The character of Macbeth also goes through several stages during the play. At the beginning he is just a brave warrior who looks for power and recognition through his performance in the fields of battle. After having heard the witches and their predictions of Macbeth becoming king, he begins to think how it could be possible. The combination of his ambition and the bad influence of his wife lead him to commit the murdered of Duncan in order to fulfill the prophecy of the wishes. One may think of Macbeth as the typical criminal. However he doesn´t have the characteristics that …show more content…
criminals have, I mean he recognizes the reason by which he is going to kill Duncan is no other than his own ambition, therefore he is aware of the consequences he will face by committing the crime.
The second stage of Macbeth comes after the murdered of Duncan when he assassinates Duncan and immediately after he begins to feel remorse.
According to experts true criminals should not show any signal of guilt or repentance as Macbeth did, but they should be proud of what they did as if they had won a trophy, or because they are not conscious of the consequences of it or simply because they can´t see the reality as it is. In the case of Macbeth up to this point he can´t be considered to be a criminal mind but a men who committed a crime and suddenly realizes it was horrible and begins to feel ashamed, guilty and condemned. He realizes from that moment on he will live in disgrace and
suffering.
The third stage is when Macbeth realizes he had not only killed Duncan but also the two servants next to his chamber. In this moment Macbeth acted as a typical criminal just by the impulse of the moment and the fear of being discovered before becoming king. He does not even think about the previous plan of letting the dagger in their hands in order to blame them for the murder. He just acted impulsively and out of control like criminals do. Although Macbeth felt remorse and was conscious of his actions and the consequences of them, he recognized he couldn’t stop killing because it will be always something that represented a menace for him and for his appreciated throne. So Macbeth became a true criminal and continued killing and killing arguing his deeds were just necessary in order to preserve his life and his throne.
As a conclusion I would say Macbeth wasn´t a real criminal even when he had killed many men in battle, it was the fact of killing Duncan by ambition what converted him on a true criminal, since he recognizes he could not stop killing since one murdered leads to another one and to another and to another. One single murder could be even accidental but the reaction after the crime is what makes the difference. In spite of Macbeth didn´t fulfill all the characteristics of what is considered by experts to be a criminal mind, he still has the necessary qualities to fit in that profile.