Macbeth †Hero or “Hellhound” Essay

William Shakespeare the author of Macbeth was born in April 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon, England. He is generally regarded as the great playwright ever to hit lived. During the clip of Shakespeare (which was the Elizabethan times) the theatres in which his plays were performed were very basic. They had no stage settingry or sets so they used simple items such as a stool, which would represent an indoor depiction. He theatres were as well as very small, the fortune theatre only be 80ft square. The stage had three tiers the main stage where closely of the scenes would be performed, the tiring house which was used for scenes such as the witches cave in Macbeth and the gallery (upper stage) which was used for scenes such as the balcony scene in Romeo and Juliet. spate in the Elizabethan times were extremely religious and believed in a chain of creation. This is a hierarchical society that is divided into three sections, Heaven, glare and Earth. They believed that everybody was born into a level and this could non change or chaos would ensue. Due to this belief the cleanup spot of world-beater k straightn as regicide was regarded as the wrap up crime in the world as the office was gods messenger on Earth.Macbeth was compose for King James in virtually 1605. Because of whom it was written for Shakespeare had to change the character of Banquo to a good guy as it was one of James ancestors (Shakespeare actually borrowed the idea for the play from Ralph Holinheads chronicles). The play is approximately a Scotch nobleman Macbeth who be tote ups king by murdering the previous king. The world is then thrown into disarray until eventually Macbeth himself is gobble uped and the line up successor to the throne is crowned when order is restored. in that respect are many themes in Macbeth many of which recur throughout the play. These include masculinity. Lady Macbeth always questions Macbeths manhood whenever he doesnt want to go through with something, w hich leads to Macbeth doing whatever she wants him to. Linking with this is femininity, during the play Lady Macbeth refers to this when she calls for the spirits to unsex her. There is also the theme of tail, which creeps up a few times during the wrinkle of the play.Macbeth says to the stars as he is about to murder Duncan, hide your fire, let not light impinge on my black and deep desires. Lady Macbeth also asks for darkness when she says, come thee thick night, and pull thee in the dunnest smoke of hell. Evil is regularly associated with darkness and these references show that there is an evil-minded side to Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Perhaps the most all important(p) theme in the whole play however, is fate. Every character except from Macbeth accepts fate and the item that they dont have any control oer it. In the first scene Macbeth is said to disdain fortune and later on in the play the witches lead Macbeth to believe that he can have complete control of his destiny, wh ich, he later haves he cannot.The tragic friend is a character used quite often by Shakespeare.The tragic hero is a character who is noble, brave and good but always has one fatal dishonor. In Othello the fatal flaw is jealousy and in Macbeth the fatal flaw is ambition. The tragic heros fatal flaw ordain inevitably result in their death, hence the name fatal flaw.I am now going to work through the play discussing the question Macbeth-Hero or Hellhound.The play starts with thunder and lightning, which is seen as a reference to the Gunpowder Plot, which occurred around the same time as the play. The Elizabethan earreach would recognise this and see the relevance because in both the case of the Gunpowder Plot and the play the intend victim was the king.The meeting of the witches is the first scene in Macbeth. This shows that the witches are a very important part of the play and they give be very potent during its course. The audience give know to be afraid of the witches becaus e of the society of the time. To the Elizabethans witchcraft was a fact of life. We also discover that the witches are definitely a fountain of evil when they say, fair is foul, and foul is fair, hover through the fog and filthy air. This shows that the witches are testifying to disrupt the natural order, which, according to the chain of being will throw the universe into chaos.In the second scene we learn of Macbeths bravery in battle. This where he is said to disdain fortune which shows us that he doesnt believe in fate. We also find Macbeth is a very strong fighter and that he and other people believe that he is invincible in battle. An example of this is when the captain says, yes as sparrows eagles or hare the lion. This is a reference to Macbeths fighting ability and the fact that he is as scared as a lion would be of a hare.When the opposition army is refreshed and with new troops the captain says, As cannons overchargd with double cracks, so they doubly redoubled strokes upon the foe. This shows the audience how Macbeth but will flummox them wonder is he too bloody and over the efflorescence?Macbeths first lyric poem in scene three are, so foul and fair a day I have not seen. The audience will pick up on this as it links in with what the witches say at the beginning of the play. The audience may also be a little disturbed by the way that Macbeth seems to be acting now. The witches know what Macbeths name is and this startles Macbeth and the audience. They say All hail Macbeth, hail to thee Thane of Glamis. The audience will now begin to realise secure how powerful the witches are as this is little known information. They then say All hail Macbeth, hail to thee Thane of Cawdor. Of course by now the audience will know that the Thane of Cawdor is a traitor but they dont know how the