MacBeth - Attitude Changes
In the tragic drama Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare in 1606 during the English Renaissance, the hero, Macbeth, constantly declines in his level of morality until his death at the end of the play. Because of his change of character from good to evil, Macbeth's attitude towards other characters, specifically Duncan, Banquo, Lady Macbeth, and the witches, is significantly affected.
The first of the four characters is Duncan. Since Macbeth interacts with Duncan only a minimal amount before Duncan's death, Macbeth's attitude towards him changes very rapidly. Before Macbeth hears the witches' first prophecy, he is very close to Duncan, and would never even think of doing ...
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night. On the other hand, as the time for murder comes nearer, he begins giving himself reasons not to murder Duncan:
First, as I am his kinsman and his subject,
Strong both against the deed; then, as his host,
Who should against his murderer shut the door,
Not bear the knife myself.
(I, vii, 13-16)
When Lady Macbeth enters, though, she uses her cunning rhetoric and pursuasion techniques to convince Macbeth that this is, beyond the shadow of a doubt, the right thing to do. He then tells her that "I am settled." (79). He is firmly seated in his beliefs that killing Duncan is the right thing to do-until he performs the murder. He is so horrified by this act that for a moment he forgets where he is or whom he is with. We learn from this murder that Macbeth truly had faith in the king and was very loyal, but under the forces of his wife's persuasion and his own vaulting ambition, he is put in the evil frame of mind for just long enough to kill Duncan. ...
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iv, 12-14)
Macbeth's last statement, "Tis . . . within", means that Banquo's blood is better on the murderer than in Banquo, showing that Macbeth is, in truth, happy that Banquo has been killed. the killing of Banquo by Macbeth shows extreme selfishness; he cannot bear to see even his best friend's sons succeed him on the throne. However, a more important reason that Macbeth kills Banquo is because of Banquo's suspicion of him, and what Banquo will do to him once he finds out for sure that Macbeth has commited the murder of Duncan. One can see that Macbeth becomes extremely harsh if he wants his way. He will go to horrid extremes just so that he does not have to live his ...
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"MacBeth - Attitude Changes." Essayworld.com. June 22, 2007. Accessed December 22, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/MacBeth-Attitude-Changes/66843.
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