Macbeth Essay

Macbeth Essay

Desire is like a flame burning inside of you, but when that flame gets out of hand it could not only hurt oneself, but it could hurt others around you. In the tragic play, Macbeth, the central idea or theme is that an individual’s ambition, or everlasting desire, can eventually lead to the downfall or destruction of not just that particular individual, but others as well. Macbeth’s obsessive determination to become king ultimately led to the deaths of Duncan, Banquo, Lady Macduff and her son, Lady Macbeth, and himself as well. William Shakespeare’s use of symbolism, such as the floating dagger in Act two, the ghost of Banquo in Act three, and the spots and blood on Lady Macbeth’s hands in Act five, display how ambition and greed can overpower morality and overrun human nature.

Gradually, William Shakespeare constructed scenes of Macbeth hallucinating and seeing things, such as the ghost of Banquo and a floating dagger, which both have symbolic meaning. These symbols help William Shakespeare portray the central idea of Macbeth’s ambition leading to his overwhelming guilt. Before Macbeth murders King Duncan, he begins to hallucinate and sees a floating dagger. Macbeth says “Is this a dagger which I see before me, the handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee” (2.1.44). This is an example of how one’s ambition and sins can catch up and haunt or hurt them in the future. Macbeth is already feeling regretful, although he did not murder King Duncan yet. He knows his will to become king is getting in the way of being a good person. Later on, at a banquet which Macbeth and Lady Macbeth were hosting for the Thanes of Scotland, Macbeth once again begins to hallucinate. This time, he sees the ghost of Banquo. Macbeth says to the ghost “Thou canst not say I did it. Never shake thy gory locks at me” (3.4.61). Macbeth is full of guilt because of the fact that he was the one who plotted the murder of Banquo. Macbeth sent three murderers to carry out these plans. Although they were successful in doing so, Fleance managed to escape, which also contributed to the downfall of Macbeth. This scene shows how Macbeth’s desire to be King has affected himself in the future. Both the floating dagger, and the ghost of Banquo, symbolize guilt and regret. William Shakespeare uses the floating dagger, as well as the ghost of Banquo, to establish the idea of Macbeth’s overwhelming desire finally catching up to him.

Later on, in Macbeth, symbolism is used yet again, in the form of Lady Macbeth sleepwalking and revealing her current, weak mental state, in order to show how Macbeth’s hunger has affected his spouse. Lady Macbeth was always strong, ruthless, and at times, even more masculine than Macbeth. As a matter of fact, she was the one who was able to keep Macbeth calm when they were carrying out the plan to murder King Duncan. When she begins to