Preview

Examples Of Violence In Macbeth

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
524 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Examples Of Violence In Macbeth
Violence In the story of Macbeth, violence and the effect it has on the people who commit it is found throughout. Savage people thrusting daggers into warm, living people and swords severing heads from bodies are examples of how gruesome this novel can be. Macbeth commits and commands violent actions which are key factors in his downfall. He kills to gain power, demands murder without purpose, and allows the death of whoever intimidates him.

Macbeth is obsessed with obtaining power, in any way possible. After hearing from the three witches that he will be King, his mind becomes overwhelmed and all he can focus on is taking the throne from the present King, Duncan. “I have done the deed…” (2.2.15). In this quote, Macbeth explains to his wife that he has murdered the King. He starts to go insane soon after he commits this sin. Once the King’s sons find out of his death, they flee to distant countries, leaving Macbeth as the King. Although most of Macbeth’s murders are driven by power, he requests killings that do not benefit him in any way at the same time. …show more content…
Macbeth ordered this tragedy in spite of Macduff, knowing that killing them would only make Macduff angry and he would benefit in no way. “From this moment/The very firstlings of my heart shall be/The firstlings of my hand. And even now,/To crown my thoughts with acts, be it thought and done” (4.2.146-149). Right before his demand for their deaths, Macbeth decides that he will no longer second guess himself and he will act upon his thoughts immediately. Macbeth demands this sinister act before he realizes how purposeless it actually is. Without a doubt, murdering an entire family with no purpose is cruel, but killing your best friend because he intimidates you is
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    Critical Lens Essay Example
    • 479 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Critical Lens Essay Example

    In William Shakespeare's Macbeth, Macbeth is presented as being power hungry, who stole the throne of Scotland from Malcolm, and put the country into complete chaos throughout his evil reign. In order to accomplish this, Macbeth was manipulated and encouraged by his wife, Lady Macbeth, to murder King Duncan in order to seize the throne for himself. All of these horrid things that Macbeth does to gain the throne are depicted as the evil triumphs. As the play progressed, Macbeth is afraid of begin discovered and commits to more killings and from here it appears that evil is becoming victorious. However, after all the murders, Macbeth thinks he is invincible and can not be touched and this overconfidence leads to his downfall. Even though Macbeth triumphed because he succeeded in getting King Duncan killed and was able to achieve his goals, he did not conquer because he was killed and order was restored.…

    • 479 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Examples Of Greed In Macbeth
    • 270 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Examples Of Greed In Macbeth

    In Act III, Macbeth becomes increasingly greedy for power leading him to fulfil ruthless actions. Even though he is already Thane of Cawdor and Glamis, his ambition, fueled by the harassment of Lady Macbeth over rules his conscience, and he is willing to do what it takes to keep the throne. In the beginning of the book, Macbeth starts with a rightful mind in which he has the ability to determine right from wrong. After the prophecy invades his life and after the unnatural events of Duncan’s murder, Macbeth’s mindset shifts to overwhelming selfishness. He plans to kill his best friend Banquo in order to destroy any chance of Banquo’s children inheriting his kingship.…

    • 270 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    How Does Shakespeare Create Violence In Macbeth Essay
    • 1047 Words
    • 5 Pages

    How Does Shakespeare Create Violence In Macbeth Essay

    Macbeth hallucinates before killing Duncan in which he says, “ is this a dagger which I see before me, the handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee. (shakespeare II.I 44-45) Macbeth feels so guilty about killing Duncan that he starts to hallucinate about the weapon he used to kill Duncan but he did not kill him because he was feeling guilty, Macbeth killed Duncan purely out of ambition to be king. By macbeth wanting to “clutch thee” shows that he has made a huge decision to follow his ambition to be king by any means necessary.Lady Macbeth finds out about what Macbeth’s encounter with the witches and what he was told by them and she says, “Art not without ambition, but without the illness should attend it.” (Shakespeare I.5 19-20) This shows that Lady Macbeth, who is shown to be a heartless, and a power hungry woman believes that Macbeth is capable of being able to obtain the rank of king if he wants to, but is too kind to carry out the necessary actions. Even though some may say that Macbeth’s downfall is caused by his guilt, it is actually his ambitions that lead him to commit horrible crimes which later leads to Macbeth feeling…

    • 1047 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Shakespeare's Development of Power in Macbeth
    • 449 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Shakespeare's Development of Power in Macbeth

