Macbeth vs. Lady Macbeth

Abstract

In William Shakespeare's Macbeth, the tragic hero or the great and virtuous character, Macbeth is destined for downfall as he brings suffering and defeat upon himself. However, this statement can be widely debatable, as many would assume that Lady Macbeth also plays an immense role in the murder of Duncan, the beginning of the tragedy. Early in the play, Macbeth encounters three witches or supernatural beings that foretell his future as the new King of Scotland. Intrigued by their prophecies, Macbeth places faith in their words. Macbeth's wife, Lady Macbeth, is instrumental in his ambition, manipulating him, as they both scheme for greatness. Driven by the will to become King, Macbeth commits the murder of the current King Duncan and continuously murders those that suspect him. He is led to his own destruction as Macduff, a Scottish noble, later kills him. Moreover, although both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth can be considered guilty for the downfall of Macbeth or the tragedy of the play, Macbeth is more to blame as a result of his ruthlessness, his ambitious desires, and his naïve character, which allow him to betray his own conscience.

Macbeth's ambitious character and his insatiable lust for power drives him to change his nature towards evil commencing his tragic downfall. Upon hearing the prophecies of the witches, Macbeth immediately ponders about the predictions and creates an idea to murder the King. Macbeth states that the image of Duncan, the current King's death "doth unfix my hair" (I.ii.148) meaning that this image was too horrid to even imagine. Early in the play, the witches only predicted that he would become King but it was Macbeth's ambitious character that takes it to the next step as he now thrives on the will to become King. Although the King's death was never mentioned in the prophecies, Macbeth plants the idea in his head that the only way for him to become King, as the predictions stated was to kill Duncan, which creates and displays his lust for power. Macbeth also mentions, "let not light see my black and deep desires" (I.iv.58). This is another example in which he now admits this dark character inside him, demonstrating that his valiant, brave character displayed in the beginning of the play is slowly fading away or deteriorating as his ambitious character takes over.