Macbeth's Fall from Grace
Macbeth: Despair for the Ages, Yale Daily News, 2016
Why do people who are not "evil" take the first step into evil? What, for instance, is involved in taking that first step "down the primrose pah to the everlasting bonfire" (Macbeth, 2.3)? What are the consequences of the individual choosing evil (particularly the internal consequences)? Use examples from the text to support your opinion.
At the turn of the 17th century, Europe was a mixture of many different beliefs and values, especially when it came to religion. There was an increased amount of tension between Catholics and Protestants in Great Britain. Most people during this time were fiercely Protestant, but more and more people were becoming Catholic, challenging popular belief and tradition. Additionally, the monarchy was greatly influenced by religion and it was so deeply intertwined with rulers that the 17th century was characterized by the strict religious rules enforced by Queen Elizabeth I and King James I. These rulers were extremely against Catholicism and in turn took their fears of it gaining a foothold in England out on the Catholics that they persecuted and attempted to rid England of them by claiming they were all witches and supernaturals, something that was heavily believed in at the time.
As a playwright, William Shakespeare undoubtedly used his plays as a means of commenting on the society he was caught in the middle of -- one of his most memorable plays being Macbeth. Written in 1606, Macbeth was a forum Shakespeare had to comment on the monarchs, Queen Elizabeth I and King James I, as well as the powerful influence that the supernatural had on the time period.
Within Macbeth, the story line follows a Scottish war hero named Macbeth, supposedly an allegory for King James I, who has received an intriguing prophecy from three witches that proclaims he will one day be king of Scotland. Obsessed and full of ambition to fulfill this concept, Macbeth is egged on by his wife and he begins to eliminate any possible competition that would get in the way of his prophecy. Eventually, he is so consumed by the guilt and paranoia that comes with his murdering spree that he gradually becomes mad.
In Macbeth, Macbeth's fall from grace and transition into a villain stems largely from the encouragement that his wife, Lady Macbeth, gives him. What is important to note about Macbeth's relationship with his wife is that at the beginning, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are relatively equal in marriage, though that changes as time progresses. Lady Macbeth is almost more dominant than her husband and has more power in the relationship when it comes to mentality. She has strong psychological grip on Macbeth. When Macbeth received his prophecy from the witches, he first assumed that he would wait for the prophecy to become true without him having to do anything. However, then he was made aware of the fact that one of King Duncan's sons would be next in line for the throne, and with that, he believed he had to kill Duncan so that he won't have any competition.
Before Macbeth even told his wife that it would require killing King Duncan to ensure he himself became king of Scotland, Lady Macbeth knew what needed to be done. She figured that Macbeth would not have it in him to kill the king, and she took it upon herself to call to evil spirits to give her the strength to kill the king herself. In her famous "Unsex Me Soliloquy" in Act 1 Scene V, she proclaims, "...unsex me here / ... Stop of th' access and passage of remorse..." In this, Lady Macbeth wishes to be stripped of remorse and her femininity so she can kill the King without feeling guilt.
In Act 1 Scene VII, Lady Macbeth is almost demeaning of her husband, further attesting to her psychological power over Macbeth. She encourages Macbeth to take the step into darkness and do what needs to be done, which is killing Duncan. She promises that they will not fail the task, and it just has to happen that way so that Macbeth can be king. He has to fulfill the prophecy, and Duncan is in the way.
All throughout this process of realizing the King Duncan needed to be eliminated in order for Macbeth to become king of Scotland, Macbeth had serious misgivings. He valued his relationship with Duncan, and felt an immense amount of guilt for the deed that had to be done. As Macbeth was one of Duncan's subjects, their relationship was full of loyalty and respect. As the play begins, Macbeth is just returning from battle for King Duncan, and in return for his great sportsmanship, Duncan awards Macbeth with the title of Thane of Cawdor. He loves the idea of becoming king once he had been given the prophecy, but he shows hesitation towards the act at first since Duncan is a man he has respect for. Furthermore, Macbeth is not evil at the beginning.
The fact that he shows hesitation and guilt at first, especially seen in his soliloquy that opens Act 1 Scene VII, demonstrates that he still has his humanity. He states, "First, as I am his kinsman and his subject / ...as his host, / Who should against his murderer shut the door, / Not bear the knife myself." This further emphasizes the internal conflict that Macbeth is dealing with, and how he doesn't want to hurt the king, but he also wants to be king. However, the more that Lady Macbeth encourages him to stick to the plan and get the act over with, the more insane he becomes. In the case of Macbeth, since his mind is more easily corruptible, as seen in his relationship with his wife, his downfall and first step into evil can largely be contributed to the encouragement of those around him who are evil. Macbeth felt the pressure placed on him by his wife and clearly recognized the power that she was capable of and therefore pleases her by agreeing to the plan.
Once taking this step into evil, Macbeth eventually kept traveling down this road to evil, unable to stop. Once he killed Duncan, he continued and continued to kill anyone in the way of his prophecy. After Duncan's death, he felt so much guilt and paranoia that he just wanted it to stop, but that would only happen if he fulfilled the prophecy. He then determined that he must kill his best friend Banquo to assure that he wouldn't be King, as the prophecy also said that Banquo would be father to kings, and the cycle continued from there until Macbeth had killed many people. Multiple times Lady Macbeth actually showed concern for her husband at this point. On various occasions she tried to get him to stop. She only needed Duncan dead, and told him to be happy after Duncan's death. However, Macbeth assured her that the deed was not done, and that he must continue on. This further shows how Macbeth had now become uncontrollable and was unable to stop himself.