    Macbeth is a very power greedy person. It is not necessarily his own doing that he is such a ruthless person. It all started (Macbeth being power greedy) with the Three Witches predictions: "All hail, Macbeth! hail to thee, thane of Glamis!/ All hail, Macbeth! hail to thee, thane of/ Cawdor!/ All hail, Macbeth! That shalt be king hereafter." (1.3.50-54)<br><br>As soon as Macbeth learned of his future, he began to scheme on just exactly how he would fulfill these prophecies. That is when he decided that he would have to murder Duncan to fulfill the last prophecy. But that is when he had a change or heart. <br><br>The only problem with Macbeth deciding not to murder Duncan, is that all of a sudden Lady Macbeth became the power greedy one. This is when Lady Macbeth's scheming began. Although Macbeth had changed his mind and basically refused to murder Duncan, Lady Macbeth was able to eventually convince him to carry through with the plan. <br><br>Even though Macbeth was the one who executed the plan, Lady Macbeth was the mastermind behind the scheme. Her greed for power was the one major factor that possessed her to convince Macbeth of the plan and carry through with it. Macbeth murdered Duncan at Iverness, and became hysterical after doing so. As a result of Malcolm and Donalbain's suspicions resulting in their departure to England and Ireland Macbeth became king: this was the ultimate power that he and Lady Macbeth had as their goal (well, actually it was more of Lady Macbeth's goal), and now he eventually had received it. Nothing was going to take away this ultimate power from Macbeth, and he would do anything to keep it. Macbeth's ruthlessness results in him ordering three murderers to murder his best friend, Banquo. The power of being king has taken over Macbeth's life, and he is a victim of his own greed for power. He is a tyrant. Not only does Macbeth murder Banquo (not directly, of course), he also murders (actually he has people murder) Macbuffs family.…

    • 449 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Who Is To Blame In Shakespeare's Macbeth Guiltier?
    • 996 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Who Is To Blame In Shakespeare's Macbeth Guiltier?

    When the three witches approach Macbeth they say, “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, thane of Glamis! All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, thane of Cawdor! All hail, Macbeth, which shalt be king hereafter!” (I. iii. 48-51) because some of the prophecy that was predicted by the three witches came true, Macbeth has started having thoughts about if he was going to become king and how would he be able become king. Macbeth wants to be king so that he could have the power over others instead of being the one to serve, in other to become king he kills the current king and other people as to cover his track and secure his place as the new…

    • 996 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Examples Of Blood Imagery In Macbeth
    • 1391 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Examples Of Blood Imagery In Macbeth

    Macbeth is one of William Shakespeare’s tragedies from the early 1600’s. Macbeth, once a nobleman who was the epitome of loyalty takes a turn and is overcome by ambition which can be attributed to the witches and Lady Macbeth. Macbeth rises to power but covered in blood. A major theme throughout the play of Macbeth is if a person commits an evil crime such as murder, he or she is incapable of fully escaping the sins and guilt that come with such actions. Throughout Macbeth, blood is a prominent image that enhances this theme throughout the play, ultimately demonstrating how a person can be stained from their sin and eventually their guilt.…

    • 1391 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Macbeth Power Analysis
    • 587 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Macbeth Power Analysis

    Throughout Act I in Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the character Macbeth struggles with the Weird Sisters’ prophecy predicting his Scottish kingship. Macbeth believes the only way for him to rise to power is through murder. After contemplating whether or not to kill Duncan, the current king, Macbeth ultimately decides to follow through in order to gain status and power. As an audience member, I do not feel sympathy for Macbeth as he independently and consciously betrays his morals and noble duties.…

    • 587 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Theme Of Schizophrenia In Macbeth
    • 1362 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Theme Of Schizophrenia In Macbeth

    In the play Macbeth, Macbeth receives a prophecy from three witches that tell him that he will one day become king. Macbeth then sets out to make the prophecy a reality by committing regicide and taking the king’s life, then becoming king himself. After he becomes king, he begins to go mad with guilt and paranoia from what he has done, yet he still commits more murders in order to keep his throne. The country is thrown into chaos after the death of the king, and Macbeth does little to nothing to keep his country in order due to his own personal issues, which causes a rebellion, led…

    • 1362 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Examples Of Power In Macbeth
    • 898 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Examples Of Power In Macbeth

    Within the play Macbeth, Macbeth proves how after achieving glory, acknowledging the mistakes he committed was not enough to keep him from failure. In the play Macbeth, Macbeth wants power and glory so bad that he kills Duncan the current king, and then tries to kill anyone who might come in his way or try and dethrone Macbeth. Macbeth is so power driven that he decides…

    • 898 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    What Is Macbeth's Ambition
    • 1080 Words
    • 5 Pages

