FREE ESSAY ON MACBETH'S DOWNFALL

MACBETH'S DOWNFALL

Upon hearing the witches prophecies, Macbeth is set on a path of deterioration that causes
him to become blinded by ambition. Lacy Macbeth aids in his downfall, as she pushes him
to become so ambitious that it eventually kills him. Lady Macbeth's 
icy-ness acts as the horse which takes him down the path he can't return from. He suffers
mentally, at first, by getting tormented by his power-hungry wife. Then, when she dies,
it is her soul that causes Macbeth to get tormented by his own over-ambitious self.
Macbeth encounters the three witches while on a journey with his companion Banquo. They
tell Macbeth of future titles he is to have, yet he doesn't believe them. They hail
Macbeth, calling him Thane of Cawdor and tell him he shalt be kind hereafter. This
perplexes Macbeth because such titles seem far from the truth. At this point Macbeth does
not crave the titles as he later will. After the witches tell Banquo his sons shall be
kings, Macbeth becomes interested in his supposed fate because the Thane of Cawdor lives
and Macbeth finds it impossible to perceive himself as Thane or Cawdor and even more
impossible as king. 
Banquo sees the prophecy about Macbeth becoming king coming true and then he proceeds to
warn Macbeth that often times, to win us harm, the instruments of darkness tell us
truths, win us with honest trifles, to betray's in deepest consequence. Banquo, too,
seems to predict Macbeth's fate. The witches tell the truth, but in the end it is
betrayal that rises up over truth. Macbeth's mind is still stable at this point, but is
beginning to become somewhat shaky. 
When the king greets Macbeth with gratitude, all Macbeth can think about is the
prediction that he will become king. It is now that the poison of desire begins to seep
into Macbeth's mind. After the king announces that his son, Malcolm, will become king
Macbeth starts to ponder murder. Macbeth can't wait and allow the prophecy to take its
course and hopefully come true- he must take action and force it to become a reality.
That is a step on which I must fall down, or else o'erleap, for in my way it lies.
Macbeth compares Malcolm to a step that could vanquish Macbeth's now earnest desire to
become king unless Macbeth should get Malcolm out of the way. Malcolm comes in-between
Macbeth and his drive to be king and so Macbeth must eradicate Malcolm. Macbeth now has
the mindset of an unstoppable conqueror whereas he must succeed in getting what he wants.

Macbeth then sends a letter to Lady Macbeth that tells of the strange prophecies. The
thought of murder immediately comes to her mind, indicating that she is more willing to
kill to get what she wants as opposed to Macbeth who does not think of killing the king
right away. Without verbally consulting with Macbeth first, she says that he will become
king. Then she begins to fear his nature because it is too full o' the milk of human
kindness. This shows that it is Lady Macbeth who has the stronger passion to kill the
king so Macbeth can be crowned. She is determined to pour my[her] spirits in thine[his]
ear and chastise with the valor of my[her] tongue all that impedes thee[him] from the
golden round. Lady Macbeth wants the crown even more so that Macbeth does, as she will
punish all that may come in Macbeth's, and her, way. Lady Macbeth feels that she must
kill Duncan when he comes over for dinner- this is even more apparent when she describes
the raven's croak as even hoarser than before. Lady Macbeth demonstrates her full evil
potential when she summons spirits to rid her of her womanly properness and fill me[her]
from the crown to the toe, top-full of direst cruelty so that she may have the numbness
and masculinity to go through with the murder herself. She doesn't want her conscience to
exist and calls the spirits to make thick me[her] blood. It is as if she has already
died. 
Lady Macbeth takes control and tells Macbeth to put this night's great business into
my[her] dispatch and to leave the rest to her. It is Lady Macbeth who dominates Macbeth.
Macbeth doesn't object to her plan of murder either. His better nature fights against his
desires and he tells Lady Macbeth that he is the king's kinsman, subject and host. This
makes it evident that Lady Macbeth pushes Macbeth into doing what he knows is wrong. Lady
Macbeth, on the other hand, has lost all compassion at this point and the seed of her
fierce masculinity has been deeply planted. 
Lady Macbeth's evilness finally takes her over and forces her to commit suicide. Macbeth
is now forced to carry out the rest of the plan alone. Banquo knows of Macbeth and his
quest for power. He is the one that tells Macbeth that the instruments of darkness only
cause harm and betrayal. Macbeth makes this statement true by betraying Banquo whom he
once trusted. Banquo suspected Macbeth's guilt and out of fear of being caught Macbeth
sends out two murderers to kill Banquo. Macbeth is guilty of betrayal, but he doesn't
commit the act himself which shows how weak he really is. After Macbeth has Banquo
killed, he hallucinates and thinks he sees Banquo's ghost because the malevolent deed is
burdening his conscience. 
Macbeth is then lost and seeks the witches who tell him to beware of Macduff but be
assured no man born of a woman can harm him. The witches then tell Macbeth that he is
safe until Great Burnam Wood to high Dunsinane Hill shall come against him. These two
prophecies calm Macbeth, as he does not really take them as a threat. The prophecy that a
line of kings shall descend from Banquo makes Macbeth much more agitated. Macbeth's
ambition is overriding what should be alarming him. It is evident that he is blinded by
this ambition as he will be cut down from the position that so drove him to do what ever
it took to become king. 
The end is near for Lady Macbeth as she is ruined by her own treacherous ambitions. The
murder of the king is making her go insane, as she rubs her hands and speaks, Out, damned
spot! out, I say!. Her mind is deteriorating from the guilt which apparently overwhelms
her. The end is also near for Macbeth and he no longer fears death because it has
lingered so close to him for a long while. Macbeth is numb from all the events which
caused his downfall. Even when his wife died he shows practically no emotion and says she
should have picked a more convenient time to die. Mentally, Macbeth no longer exists. 
Macbeth's actually death comes to him when Macduff tells him he was from his mother's
womb untimely ripped. First Macbeth is in doubt, but as he realizes the prophecies hold
true, there is nothing he can do but fight and face a death that was inevitable. It was
Lady Macbeth that caused Macbeth to become blinded by ambition. He did desire the crown
but it was Lady Macbeth who took control and forced Macbeth on a self-destructive path
that would lead only to misery, not only for himself, but for all around him.