macbeth play written by william shakespeare

And when he arrives back at his castle, his wife Lady Macbeth urges him to “catch the nearest way” to fulfilment of the prophecy by stabbing King Duncan to death as he sleeps in their home. The thought of killing the king, a thought “whose murder yet is but fantastical”, occurs to him immediately. Violence is in his repertoire and he needs only to take one violent step further to fulfil their prophecy. This sets the spark to the powder keg of Macbeth’s ambition. The witches on the heath greet him as Thane of Glamis, which he is, Thane of Cawdor, which we know from Duncan’s command that he will be, and “king hereafter”. Macbeth’s second promotion is also achieved through violence, but this time by premeditated treachery.

'Supp'd full with horrors': 400 years of Shakespearean supernaturalism

Macbeth and Banquo meet the Witches - Théodore Chassériau (1855) Public domain There is a fragile moment at the beginning of the play, when this violence seems to have restored order. Macbeth’s first promotion, then, is gained through the sanctioned violence of killing traitors. Among the rebels is the “disloyal traitor” the Thane of Cawdor, whose title Duncan transfers to Macbeth, commanding that the treacherous clan chief be executed. The military campaign is to suppress domestic rebellion. Macbeth does this in loyal service to King Duncan, and usually enters the stage splattered with blood, that of his victims and his own – blood lost in service to his king. In Act One, Scene One, a soldier reports that Macbeth, a Scottish general, has shown prowess on the battlefield and “unseamed” his rebel opponent, Macdonald, “from the nave to th’ chops.” That means he cut him in half. The play showcases both loyal violence and treacherous violence. In exploring what holds a society together and what tears it apart, the play doesn’t just condemn violence, it dramatises its uses. The intersecting themes of its inner world are ambition, and moral reasoning. The themes of Macbeth’s outer world of action are violence and treachery. The collision of their orbits provides the spark for the drama. Macbeth, like most of Shakespeare’s plays, sets two worlds spinning: one of outer action and one of inner being.

Macbeth play written by william shakespeare