    What Is Macbeth's Ambition

    After the three witches, or weïrd sisters, tell Macbeth about his future of becoming king, he became fixated on the sense of his head being adorned with the crown. While it was not his intended idea to kill the king, he does so in order to satisfy his desire to have the crown on his head. While Macbeth may have felt guilty of his deed, his ambition led him to slay the lives of more innocent people in order to keep his objective from failing. In fact, Macbeth’s aspiration to rule without the pressure or the questioning of others gave him the motivation to murder his best friend, Banquo. Macbeth states, “Whose loves I may not drop, but wail his fall Who I myself struck down. And thence it is, That I to your assistance do make love, Masking the business from the common eye For sundry weighty reasons” (Act 3, scene 1 Pg. 89 Shakespeare). Macbeth was so determined to remove any threats to his reign that he became daring enough to hire someone to murder his friend and his family. Macbeth’s ambition took control of the situation, and because Macbeth needed to satisfy his ruthless desire, he preformed the immoral act of murder. As Napoleon Bonaparte once stated, ambition can be used for good or bad acts, depending on the values that are influencing these motivations. Macbeth, seeing the only way to become king was commit murder, was motivated and so determined to take the…

    • 1080 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Violence In Macbeth Essay
    • 640 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Violence In Macbeth Essay

    Violence has been a part of human history since the first ape slapped another ape. Over the course of generations wars have been fought and lost, while the human toll has been too large to comprehend. Violence has shaped our world, our nations, and our lives. It has even influenced many of the world’s finest works of literature. While the violence in Macbeth is what is responsible for the entirety of the story it no doubt grows out of control, since Duncan’s murder by Macbeth serves as catalyst for more murders by other characters, making The Tragedy of Macbeth one of the more brutal plays of its time.…

    • 640 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Macbeths Ambition
    • 468 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Macbeths Ambition

    Political ambition undermines man’s loyalty. In the play, Macbeth decides to kill his king because of his ambition for position. At the beginning of the play, he portrays himself as a noble person. He fights in the battle against Norway and proves his loyalty; however, as soon as the witches prophesize that Macbeth “shall be king hereafter” (1.3.53), he is not longer trustworthy. Ambition for power starts creeping into his head. After Macbeth’s internal conflict over whether or not to kill Duncan, he decides to do it quickly (1.7.3) in order to hasten the predictions. He decides to kill the king because he wants to extend his power all over the country by becoming the new monarch. He desires to be more wealthy and respected by the nobility as well as by the common people. Becoming king represents the highest rang in the political pyramid. The act of murdering is the only way to make his dreams come true because Duncan’s fair and prosperous rule over Scotland experience the support of the whole population. As Malcolm…

    • 468 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Power In Macbeth Essay
    • 431 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Power In Macbeth Essay

    The lust Macbeth has for power has deteriorated his mind and transformed him into a liar. To elaborate, the significant event in Act II was the assassination of Duncan, the king of Scotland, by Macbeth. Macbeth committed this murder to seize the throne for himself, as predicted by the Witches. Before he crossed that bridge and burned it, Macbeth was a loyal and powerful member of the Scottish nobility. His morals and state of mind were in good shape, however, when he thinks he can be king, the desire for power overwhelms him. Up to the point of the murder Macbeth’s state of mind deteriorates due to the abandonment of loyalty and his morals. This is shown when Macbeth is waiting for Lady Macbeth’s signal that Duncan and his guards have…

    • 431 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Macbeth
    • 1181 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Macbeth

    Macbeth was very hesitant about killing honorable men to get what he desired most. After he made the first murder, all of the other ones were easy and he had no thought about it at all. The prophecies that the witches conjured triggered his greed to become king and to help his fate come true. First he killed Duncan so he could take his place and be crowned the king of Scotland, which led Malcolm in fleeing the country helping Macbeth to take the throne. Malcolm was next in line, but he…

    • 1181 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Selfish Desires
    • 1013 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Selfish Desires

    When people want something they justify that it is their right to have it and therefore can do what it takes to get it. This is a fact that is shown in the play of Macbeth many times and often explains the horrible actions of some of the characters. He says: “If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me without my stir.” This shows that he now knows of his potential to be king which means that he will do whatever it takes to become king. He believes that it is now his right to take that position and therefore has to kill King Duncan to get it. You can also see this in the way lady Macbeth thinks. Once she hears of Macbeth’s meeting with the witches she automatically thinks of how they will get it and can only see all the good things that they could have and doesn’t think of any of the consequences. Selfish desires get the best of us and we don’t see the consequences as a reason to not try to get what we want.…

    • 1013 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics