witches. These witches met Macbeth and his friend Banquo one day and told Macbeth his prophecy. All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be King hereafter! (1:2 lines 56-7). When hearing this, Macbeth wrote his wife and told her that the witches saluted him to the coming on of time with Hail, King that shalt be! (1.5. 9) When Macbeth returns to his castle and greets his wife telling her Duncan [the King] comes here tonight. (1.5. 67) and Lady Macbeth expresses that never/shall sun that morrow see! (1.5 70-1). Lady Macbeth was telling Macbeth that Duncan would never see the after tomorrow because they were going to kill him. Lady Macbeth put fuel in Macbeth s fire, this fire was his ambition, and from that day forward all he could think about was becoming king and nothing else. He would do whatever it took to become King including killing the King. Macbeth later questions himself about why he is killings the King. Macbeth says that he has no spur to prick the sides of [his] intent, but only vaulting ambition What Shakespeare was trying to say was that Macbeth had no reason to kill the king but only his ambition, he had this immense ambition that would cause him to commit tyranny and kill the King.

The next act of ambition was when Macbeth decided he would kill his friend Banquo. His spiteful ambition caused him to remember the witches Hailed upon him [Banquo] farther to a line of kings. (3.1. 64). Macbeth felt threatened because he was placed a fruitless crown (3.1. 65) Macbeth had no children to be successors to the thrown so he knew that one day Banquo s children would finally take him over and become the King. Macbeth s ambition boiled inside of him so he told the murders to go and kill Banquo since Banquo tyrant supposedly was there enemy. When the murders agree with Macbeth s idea of killing Banquo, Macbeth says to himself Banquo, thy soul s a flight,/If it find heaven, must find it out tonight. (3.1 177-8). Macbeth assures himself that Banquo will be killed and he is so excited that finally he will have no one in his path.

The third act of his ambition was ultimately against himself. He wanted to know what other prophecies were in store for him. He then saw apparitions that told him what was in store one of the apparitions told him none of woman born/shall harm Macbeth (4.1 91-2). Macbeth was so arrogant that he now felt that nobody could harm him, since everyone was woman born. Macbeth felt that he always was going to live as king so he ran around telling everyone that he must not yield/ to one of woman born (5.8 15-6). Macduff finally heard this and told Macbeth that he was from his mothers womb but untimely ripped (5.8 20). Macbeth was still extremely arrogant and his ambition was pushing him forward that he decided not to listen (for the first time) to his prophecy and go on and fight Macduff. Macbeth went out fighting and even till the end Macbeths ambition did not let him bow down and recognize that he fails, instead he says I will not yield, /To kiss the ground before young Malcolm s feet (5.8 32-3) In the end Macduff beheaded Macbeth.

Macbeth s ambition was tested. He accepted some pieces to the puzzle and in the end when the puzzle was completed he didn t like the picture and decided he was strong enough to change it. Macbeth killed over many people and led others to have a life full of pain and disgust, just so he could have on crown and the title of King. His ambition was so great, that instead of making him an honorable and successful man it made him a man with skeletons in his closet, a man with a heavy conscience and a man with no head. We all consider ambition to be a trait we might want to have. We also feel we need ambition to help us reach our goals, but when ambition is stronger than our moral will we go as far as to killing innocent people and killing our selves for one measly title?