Macbeth
Throughout the Shakespearian play ‘Macbeth,’ change is a noticeable factor that supersedes everything you knew before, for instance, Macbeth’s unbreakable friendship with his best friend Banquo, his unspeakable idea of murder and his loving relationship with his wife Lady Macbeth. Macbeth is a character that changes all of these, and does so noticeably throughout the play.
Macbeth’s strong and stable friendship with Banquo is obviously that of genuine affection for each other, as shown by this quote.
‘Your sons shall be kings.’
This shows that Macbeth and Banquo have a strong sense of friendship and meaningfulness to each other, and have a stable bond between one another. This quote especially shows that Macbeth holds Banquo in high regard because of how he mentions Banquo’s sons and refers to them with genuine affection.
When Macbeth becomes King of Scotland, his long and loyal friendship with Banquo has met its end due to Banquo’s suspicion that Macbeth is a murderer.
‘Both of you know Banquo as your enemy… so is he mine.’
This shows Macbeths open fear of Banquo and also clearly states that Macbeth thinks Banquo an enemy and a great threat capable of undoing him. From being Macbeth’s best and closest friend, Banquo is now his most feared enemy, as the quote states. ‘So is he mine.’ This makes Macbeth open in admitting his friend’s extremely dangerous stance, as he suspects Macbeth of the murder of King Duncan.
Once the idea of murder is presented to Macbeth by his wife, Lady Macbeth, he dismisses the preposterous idea immediately due to his good and noble nature.
‘We will proceed no further in this business.’
This quote clearly shows Macbeth’s personal opinion of murder. He is a general in King Duncan’s army and murder seems an act of cowardice, ignorance and treason. Macbeth dismisses this idea entirely and allows no such hateful thought enter his noble mind.
Astonishingly quickly, Macbeth’s personal opinion of murder changes, having been mostly influenced by his ambitious wife. Macbeth is now possessed by murderous thoughts and corruption.
‘The castle of Macduff I will surprise, give to the edge of the sword his wife, his babes.’
As shown, Macbeth’s idea of murder has changed rapidly and radically, his noble attitude and loyal instinct deserting him the moment after his murder of King Duncan. This quote shows exactly how rapid and aggressive Macbeth’s change of heart was, and shows how deep he is willing to go to in order to remain king. ‘Give to the edge of the sword his wife, his babes,’ shows how radical and possessed Macbeth has become, his willingness to murder children shows how dark and pessimistic he has become.
Macbeth’s return to his wife is a happy one; they’re both in love with each other and aspire from their healthy relationship, as shown by this quote:
‘My dearest love.’
This quote represents Macbeth’s deep love for his wife, and also shows the deep meaning in their relationship. For instance how he says ‘my dearest love,’ is a direct address of passionate love. Macbeth and his wife’s relationship is very professional and noble, as Macbeth is an army commander and is away from his wife frequently. On the whole, whilst Macbeth is uncorrupted by their three witches prophecy, Macbeth’s relationship with his wife is loving, passionate and professional.
Sadly, moments before the death of King Duncan and Banquo, the Macbeths’ marriage starts to slowly die, as of Macbeth’s guilty and reluctant conscience and Lady Macbeth’s rapidly descending ambition and insanity. Macbeth now hardly cares about his wife, as this quote clearly shows:
‘She should’ve died hereafter.’
This shows Macbeth’s change of heart towards his wife. From being a loving couple, they have now descended down to nothing. This quote shows Macbeth’s uncaring attitude towards his wife’s death, and to emphasize this Macbeth’s dark ability to shrug of the heavy news of his wife’s death is a serious sign that their relationship had come to a staggering end a long time ago. Macbeth did not look to his wife with much malice; moreover he showed his ignorance and unconcern for his beloved wife.
Macbeth is a character of change, and his changes occur in his friendship with his best friend Banquo, his idea of murder and his relationship with his wife, all of these ideas have been changed throughout the play and have shown Macbeth’s adaptability to change. As a thick baseline for the play, the idea of ‘rise and fall’ is evident. Shakespeare has converted this concept into his play, making Macbeth come into power unjustly, then suffering the consequences and tumbling down. The reason this prospect of ‘rise and fall’ so famous is because it is a famous technique still being used today in a large variety of films, plays and reality. For example, Chris Carter was a high ranking Labour MP who stole taxpayer’s money for his own needs and interests. He wrote a self-sabotage letter, which eventually led to his downfall of his future as a Labour MP. This concept of ‘rise and fall’ has been perfectly adapted into the Shakespearian play Macbeth which led to the storyline of Macbeth being changed.
