Lady Macbeth: A Tragic Hero
Jessica Pearson
Ms. Iskandar
Accelerated English 3-4
31 March 2017
Macbeth Essay:
When looking through a crystal ball, individuals hope to find a clear path of their future. It seems like a gift -- to know one’s life story and how it ends in potential triumph. However in Macbeth’s case, the knowledge of his future leads to his destruction. After a battle, three witches approach Macbeth, and prophesize his future achievements, one of which is to be the future king of Scotland. Macbeth begins to obsess over the prophecy, leading to his downfall throughout the production. In the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare, Macbeth’s wife -- Lady Macbeth, is revealed as a foil character to Macbeth, as shown through their personality and actions. As a …show more content…
In order to become a tragic hero, Macbeth must have a miserable end, caused from his hamartia and an outside force. Lady Macbeth becomes the outside force, helping Macbeth develop his hamartia. Event from the start, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth argue about moral standards, specifically revolving around the potential assassination of King Duncan in order to obtain the throne. After multiple arguments, Lady Macbeth finally convinces Macbeth to kill King Duncan. This devolves Macbeth’s character as he spirals out of control, becoming paranoid about his safety and who he can trust, all while losing his mind. After Macbeth kills Banquo -- his best friend, he hallucinates at the dinner table, screaming at the empty table: “Avaunt and quit my sight! Let the earth hide thee. / Thy bones are marrowless, thy blood is cold. / Thou hast no speculation in those eyes / Which thou dost glare with” (3.4/113-116). Macbeth’s hallucinations reveal the tragedy of his loss of loyalty, as only recently before, he is a strong, well respected soldier that fights for his country. The simple manipulation from his wife causes Macbeth to commit excessive crimes and lose his sanity. Now as king, Macbeth falls into an abyss of psychosis, devolving into a tyrant that kills all. This forces a fellow lord named Macduff, to run away from the country without his family, …show more content…
Assignment : Write an analytical essay about the effect of the character interaction in the play Macbeth. Choose a character whose words or ideas contrast with Macbeth’s character. Explain how these conflicting motivations contribute to Macbeth’s development as a tragic hero and how the character’s interactions advance the plot or develop themes of the play.
Character Choice: Lady Macbeth
How does Lady Macbeth help Macbeth gain self knowledge?
After Macbeth murders Duncan and becomes King, all he cares about is safety - he no longer cares about being King
He realises that he didn’t want/need the power
After Lady Macbeth dies, Macbeth no longer wants to live - he realises life isn’t what he thought it would be.
Paragraph 1: Define the contrast between the character and Macbeth
Lady Macbeth acts quickly and is cold (quote from her monologue)
Macbeth takes forever to act and has many emotions.
Lady Macbeth is manipulative and confident (quote from her talking about how she will kill her child etc.)
Macbeth is weak and
Ms. Iskandar
Accelerated English 3-4
31 March 2017
Macbeth Essay:
When looking through a crystal ball, individuals hope to find a clear path of their future. It seems like a gift -- to know one’s life story and how it ends in potential triumph. However in Macbeth’s case, the knowledge of his future leads to his destruction. After a battle, three witches approach Macbeth, and prophesize his future achievements, one of which is to be the future king of Scotland. Macbeth begins to obsess over the prophecy, leading to his downfall throughout the production. In the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare, Macbeth’s wife -- Lady Macbeth, is revealed as a foil character to Macbeth, as shown through their personality and actions. As a …show more content…
In order to become a tragic hero, Macbeth must have a miserable end, caused from his hamartia and an outside force. Lady Macbeth becomes the outside force, helping Macbeth develop his hamartia. Event from the start, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth argue about moral standards, specifically revolving around the potential assassination of King Duncan in order to obtain the throne. After multiple arguments, Lady Macbeth finally convinces Macbeth to kill King Duncan. This devolves Macbeth’s character as he spirals out of control, becoming paranoid about his safety and who he can trust, all while losing his mind. After Macbeth kills Banquo -- his best friend, he hallucinates at the dinner table, screaming at the empty table: “Avaunt and quit my sight! Let the earth hide thee. / Thy bones are marrowless, thy blood is cold. / Thou hast no speculation in those eyes / Which thou dost glare with” (3.4/113-116). Macbeth’s hallucinations reveal the tragedy of his loss of loyalty, as only recently before, he is a strong, well respected soldier that fights for his country. The simple manipulation from his wife causes Macbeth to commit excessive crimes and lose his sanity. Now as king, Macbeth falls into an abyss of psychosis, devolving into a tyrant that kills all. This forces a fellow lord named Macduff, to run away from the country without his family, …show more content…
Assignment : Write an analytical essay about the effect of the character interaction in the play Macbeth. Choose a character whose words or ideas contrast with Macbeth’s character. Explain how these conflicting motivations contribute to Macbeth’s development as a tragic hero and how the character’s interactions advance the plot or develop themes of the play.
Character Choice: Lady Macbeth
How does Lady Macbeth help Macbeth gain self knowledge?
After Macbeth murders Duncan and becomes King, all he cares about is safety - he no longer cares about being King
He realises that he didn’t want/need the power
After Lady Macbeth dies, Macbeth no longer wants to live - he realises life isn’t what he thought it would be.
Paragraph 1: Define the contrast between the character and Macbeth
Lady Macbeth acts quickly and is cold (quote from her monologue)
Macbeth takes forever to act and has many emotions.
Lady Macbeth is manipulative and confident (quote from her talking about how she will kill her child etc.)
Macbeth is weak and