Macbeth
How far do you think that Macbeth's and Lady Macbeth's ambition near the beginning of the play brings them the rewards they wish for, later in the play? You should refer closely to the words and actions of both characters.Macbeth and his wife are portrayed as cunning and ambitious characters at the beginning of the play, and their ambition allows them to achieve their primary goal of becoming King and Queen. However, we see that it is this ambition that leads to their downfall later in the play, when they realise that wearing 'borrow'd robes' is not as rewarding as they had expected.Macbeth's ambitious character is evident very early in the play - the fact that he 'starts' on hearing the Witches' prophecies suggests a sense of guilt, as if he has contemplated becoming King before the idea was voiced by the Witches. He is keen to hear more of this 'strange intelligence', so it is possible that Macbeth's ambition was not instigated by the Witches, but was present in his mind prior to the meeting on the heath. However, while he is fascinated at the prospect of becoming King, he believes he lacks the courage to murder Duncan to gain the crown - the thought of it is enough to 'unfix my hair' and 'make my seated heart knock at m
Lady Macbeth herself knows how ambitious Macbeth is: 'Thou wouldst be great', yet she fears that he does not have the 'illness' that should accompany this ambition, so that he may 'seize the nearest way'. She notes that: 'Nought's had, all's spent, Where our desire is got without content. Fleance's surivival rankles Macbeth, who, as a result, feels 'cabin'd, cribb'd, confin'd, bound' in fears and doubts. The ambition that once drove her towards achieving their goals has eventually driven her to suicide. He thinks he is being too ambitious, like a horse trying to 'o'erleap' a jump. She is able to be reassuring when he is tormented by his guilt, yet Macbeth can only say 'she would have died hereafter' in response to her death. The ghost ironically occupies Macbeth's seat - as his descendants will Macbeth's throne: 'push us from our stools'. Macbeth's ambition gains him the throne, but instead he loses love, friendship, respect, and in the end his life. Her control and her cool are driven by ambition, her desire for power. By Act Three, however, Macbeth seems to have 'recovered' - not content with being King, he realises that: 'To be thus is nothing: But to be safely thus. Lady Macbeth's way of coping with the guilt is to avoid thinking about it. Then he fully comprehends the ambiguity of the Witches' words, meeting his death at Macduff's hands as a result of his over-ambition. 'Their main reason for trying to take the throne was to satisfy their lust for power, and to enjoy being in such respected positions. His decision to murder Banquo and Fleance is perhaps a turning point in the play, as it shows just how much more ambitious Macbeth has become - up until now, he has always been forced into action by his wife, but he isolates her from this new plot, keeping her 'innocent of the knowledge'.
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Acceptance Essays
