Soliloquies in Macbeth

These soliloquies show a clear development in the character of Macbeth. They are used throughout the play, and are very important in the understanding of the play. The first two soliloquies show Macbeth’s through process and opinions on what course of action to take before he kills Duncan. The following two soliloquies show his thought process after he is committed to killing Duncan, and much of his hesitation in doing so. These soliloquies are key to the story, and if we didn’t have they the play would be much harder to understand. Overall, these soliloquies show Macbeth’s humanity in the play. The first soliloquies is very key in the story, and gives the reader a perspective on what is going to happen in the play, and what Macbeths original impression of it was. It talks about the witches and how they told Macbeth that he would become the Thane of Cawdor, and then the King. At first, Macbeth didn’t listen to the witches, but then once he became Thane of Cawdor, he saw that it couldn’t have been a coincidence He then continues to think about what the witches told him, and he realizes he has a shot at actually becoming the king. However, he has mixed feeling about the encounter with the witches, because he realizes that if they are correct, he will have to kill the king to take his position. He is appalled by the thought of killing King Duncan, but the key thing is he considered it thought about it. The second soliloquy continues on similar lines. At this point, he realizes that to become king, he must kill the king, and if he doesn’t kill the king, the Prince of Cumberland, the king’s son, will inherit the throne. He continues to think about killing the king, and is becoming more willing to, trying to detach himself from it saying, “I will not look at what my hand will do.” These two soliloquies show his through process before he was completely committed to killing the king. The following two soliloquies show Macbeth’s thought process once he is fully