Overall, Macbeth's fall from grace is mainly due to his wife's doing, as she was what encouraged his eventual killing spree in the first place. His mind was less resolved than hers was at the beginning, allowing him to be easily manipulated into killing in the first place. With this, the consequences were evident in the fact that with so much death in Scotland, nature, the Great Chain of Being, went off the rails, as well as that Macbeth's secrets were beginning to be found out.
Within Macbeth, the story line follows a Scottish war hero named Macbeth, supposedly an allegory for King James I, who has received an intriguing prophecy from three witches that proclaims he will one day be king of Scotland. Obsessed and full of ambition to fulfill this concept, Macbeth is egged on by his wife and he begins to eliminate any possible competition that would get in the way of his prophecy. Eventually, he is so consumed by the guilt and paranoia that comes with his murdering spree that he gradually becomes mad.
In Macbeth, Macbeth's fall from grace and transition into a villain stems largely from the encouragement that his wife, Lady Macbeth, gives him. What is important to note about Macbeth's relationship with his wife is that at the beginning, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are relatively equal in marriage, though that changes as time progresses. Lady Macbeth is almost more dominant than her husband and has more power in the relationship when it comes to mentality. She has strong psychological grip on Macbeth. When Macbeth received his prophecy from the witches, he first assumed that he would wait for the prophecy to become true without him having to do anything. However, then he was made aware of the fact that one of King Duncan's sons would be next in line for the throne, and with that, he believed he had to kill Duncan so that he won't have any competition.
Before Macbeth even told his wife that it would require killing King Duncan to ensure he himself became king of Scotland, Lady Macbeth knew what needed to be done. She figured that Macbeth would not have it in him to kill the king, and she took it upon herself to call to evil spirits to give her the strength to kill the king herself. In her famous "Unsex Me Soliloquy" in Act 1 Scene V, she proclaims, "...unsex me here / ... Stop of th' access and passage of remorse..." In this, Lady Macbeth wishes to be stripped of remorse and her femininity so she can kill the King without feeling guilt.
In Act 1 Scene VII, Lady Macbeth is almost demeaning of her husband, further attesting to her psychological power over Macbeth. She encourages Macbeth to take the step into darkness and do what needs to be done, which is killing Duncan. She promises that they will not fail the task, and it just has to happen that way so that Macbeth can be king. He has to fulfill the prophecy, and Duncan is in the way.
All throughout this process of realizing the King Duncan needed to be eliminated in order for Macbeth to become king of Scotland, Macbeth had serious misgivings. He valued his relationship with Duncan, and felt an immense amount of guilt for the deed that had to be done. As Macbeth was one of Duncan's subjects, their relationship was full of loyalty and respect. As the play begins, Macbeth is just returning from battle for King Duncan, and in return for his great sportsmanship, Duncan awards Macbeth with the title of Thane of Cawdor. He loves the idea of becoming king once he had been given the prophecy, but he shows hesitation towards the act at first since Duncan is a man he has respect for. Furthermore, Macbeth is not evil at the beginning.
The fact that he shows hesitation and guilt at first, especially seen in his soliloquy that opens Act 1 Scene VII, demonstrates that he still has his humanity. He states, "First, as I am his kinsman and his subject / ...as his host, / Who should against his murderer shut the door, / Not bear the knife myself." This further emphasizes the internal conflict that Macbeth is dealing with, and how he doesn't want to hurt the king, but he also wants to be king. However, the more that Lady Macbeth encourages him to stick to the plan and get the act over with, the more insane he becomes. In the case of Macbeth, since his mind is more easily corruptible, as seen in his relationship with his wife, his downfall and first step into evil can largely be contributed to the encouragement of those around him who are evil. Macbeth felt the pressure placed on him by his wife and clearly recognized the power that she was capable of and therefore pleases her by agreeing to the plan.
Once taking this step into evil, Macbeth eventually kept traveling down this road to evil, unable to stop. Once he killed Duncan, he continued and continued to kill anyone in the way of his prophecy. After Duncan's death, he felt so much guilt and paranoia that he just wanted it to stop, but that would only happen if he fulfilled the prophecy. He then determined that he must kill his best friend Banquo to assure that he wouldn't be King, as the prophecy also said that Banquo would be father to kings, and the cycle continued from there until Macbeth had killed many people. Multiple times Lady Macbeth actually showed concern for her husband at this point. On various occasions she tried to get him to stop. She only needed Duncan dead, and told him to be happy after Duncan's death. However, Macbeth assured her that the deed was not done, and that he must continue on. This further shows how Macbeth had now become uncontrollable and was unable to stop himself.
Overall, Macbeth's fall from grace is mainly due to his wife's doing, as she was what encouraged his eventual killing spree in the first place. His mind was less resolved than hers was at the beginning, allowing him to be easily manipulated into killing in the first place. With this, the consequences were evident in the fact that with so much death in Scotland, nature, the Great Chain of Being, went off the rails, as well as that Macbeth's secrets were beginning to be found out.
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