Friday, August 16, 2019
Good vs evil in Shakespeareââ¬â¢s Macbeth Essay
The play ââ¬ËMacbethââ¬â¢ is a very tragic one. It is about the downfall of a hero who is led by temptation to mass murder and cruelty. Shakespeare uses various styles and techniques to display very evidently how Macbethââ¬â¢s character develops as the story progresses, and thus we see how Macbeth turns from good to evil, from a ââ¬Å"valiant cousinâ⬠and ââ¬Å"worthy gentlemanâ⬠to a ââ¬Å"bloody butcher.â⬠The play tells the story of how a noble warrior, Macbeth, descends into evil after meeting with three witches ââ¬â supernatural beings who prophesy Macbethââ¬â¢s destiny. He is told he will become King of Scotland, and this idea of gaining power leads him to murder the king, take his throne and then continue his ââ¬Ëmurder spreeââ¬â¢ on seemingly whoever he feels like. Eventually Macbeth is slain and order is restored in Scotland. From the very start we have progressively come to abhor Macbeth, however, we cannot help but feel a certain admiration for him. But much more we have a sense of irony and waste: irony because some sterling qualities have been put to such evil use, waste because Macbeth was a potentially great man who was lost. . Macbeth is a play concerned wholly with the battle between good and evil ââ¬â throughout the play we continually see signs of a supernatural struggle between the two, with evil ââ¬Ëwinningââ¬â¢ over good when Macbeth murders the king, but then good finally defeating evil when Macbeth is slain. In fact, in the very opening scene we see signs of supernatural happenings and evil ââ¬â the witches: ââ¬Å"Fair is foul and foul is fair; Hover through the fog and filthy airâ⬠Here we see that, to the witches, what is evil is good (ââ¬Å"foul is fairâ⬠) and what is good they find repulsive (ââ¬Å"fair is foulâ⬠). This seems to be their attitude to life, but it could also be a warning to the audience that things to follow are not what they might seem. The first we hear of Macbeth is with praises to his name. He is called ââ¬Ëbrave Macbethââ¬â¢, ââ¬Ëvaliant cousinââ¬â¢ and ââ¬Ëworthy gentleman,ââ¬â¢ fighting a war for God, king and country. ââ¬Å"For brave Macbeth ââ¬â well he deserves that name ââ¬â Disdaining fortune, with his brandished steel, Which smoked with bloody executionâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ However, it is in scene III that good and evil collide, when Macbeth meets with the witches. Some say that this is the beginning of Macbethââ¬â¢s downfall, as in his firstà soliloquy he has already thought of the idea of murdering his king. This small seed planted in his mind will soon sprout and he will indeed commit treason. Already, the audience loses their adoration for Macbeth as we see his mental frailty and evil intention. The question at hand is what Macbeth should do; is he determined on evil intent or is divine intervention the answer? He contemplates this, and decides that it is not worthwhile to throw everything away for one guilty conscience, instead the solution is murder. We are soon introduced to Lady Macbeth, and it becomes clear that she is the ambition, the ââ¬Ëdriving forceââ¬â¢, behind her husband. To Lady Macbeth, her husband is brave, loving, ambitious yet he is too noble to fulfil the third prophesy. Lady Macbeth then calls upon evil spirits to make her ruthless so she can kill Duncan. ââ¬Å"Come you spirits, That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, And fill me from the crown to the top toe-full Of direst cruelty; make thick my blood.â⬠After reading the letter, she already has a plan brewing. However, she fears Macbethââ¬â¢s nature. ââ¬Ëyet I do fear thy nature, it is too full oââ¬â¢thââ¬â¢milk of human kindnessââ¬â¢, ââ¬ËThou wouldst be great, Art not without ambition, but without the illness should attend itââ¬â¢, ââ¬ËWhat thou wouldst highly, that wouldst thou holily; wouldst not play false, And yet wouldst wrongly win.ââ¬â¢ The planning of the murder of Duncan is one of the most important sections of this tragedy. Here we see a conflict in Macbethââ¬â¢s character, one side wants him to commit the murder, while the other wants to let fate take its course. In a way it is due to his wife that Macbeth is finally persuaded into committing treason. This shows one of the flaws in his character, which Shakespeare exposes. A while after Macbeth has certain misgivings about the affair. In his mind he argues out the advantages and disadvantages. The good side of him says that ââ¬Ëheââ¬â¢s here in double trustââ¬â¢ ââ¬ËI am his kinsman and subjectââ¬â¢, ââ¬Ëas his host who should against his murderers shut the door, not bear the knife myself.ââ¬â¢ The more cunning party says that ââ¬Ë his virtues will plead like angels trumpet-tongued against the deep-damnation of his taking offââ¬â¢, ââ¬Ëbut only vaulting ambition, which oââ¬â¢erleaps itself and falls on the otherââ¬â¢,ââ¬â¢twereà well it were done quicklyââ¬â¢, ââ¬Ëbut this blow might be and the end all hereââ¬â¢, ââ¬Ëbloody instructions, which being taught, return to plague thââ¬â¢ inventor.ââ¬â¢ Yet he cannot maintain this spark of morality as, under the influence of his wife he commits treachery. After the murder Macbeth experienced remorse, guilt and regret, still revealing his nobility. ââ¬Å"I am afraid to think what I have doneâ⬠he says. He is troubled by his conscience, he realizes that he is cut off from heaven. He is in fact so hampered in his actions by the conflict between his knowledge that he has committed the crime and his abhorrence of it, that he becomes immobile. Macbethââ¬â¢s evil is so great that he cannot even say amen to his prayer ââ¬Å",I could not say amen.â⬠By now he realizes he is too deep into his acts of violence to turn back. Macbeth has confused the values of good and evil. That is, he has confused fair and foul, which confusion has all along been the devilââ¬â¢s aim. Macbeth has completely committed himself to evil. Macbeth still thinks of himself as a man, and as such would rather die than suffer the indignity of being ââ¬Ëbaited with the rabbleââ¬â¢s curse.ââ¬â¢ This feeling in him reminds us of the worthy Macbeth at the beginning of the play. We also see that he still has the courage to act on his convictions, desperate though that courage may be. For he knows now that he must die. He fights as a man. Macduff and Macbeth fight which signifies the ever on-going battle between good and evil. Eventually Macbeth is slain and the evil has been stopped in Scotland ââ¬â good has triumphed, as Malcom is crowned the new King.
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