witches have this knowledge. This will scare the audience and make them wary of the witches behaviour.Banquo mentions to Macbeth that he should be happy by this news, Good sir, why do you start, and seem to fear things so fair? This shows us that the witches have also startled Macbeth. Does this pie-eyed that Macbeth cant be too evil as he is scared of the witches or he is nevertheless shocked because he has already thinking of murdering the king?Banquo also says that Macbeth seems en joyousured withal so we wonder if he is deep in thought or under a witches spell. If Macbeth is in fact under the witches spell then his actions throughout the rest of the play cant really be seen as his fault.Banquo seems to be aware that the witches are evil although Macbeth isnt. Cannot be ill. Cannot be god. Is he expert reassuring himself or is he really not aware that the witches are bad?Macbeth thinks of murdering the king and is scared by his thoughtsWhy do I yield to that suggestions whose horrid image doth unfix my hair, and make my seated heart knock at my ribs, without the use of genius.Again Banquo says, look how our partners rapt so again we wonde r if he is under a spell or just deep in his thoughts. The way that this idea of Macbeth being rapt could be Shakespeares way of telling the audience that Macbeth is being controlled by something more powerful than just his mind or ambition.In the next scene Duncan announces that the successor to the throne will be his son. Macbeth also declares his loyalty to the king when he becomes thane. The audience will already know that Macbeth has had thoughts about killing the king and therefore will see this as Macbeth being very deuce faced. Macbeth also says in this scenethe Prince of Cumberland that is a step, on which I must glint down, or else oerleap for of in my way it lies. Stars hide your fires let not light see my black and deep desires.This reveals a lot about Macbeths current train of thought. He is basically saying that the Prince of Cumberland is in his way and must be overcome. Macbeth also becomes quite scary in this speech when he says the part about Stars hide your fires . This will symbolise to the audience that he is moving into darkness from light or more worryingly from good to bad.In scene five Lady Macbeth is introduced. She offers quite a lot of insight into Macbeths character that hasnt been mentioned before. She says, Yet I do rear thy nature is too full of the milk of human kindness. This is a feminine quality she is basically that Macbeth is not masculine bloody enough. She also says that he is, without the illness that should front ambition. This means that his ambition is pure but does not having that illness mean that Macbeth doesnt have a conscience? She says that he wants to do things the right way, holily, wouldst not play false and also that Macbeth fears to do things. This shows us that Lady Macbeth has, perhaps, a confused idea of masculinity and femininity and also good and evil.Lady Macbeths behaviour echoes that of the witches as she calls upon the spirits to unsex her. We can also links with Macbeth when she says, come thee thick night, And pull thee in the dunnest smoke of hell. Here she is calling for darkness like her husband did previously.Macbeth arrives home at their castle and tells Lady Macbeth that Duncan will be staying for a night, to which Lady Macbeth says, O never shall sun that morrow see. This is a go past indication that she too wants the king to die. She tells Macbeth to look like th innocent flower, but be the serpent undert. Macbeth says we will speak further. This shows the audience that Macbeth hasnt yet decided whether or not to kill the king.In scene six the king arrives at Macbeths castle.In scene seven Macbeth argues against killing the king by saying, hes here in double trust. This means that it should be Macbeths duty to protect the king and not try and kill him. He also says to Lady Macbeth, we will proceed no further in this business. Lady Macbeth retaliates to this by saying that Macbeth is a coward and she follows it up by saying something extremely shocking. She says that she has had children but would or else rip the baby from her and kill it then break her vow to kill the king.This shows to us that it may not just be the witches who are proving to be a bad influence on Macbeths mind. This causes Macbeth to change his mind. Lady Macbeth outlines a plan to kill the king. Her idea is to progress to the kings guards so drunk they fall asleep then Duncan will be unguarded. Once Duncan has been killed she will pour blood on the guards to make it look like they murdered him. Macbeth ends the scene by saying, I am settled. He has decided to kill the king. We wonder whether this was perhaps his intention all along or was it Lady Macbeths intervention that pushed him to do it?In Act two scene one Macbeth starts on his mission to kill the king. A sticker appears before him. There are lots of interpretations about what this means. Is Macbeth going mad and just imagining it? Is the dagger really there? Is it a witches spell making him see it? Some versi ons of Macbeth actually show the dagger appearing before him while some dont, as if it is in his mind.In scene two Macbeth kills the king and is in a terrible state. He says, I could not say amen. This could be evidence that he is under a spell because if he was just evil it wouldnt bother him that he couldnt say amen. He also says, me thought I heard a voice cry, sleep no more. This shows that Macbeth is both hearing and seeing things. This will make the audience wonder if Macbeth has truly departed mad or if he just feels guilty about it.In scene three we see the chain of being has been disrupted and chaos is ensuing when it is said, some say the earth was feverous, and did shake. Also in this scene Macduff