Macbeth’s strong and stable friendship with Banquo is obviously that of genuine affection for each other, as shown by this quote.
‘Your sons shall be kings.’
This shows that Macbeth and Banquo have a strong sense of friendship and meaningfulness to each other, and have a stable bond between one another. This quote especially shows that Macbeth holds Banquo in high regard because of how he mentions Banquo’s sons and refers to them with genuine affection.
When Macbeth becomes King of Scotland, his long and loyal friendship with Banquo has met its end due to Banquo’s suspicion that Macbeth is a murderer.
‘Both of you know Banquo as your enemy… so is he mine.’
This shows Macbeths open fear of Banquo and also clearly states that Macbeth thinks Banquo an enemy and a great threat capable of undoing him. From being Macbeth’s best and closest friend, Banquo is now his most feared enemy, as the quote states. ‘So is he mine.’ This makes Macbeth open in admitting his friend’s extremely dangerous stance, as he suspects Macbeth of the murder of King Duncan.
Once the idea of murder is presented to Macbeth by his wife, Lady Macbeth, he dismisses the preposterous idea immediately due to his good and noble nature.
‘We will proceed no further in this business.’
This quote clearly shows Macbeth’s personal opinion of murder. He is a general in King Duncan’s army and murder seems an act of cowardice, ignorance and treason. Macbeth dismisses this idea entirely and allows no such hateful thought enter his noble mind.
Astonishingly quickly, Macbeth’s personal opinion of murder changes, having been mostly influenced by his ambitious wife. Macbeth is now possessed by murderous thoughts and corruption.
‘The castle of Macduff I will surprise, give to the edge of the sword his wife, his babes.’
As shown, Macbeth’s idea of murder has changed rapidly and radically, his noble attitude and loyal instinct deserting him the moment after his murder of King Duncan. This quote shows exactly how rapid and aggressive Macbeth’s change of heart was, and shows how deep he is willing to go to in order to remain king. ‘Give to the edge of the sword his wife, his babes,’ shows how radical and possessed Macbeth has become, his willingness to murder children shows how dark and pessimistic he has become.
Macbeth’s return to his wife is a happy one; they’re both in love with each other and aspire from their healthy relationship, as shown by this quote:
‘My dearest love.’
This quote represents Macbeth’s deep love for his wife, and also shows the deep meaning in their relationship. For instance how he says ‘my dearest love,’ is a direct address of passionate love. Macbeth and his wife’s relationship is very professional and noble, as Macbeth is an army commander and is away from his wife frequently. On the whole, whilst Macbeth is uncorrupted by their three witches prophecy, Macbeth’s relationship with his wife is loving, passionate and professional.
Sadly, moments before the death of King Duncan and Banquo, the Macbeths’ marriage starts to slowly die, as of Macbeth’s guilty and reluctant conscience and Lady Macbeth’s rapidly descending ambition and insanity. Macbeth now hardly cares about his wife, as this quote clearly shows:
‘She should’ve died hereafter.’
This shows Macbeth’s change of heart towards his wife. From being a loving couple, they have now descended down to nothing. This quote shows Macbeth’s uncaring attitude towards his wife’s death, and to emphasize this Macbeth’s dark ability to shrug of the heavy news of his wife’s death is a serious sign that their relationship had come to a staggering end a long time ago. Macbeth did not look to his wife with much malice; moreover he showed his ignorance and unconcern for his beloved wife.
Macbeth is a character of change, and his changes occur in his friendship with his best friend Banquo, his idea of murder and his relationship with his wife, all of these ideas have been changed throughout the play and have shown Macbeth’s adaptability to change. As a thick baseline for the play, the idea of ‘rise and fall’ is evident. Shakespeare has converted this concept into his play, making Macbeth come into power unjustly, then suffering the consequences and tumbling down. The reason this prospect of ‘rise and fall’ so famous is because it is a famous technique still being used today in a large variety of films, plays and reality. For example, Chris Carter was a high ranking Labour MP who stole taxpayer’s money for his own needs and interests. He wrote a self-sabotage letter, which eventually led to his downfall of his future as a Labour MP. This concept of ‘rise and fall’ has been perfectly adapted into the Shakespearian play Macbeth which led to the storyline of Macbeth being changed.
