Corruption of Power Through Unchecked Ambition

The play begins with a fleeting appearance of three witches and then jumps to a military camp, where King Duncan of Scotland is informed that his generals, Macbeth and Banquo, have conquered two separate invading armies. Following their battle with these enemy forces, Macbeth and Banquo come across the witches. The witches prophesize that Macbeth will become the thane of Cawdor and later the King of Scotland. The witches also foretell that Banquo will never be king himself but one day his heir will be and a line of Scottish kings will be created. The witches quickly vanish leaving the two men confused and skeptical. Then some of King Doncan’s men come to show gratitude to the generals for their victories and to inform Macbeth that he has been named to new thane of Cawdor after the last one betrayed the king and allied himself with the enemy.  Macbeth, now interested in the possible truth of the rest of the witches’ prophecy,  goes to King Duncan and they plan to have dinner together that night at Macbeth’s castle, Inverness. Macbeth writes to his wife, Lady Macbeth, and informs her of his good news.

Lady Macbeth is instantly driven by the desire for power. She craves the kingship for her husband and decides that he should murder Duncan to speed up the process. When Macbeth comes home, she convinces him that he must kill the king that night. They plan to get the chamberlains so drunk they won’t be able to remember that night, and then they can be blamed for the murder of the king. That night while Duncan is asleep, Macbeth stabs him to death. The next morning when the King’s death is “discovered”, Macbeth kills the chamberlain; supposedly out of rage at their crime. Macbeth then easily assumes the throne. Doncan’s sons escape to England and Ireland, fearing their deaths could be next.

Macbeth soon remembers the witches’ prophecy about Banquo and he hires hit men to kill Banquo and his son, Fleance. Banquo is murdered but Fleance is able to escape. Macbeth is furious because as long as Fleance is alive, Macbeth’s place on the throne is not secure. At a feast that night, Macbeth is visited by Banquo’s ghost. Macbeth babbles fearfully, which later leads to a greater increase in the nobles and subjects’ resistance against him and his rule. Lady Macbeth tries to do damage control, but Macbeth is so frightened that he goes to the witches’ cavern. They tell him to beware of Macduff, a Scottish nobleman who was against Macbeth’s ascension to the throne. However, Macbeth is also told that he cannot be harmed by any man born of a woman and he will be safe until the Birnam Wood comes to Dunsinane Castle. Macbeth is relieved and confident that he is secure.  When Macebth learns that Macduff has left for England to join Malcom, he orders Macduff’s castle to be seized and Lady Macduff and her children to be killed.

Macduff is tormented with grief and promises revenge. Prince Malcolm, Duncan’s son, and Macduff ride to Scotland with their army to challenge Macbeth’s forces. Meanwhile, Lady Macbeth has become hunted with the idea that she has bloodstains on her hands. Right before the arrival of Macbeth’s adversaries, he is informed that his wife, Lady Macbeth, has taken her own life. Macbeth is crushed and sinks into despair. He holds on the certainty in the witches’ prophecies that guaranteed his invincibility that is until he sees English army is shielded with boughs cut from the Birnam Wood. The Birnam Wood has come to the castle and the witches’ predictions are coming true again.

In the battle, Macbeth fights viciously but it’s not enough; he and his army are overcome. On the field Macbeth encounters Macduff, who declares that he is not “of woman born” but was ripped from his mother’s womb (cesarean section). Macbeth realizes he is doomed, but continues to fight until Macduff kills and beheads him.

One of the main themes of Macbeth is the destruction formed when ambition goes unrestricted by moral limitations. It is clearly expressed through the play’s two main characters.  Macbeth is a courageous general who would not normally commit evil deeds; however he deeply craves power and advancement. His wife convinces him to kill Duncan and against his better judgment and he does. Afterwards, he is trapped in guilt and paranoia. Throughout the play, he makes more and more choices in favor of his desire for power but each is farther for any type of moral constriction. At the end of the play, he has descended into an agitated, big-headed madness.    Lady Macbeth, in contrast, goes after her goals with more determination, but she is less adept to withstand the outcomes of her corrupt acts. She is one of Shakespeare’s most forcefully drawn female characters; she provokes her husband ruthlessly to kill Duncan and then urges his to be resilient in the murders aftermath but she is ultimately driven to her own death as a result of Macbeth’s constant bloodshed on her conscience.   In each circumstance, ambition – though helped by the damaging prophecies from the witches – is what motivates the couple toward more and more appalling atrocities. The lesson to be learned here is that once one decides to use violence to promote one’s search for power, it is nearly impossible to stop.