finds the king dead. Macbeth kills the servants. Is this Macbeth being careful and cautious or just bloody?In the first scene of act three we realise that Banquo suspects Macbeth of getting in to the position he is in more by foul play than coincidence. I fear thou playdst mos t foully for t. We wonder whether Banquo suspects Macbeth because he knows that Macbeth is capable of doing this.Macbeth says, to be this is nothing but to be safely this. Macbeth is pondering whether he should kill Banquo, after all he saw the witches and he knows what Macbeth is doing. He also says, come fate, into the list. Macbeth is personifying fate again, which links with when he is said to disdain fortune. This is very important because it shows that Macbeth is now acting against the witches as he has decided to kill Banquo and his son.This time however Macbeth gets murderers to kill Banquo. Is this because he is too scared? Does he still feel some loyalty to Banquo? Or is he just being more devious? He says to Lady Macbeth, Be innocent of the knowledge, dearest chick. This is a huge step for Macbeth because the murder is all his own planning and no witches or wife are persuading him. He also says, however, O, full of scorpions is my mind, dear wife. This shows that, again, Macbeth is showing some remorse. This shows us that Macbeth does not become purely evil immediately.In scene four Lady Macbeth says Macbeth is womannd. In Shakespeare language this means that it is good to be kind, good to be scared. Theses are all necessary parts of being a hero, not a villain.In this scene Banquos travel appears before Macbeth. We wonder again, as with the dagger, is this a spell, a hallucination or just his guilty conscience playing tricks on him. Macbeth says I will to-morrow (And betimes I will) to the weird sisters, more shall they speak. Macbeth is going to see the witches. He knows that he has gone too far and cannot be good again. He has embraced evil. For know I am bent to know the worst means the worst. The audience will now wonder whether this is Macbeth being brave or just purely evil.In scene five the queen witch says that Macbeth isnt linked with the witches. The audience will wonder is the witch lying? And also is this good or bad? If Macbeth is li nked with the witches then they can be blamed for his actions but, if what the witches are saying is true then Macbeth is responsible for his own actions.Act four scene one. The witches produce apparitions as they talk to Macbeth. The audience will link this with the dagger and Banquos ghost and will now believe that the witches are the cause of these images.The witches first warning to Macbeth is clear. Beware Macduff, beware the Thane of Fife.The second apparition is a bit more cryptic. for none of woman born shall harm Macbeth. The witches know that they are tricking Macbeth.At first Macbeth decides not to Macduff as he thinks he cant be harmed by him but then changes his mind to be on the safe side. This is another example of one of the many times Macbeth goes a bit over the top by killing people.The third apparition tells Macbeth that he will be safe until the wood marches up to the castle. This makes Macbeth feel safe as he thinks, that the wood cant march and that everyone is woman born. The audience however, will know not to trust what the witches say.In act five scene two we see some peoples opinions of Macbeth. Tyrant, mad and valiant fury are all mentioned. The audience will know that Macbeths reign is likely to come to an end.In scene three Macbeth learns that the English are marching into Scotland. Macbeth says, Ill fight till from my bones, my flesh be hackd This is another point in the play where Macbeth is very bloodthirsty and over the top.In scene five Macbeth hears a scream. Lady Macbeth has died. He saysI have almost forgot the taste of fears, the time has been, my senses would have coold to hear a night-shriek, and my fell of hair would at dismal treatise rouse and stir as if like were in lit.This isnt a good sign as it shows that Macbeth has gone too far. He also saysShe should have died hereafter, there would have been a time for such a word, tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow creeps in the pretty face from day to day.This shows that Mac beth is accepting that he will be defeated and wants death now.Macbeth also learns that Burnham wood is coming to the castle. He says, at least well die with harness on our back. The audience will wonder of this is noble and heroic or is he really mad? It also shows that Macbeth disdain fortune once again.In scene seven Macbeth realises that he has been tricked by the witches when he says, they have tied me to a stake, I cannot fly, but bear like I must fight the course. The audience may now feel a little bit sulky for Macbeth, as all that he can do now is fight.Turn hell hound, turn. Macduff yells to Macbeth to which Macbeth replies no. He decides that he doesnt want to kill Macduff as he has already killed all of his family. Is this Macbeth showing some compassion to Macduff by not fighting him or is it just arrogance? Macbeth realises what the witches were talking about when Macduff says he was born by caesarean section not born of a woman. Even though he now knows this he stil l wants to fight. The audience will wonder if this is Macbeth trying to disdain fortune once again.Macduff kills Macbeth in the fight, as the witches predicted. Malcolm says, this dead butcher. This isnt really a very good description of Macbeth as he perhaps had good reason to kill some of the people that he did and some of his other murders could be seen as Macbeth being cautious rather than bloody and over the top.When the kings named successor returns to the throne, the chain of being is back in order and the play ends. Macbeth has been killed and order has been restored.