Weaknesses can make the difference between success and failure. It is essential to attempt to overcome shortcomings to ensure objectives are achieved. In the play Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare, Macbeth has many flaws that lead to his death. Macbeth's heroic downfall is caused by his moral weaknesses, as he is too ambitious, lacks morality, and is easily influenced by others. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay To begin with, Macbeth is too ambitious and selfish. His goals and desires come before anything else and he will do anything to achieve them. At the beginning of the play, when the witches tell him the three prophecies, Macbeth wants to make sure they come true, especially the one that says he will be king of Scotland. This motivates him to want to remove everything that can get in his way and leads to absolute disaster. He kills King Duncan, which is what begins the downfall of everything else in his life. Macbeth foreshadows his future failure when he says "I have no urge/To prick the sides of my intent, but only/Ambition that whirls, that surpasses itself/And falls upon the other-" (1.7.25- 28) He is motivated by his ambition, but going too fast could lead to disaster, as it did. Madness and Magic: Shakespeare's Macbeth, by Frank McGuinness shows that Macbeth has a desire for power and authority. “Macbeth's hunger for information – for action – corresponds to his thirst for power.” His determination to become king deteriorates his values and does not allow him to focus on anything else beyond that. Macbeth's desire to become king prevails over his morals and conscience. At first, he struggles to decide whether to kill King Duncan. He lists reasons why it would be right, such as the fact that he wants to be king. He also includes why it would be morally wrong to do so, saying that he is hosting Duncan and that he should be hospitable. Lady Macbeth convinces him that he needs to do it and he finally goes through with the deed. Macbeth struggles with his thoughts, but ultimately his lack of values leads him to not follow the morally right path. After killing Duncan, he becomes unstable, feels guilty but still aspires to kill anyone he still perceives as an obstacle. The lack of values and morals make him incapable of choosing right from wrong. He has many evil thoughts and cannot think clearly. He tells Lady Macbeth this when he says "Oh, my mind is full of scorpions, dear wife!" In the article entitled Macbeth: I have a strange infirmity, which is nothing.” A World of Action vs. At EBSCOhost's World of Thought, it is stated that "...Macbeth's awareness that he is committing an execrable crime and, at the same time, also suggests his inability to see beyond the action to its consequences" (EBSCOhost,183) . Macbeth does not think about the realistic outcome of killing Duncan, but only about the fact that he will become king. Any reasonable person would know that killing someone as important as a king carries extreme repercussions. However, Macbeth is mentally unstable and cannot distinguish right from wrong. Since Macbeth no longer has morals, he can no longer think for himself and is easily influenced. He lets others control his life and decisions. There are many examples of this in the play, such as when he listens to the witches' prophecies and psychologically lets them control his actions because he wants them to come true. Another example includes giving in to Lady Macbeth when she questions his manhood by saying, "Would you have that/That esteem the ornament of life/And live cowardly in your own esteem,/Letting 'I dare not' wait" on “I would,”/Like the poor cat in the adage?”(1.7.45-49)..
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