Defending Macbeth on the Death of Duncan Essay

Greed for Power and the Role of Three Characters in the Murder of King Duncan in Shakespeare's "Macbeth"

The Shakespeare's play Macbeth gives a story of a fictional character, King Duncan, who suffers death after a well-planned regicide by one of his trusted captain, Macbeth, who was ambitious of a power grab. It is a story of the greed of power that is marked by murder and intense strife to achieve witches prophesies by whichever means. The death of King Duncan takes place offstage between scenes. In Act 1, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are heard plotting to kill the king and later in Act II; the act is already committed. Chiefly, Duncan was a generous, insightful, sensitive father-figure whose death causes grieves all over Scotland and consequently results in turmoil in the natural world. The murder is thought to have grieved God. Notably, Duncan had given Macbeth the title of the Thane of Cawdor, but this did not stop Macbeth from plotting the murder of the King. The story is characterized by greed for power which costs the death of several characters. However, the murder of King Duncan cannot be fully blamed on Macbeth. The death can be attributed to three characters; the three witches, Lady Macbeth and Macbeth himself. Although it is Macbeth who eventually murders Duncan, he acted from the pressure of the three witches and his wife, Lady Macbeth, who are largely to blame for the murder.

The Influence of the Three Witches' Prophecies on Macbeth's Ambition

The three witches' prophecies made Macbeth ambitious that he was to be the King of Scotland and this motivates him to kill Duncan. At the beginning of the play, the three witches recount to Macbeth three prophecies. The first prophecy was that Macbeth would be Thane of Glamis, Thane of Cawdor and the King of Scotland ("Tragedy of MacBeth and its Historical Background - SciHi Blog," 2018). This particular prophecy makes Macbeth possessed with the ideas of greatness and a great thirst for power. This prophecy becomes a reality as Macbeth tells Banquo that since the first prophecy had become true, he would eventually become King (Shakespeare, 1623. The witches' second visit causes even more harm than good.

First, they warn Macbeth of Macduff, by telling him to watch out. This prophecy eventually motivates Macbeth to kill Macduff as the witches warned him of him. Secondly, they tell Macbeth that he would not be harmed by any man born of a woman (Shakespeare, 1623. This prophecy gives him confidence that no man would harm him, and the only threat was posed by Macduff, of whom he was warned against and eventually killed him. Lastly, he is assured by the witches that he would not be defeated until Great Birnam Wood shall come against him ("MacBeth MacFindlaech | eHISTORY," n.d.). With the assurance that no man born of a woman would harm him, he decides to eliminate the only threat, Macduff, and finally King Duncan in order for him to be king. Therefore, it would be unfair to sorely blame Macbeth for the death of Duncan, as these prophecies illusion him and makes him ambitious of power.

Secondly, Lady Macbeth is also largely to blame for Duncan's murder. Her aspirations to become Queen make her persuade Macbeth to commit the crime. In Act I, we here the two plotting the murder which is eventually accomplished before scene II (Shakespeare, 1623. She plays the same role as the witches in manipulating Macbeth into believing that he was meant to become king and to kill Duncan to achieve the prophecy ("Tragedy of MacBeth and its Historical Background - SciHi Blog," 2018). In some occasions, she even provokes his manhood, as she argues that he was too full of human kindness and that he would not be fit to be King of Scotland. She says all this in clear knowledge of Macbeth's thoughts to kill the King. Macbeth, although with the thoughts of committing a crime, would not have managed to without the push from his wife.

Lady Macbeth actually takes a central role in the murder of the King. After a night of feasting, she drugs the King's attendants and prepares daggers which would later commit the crime. As she waits nearby, Macbeth eventually murders the sleeping king (Shakespeare, 1623. After the crime, she takes the dagger used to kill the king, smears blood on the sleeping attendants in order to stage the king's death as if caused by the attendants (Delahoyde, n.d.). It is therefore undeniable that she was even more responsible for the murder than Macbeth. She did not just have him to commit the crime but also plays a major responsibility in the murder of the king by provoking Macbeth when she attacked his manhood and questioned his love for her.

Conclusion

In a nutshell, to blame Macbeth of Duncan's is unjust and an exaggeration at the same time. The three witches and lady Macbeth is equally are largely to blame for the murder as they play a big role in forcing Macbeth to commit the crime. Although Macbeth ought to have been in control of his own actions, the pressure from the witches prophesies, and his wife's pressure cannot be overlooked. By the witches assuring him of no harm from any human apart from Macduff and assuring him that he would become king, Macbeth is made to believe that he was meant to become king no matter the price. The ambitious eventually pushes him to commit the crime. Lady Macbeth not only questions his manhood but also questions his love and gives moral support to Macbeth by helping in the plot for murder. He eventually succumbs to these pressures and finally commits the act. Therefore, Macbeth is more of a victim than an offender in this case.

References

MacBeth MacFindlaech | eHISTORY. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://ehistory.osu.edu/biographies/macbeth-macfindlaech

The Tragedy of MacBeth and its Historical Background - SciHi Blog. (2018, August 14). Retrieved from http://scihi.org/macbeth-tragedy-shakespeare/

Delahoyde, M. (n.d.). Macbeth. Retrieved January 9, 2019, from https://public.wsu.edu/~delahoyd/shakespeare/macbeth5.html

Shakespeare, W. (1623). Macbeth. The Oxford Shakespeare: The Tragedy of Macbeth, 91-92. doi:10.1093/oseo/instance.00000007