Thursday, January 2, 2020

Themes in Shakespeares Macbeth - 1043 Words

MacBeth is one of the most renowned plays in history, written by famous playwright William Shakespeare. It is a story of betrayal, tyranny, murder and deadly ambition. These four themes make this tragedy a great resource for studying the darker side of humanity, and why we resort to such measures. While studying the play, I gained many insights into humanity, and will highlight three in-depth. Firstly, I saw the negative effects of uncontrolled ambition. MacBeth, the valiant warrior, hero of Scotland and the idol for young warriors, turned into a murderous, despised tyrant. Secondly, I learnt that murder changes people. There are two instances in MacBeth where murder changed the murderer. And thirdly, I learnt that there is no point to†¦show more content†¦King Edward of England is well respected and well liked, whereas Macbeth is looked upon as a throne stealing tyrant, and is not very well liked by his people When Macbeth became King of Scotland, the majority of people had heard of his conquests for Scotland, and were happy to have him as King. But it was the minority he had to worry about. The thanes of Scotland and the deceased king’s two messengers, Ross and Lennox, are all suspicious about Macbeth’s involvement in Duncan’s death. When the English army started moving out of Birnam woods, Macbeth’s army didn’t want to fight for him, because they thought of him as a cruel leader who wasn’t deserving of their protection. As a result, it left the castle unguarded and Macbeth was exposed to the leaders of the army, to whom he eventually fell to. This part of the play highlighted to me that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. Metaphorically interpreting this quote into the play symbolises Scotland as the chain, with Macbeth being the strongest link, but being held back by the weakest link, his people. In conclusion, Macbeth is a great play to watch and enjoy, but it also teaches us a lot about ourselves and the people around us. To really get full valueShow MoreRelatedThe Themes Of Ambition In Shakespeares Macbeth853 Words   |  4 PagesThere are many different themes displayed in Shakespeares famous play Macbeth. Many of these themes play with nature, the supernatural, and fate. From ghosts to horses eating each other the play uses symbolism, language, and characters to portray these themes. During the play the audience learns of several themes such as ambition, guilt, fate versus free will, nature versus the unnatural, and how things are not always as they seem. 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