1) Macbeth's choices were influenced by both positive and negative external factors, including the witches' prophecies that triggered his ambition, and Lady Macbeth pressuring him to commit murder.
2) The witches had a strong impact on Macbeth's decision to seize power by prophesying he would become king, fueling his ambition.
3) Lady Macbeth also strongly influenced Macbeth as his wife and confidante, questioning his manhood when he hesitated to kill Duncan.
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1) Macbeth's choices were influenced by both positive and negative external factors, including the witches' prophecies that triggered his ambition, and Lady Macbeth pressuring him to commit murder.
2) The witches had a strong impact on Macbeth's decision to seize power by prophesying he would become king, fueling his ambition.
3) Lady Macbeth also strongly influenced Macbeth as his wife and confidante, questioning his manhood when he hesitated to kill Duncan.
1) Macbeth's choices were influenced by both positive and negative external factors, including the witches' prophecies that triggered his ambition, and Lady Macbeth pressuring him to commit murder.
2) The witches had a strong impact on Macbeth's decision to seize power by prophesying he would become king, fueling his ambition.
3) Lady Macbeth also strongly influenced Macbeth as his wife and confidante, questioning his manhood when he hesitated to kill Duncan.
Copyright:
Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
Available Formats
Download as TXT, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
1) Macbeth's choices were influenced by both positive and negative external factors, including the witches' prophecies that triggered his ambition, and Lady Macbeth pressuring him to commit murder.
2) The witches had a strong impact on Macbeth's decision to seize power by prophesying he would become king, fueling his ambition.
3) Lady Macbeth also strongly influenced Macbeth as his wife and confidante, questioning his manhood when he hesitated to kill Duncan.
Copyright:
Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
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Download as TXT, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
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Describe an important idea you learned about in the text.
Explain why this idea
was worth learning about. An important idea in William Shakespeare’s play, Macbeth, is that our ch oices are not based entirely on one opinion, but have other outside influences. In the play, Macbeth made some bad choices motivated by negative influences, whi ch are constantly in conflict with positive influences inside him. The dominant influences that affected his decisions and led to his eventual downfall were, th e witches who manipulate Macbeth with prophecies that trigger his powerful drive of pride and ambition, Lady Macbeth’s influential role as wife and confidante, pressures him into committing murder, and Macbeth’s own ambition and fear overco mes him as he becomes reckless and paranoid. The influences which struggle to mo tivate him to do what is morally right, but ultimately do not win, are the belie fs of society at the time and Macbeth’s conscience, knowledge of right and wrong . I believe that the three witches had a great impression in Macbeth’s dec ision to violently seize the crown. The witches prophecy “... All hail Macbeth, Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor! All hail Macbeth! That shalt be king hereafter”. They prognosticate that Macbeth will be promoted, and then crowned king. What th e witches predict may seem to be good fortune but actually turn out differently, or not the way Macbeth had imagined. This also relates to the other prophecy “f oul is fair and fair is foul...”. The witches craftiness plant a seed of ambitio n inside Macbeth’s heart, prompting him to commit evil crimes. Later on in the p lay Macbeth seeks out the witches for help where they manipulate him again. They plan to lead Macbeth to his downfall, “As by the strength of their illusion, sh all draw him to his confusion... And you all know security is mortals’ chiefest enemy”. And so they give him another prophecy “...laugh to scorn the power of ma n, for none of woman born shall harm Macbeth... Macbeth shall never be vanquishe d be until Great Birnam to high Dunsinane hill shall come against him”. This pro phecy gives Macbeth false security and makes him feel over-confident, exactly wh at the witches desired. He also attempts to murder Mac duff, as the witches said , he poses a threat to Macbeth’s life but does not succeed, instead killing Mac duff’s family, creating more hate and vengeance upon his head. Lady Macbeth is Macbeth’s beloved wife and is another strong influence i n Macbeth’s decision-making. She and Macbeth had a good relationship and a stron g marriage, evidence of this is where Lady Macbeth refers to Macbeth as “My dear est partner of greatness”. Therefore her influence would be very persuasive. Ano ther indication of Lady Macbeth’s control over Macbeth is when she says “Hie thi ther, that I may pour my spirits in thine ear and chastise with the valour of my tongue, all that impedes thee from the golden round”. This quote is also anothe r indication of Lady Macbeth’s superior willpower that she exercises over Macbet h. When Macbeth tells her of his decision not to kill Duncan she quickly retalia tes and accuses Macbeth of being a coward “As thou art desire? Wouldst thou have that which thou esteemst the ornament of life, and live a coward in thy own est eem”. She indicts Macbeth a coward and inconsistent for not being able to make h is mind up. Lady Macbeth questions his manhood when she said “When you durst do it, then you were a man; And to be here than you were, you would be so much more the man... They have made themselves, and that their fitness now does unmake yo u”, she implies that he is unmanly because he is fearful and for that reason wea k. Macbeth listens and follows. Leading up to the murder of Duncan, Macbeth is ambivalent about what he should do. He understands the laws of society and the seriousness of murdering t he king “Why do I yield to that suggestion whose horrid image doth unfix my hair ”. Macbeth is visualizing killing Duncan but does not believe it is what he shou ld do, although, he desperately covets the crown. In Macbeth’s soliloquy he rati onalizes why he shouldn’t kill Duncan. “First, as I am his kinsman and his subje ct ... and his host”. If anything Macbeth should be protecting Duncan from an in truder to the crown as it is his duty as a relative, friend and a good host. “.. . Duncan hath borne his faculties so meek; hath been so clear in his great offic e...” Basically, Duncan has done nothing to deserve such a betrayal from a most loved subject. “But here, upon this bank and shoal of time, we’d jump the life t o come. But in these cases we still have judgement here; that we but teach blood y instructions, which being taught... this even handed justice”. Macbeth fears t he judgement that will come upon him in this life and the next. But then Macbeth is overcome by his ambition and returns to idea of murdering the king. “I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition, which o’erl eaps itself and falls on the other”. Macbeth compares himself to an over eager r ider who, in trying to leap onto his horse’s saddle, leaps over the horse. Although what Macbeth did was not right, and I am not trying to justify or defend him, he cannot be held fully responsible and had he been left alone to make his decisions himself without the negative influences he would’ve done the right thing. The fact is that pressures around us affect our decisions in life which in the end decide who we are. I feel the importance of this idea is to be able to identify and distinguish positive and negative influences in our lives a nd make well informed decisions or otherwise be able to evaluate our mistakes an d understand them, then improve ourselves and never make the same mistake twice. Jesse Haretuku