Characterizations of Major Characters
by Peter Campbell
Macbeth
Macbeth is the tragic hero of the play Macbeth has two major flaws. At the beginning of the play he is the brave and honorable Thane of Glamis. However, early in the story, he encounters three witches who rouse up his first major flaw, a deep, ruthless ambition. The three witches give Macbeth three prophesies about his life. The first two prophecies, Macbeth being the thane of Glamis and becoming the thane of Cawdor come true. The third prophecy predicts that he will become King of Scotland. This is where his dark ambitious side rears its ugly head and he hardens his heart as he prepares to murder Duncan, the current King of Scotland. This is when we get to see the side of Macbeth that is most recognizable, the greedy and ambitious tyrant. However, Macbeth does care a little bit about morality, at least, before his first murder. He states, before he kills Duncan, “…First, as I am his kinsman and his subject strong both against the deed; then, as his host who should against his murderer shut the door…:(Macbeth I, VII, 13-14)” He knows there are many reasons why he shouldn’t murder Duncan, and maybe he would’ve listened to the voice of reason in his head, had it not been for his wife, Lady Macbeth. She pushes him toward evil and brings out his dark, ambitious side, saying that he is a coward for not wanting to kill Duncan and become the king. In the end, his ego and ambition win over his virtues.
When Macbeth becomes king, he is plagued by guilt and self-doubt. He is haunted about killing Duncan and at the same time, he is worried about the witches prophecy about Banquo that said, “Thou shalt get kings, though thou shalt be none.(Macbeth I,III,70)” They said that Banquo would be a father to a king though he would never be one himself. This troubles Macbeth deeply because it means that his family would not stay on the throne. He decides to kill Banquo and his son, yet his son escapes which worries Macbeth. Also, his guilt about the murder of Banquo causes him to have hallucinations. Macbeth decides to visit the witches to see what fate has in store for him.
After his visit with the witches, Macbeth comes out arrogant and cocky because of the prophecy that he shall not be harmed by anyone “woman-born,” nor shall he be defeated until “Birnam Wood comes to Dunsinane.” Macbeth takes these words at face value thinking that everyone has a mother, so he is invincible and that a forest can’t walk to his castle, so he is safe. Macbeth shows that he can be easily deceived, which is his second greatest flaw.
Lady Macbeth
Lady Macbeth suffers from of the same qualities as her husband. She is ambitious, ruthless and bloodthirsty; stopping at nothing until she achieves her goal of becoming Queen. At the beginning of the play, Lady Macbeth was the stronger, more dominant figure in her and her husband Macbeth’s relationship. She pushes him to murder Duncan, the king, so that Macbeth can become king and more importantly, she will become the queen. She wishes she weren’t a woman at one point, so that she could murder Duncan by herself, she says, “Come, you spirits that tend on mortal thought, unsex me here, and fill me from the crown to the toe top full of direst cruelty.” She is portrayed more as a masculine influence, prone to bloodshed and violence, rather than a typical female. Women can be as cruel and conniving as men, but their social restraints keep them from pursuing their ambitions.
Lady Macbeth’s power over Macbeth is so strong that she is able to persuade Macbeth to murder Duncan. She manipulates Macbeth amazingly well and keeps him calm and settles him down after he murders Duncan. However, once Macbeth starts taking control his actions and becomes the more dominant one in the relationship, Lady Macbeth begins a descent into madness. Her ambition was stronger that Macbeth’s before Duncan’s murder and now guilt affects her more than Macbeth afterward. She sleepwalks throughout the castle “washing” her hands to try to wash away the blood stains. She is trying to get rid of the blood stains on her hands, which represent her guilt. Finally, Lady Macbeth’s guilt reaches a breaking point where she is no longer able to deal with the horrendous crime her and her husband committed, so she kills herself.
Banquo
Banquo is the foil to Macbeth in the play. He is pure of heart and follows his morals, never letting himself get carried away by dreams of power. Banquo does not have the extreme ambition that Macbeth has, which allows him to be a solid and wise character. After the meeting with the witches he warns Macbeth, “And oftentimes, to win us to our harm, the instruments of darkness tell us truths, win us with honest trifles, to betray’s in deepest consequence. (I, III, 135-138)” He realizes that the witches are playing games with Macbeth, trying to provoke his ambition and ultimately destroy him. Banquo is cautious and suspicious, wanting to know more about the witches and about their prophecies before he believes them. He is unwilling to compromise honor and integrity in order to get ahead in life. He would rather let fate have its way.
Macduff
Macduff, who is the King of Fife, has a major role in the play. It is he who kills Macbeth, thus restoring peace to Scotland. He is a secondary character at the beginning of the play, but begins rising in importance after Macbeth comes to power. He is a man of his convictions and does the right thing, even if it means betraying his friend, Macbeth. He believes that in order to save Scotland, Macbeth must be killed. He goes to England in order to help Malcolm bring down Macbeth. He shows he is more loyal to his country than to Macbeth when he says, “Bleed, bleed poor country! Great tyranny lay thou thy basis sure, for goodness dare not check thee. (IV, III, 39-41)” He feels as though Scotland is Scotland is losing its life, its vitality, with Macbeth as the King. No one dares to oppose Macbeth because they are afraid of punishment. Macduff is a noble and courageous character who will stand up and do what is right, even if it means risking death.
Macbeth is the tragic hero of the play Macbeth has two major flaws. At the beginning of the play he is the brave and honorable Thane of Glamis. However, early in the story, he encounters three witches who rouse up his first major flaw, a deep, ruthless ambition. The three witches give Macbeth three prophesies about his life. The first two prophecies, Macbeth being the thane of Glamis and becoming the thane of Cawdor come true. The third prophecy predicts that he will become King of Scotland. This is where his dark ambitious side rears its ugly head and he hardens his heart as he prepares to murder Duncan, the current King of Scotland. This is when we get to see the side of Macbeth that is most recognizable, the greedy and ambitious tyrant. However, Macbeth does care a little bit about morality, at least, before his first murder. He states, before he kills Duncan, “…First, as I am his kinsman and his subject strong both against the deed; then, as his host who should against his murderer shut the door…:(Macbeth I, VII, 13-14)” He knows there are many reasons why he shouldn’t murder Duncan, and maybe he would’ve listened to the voice of reason in his head, had it not been for his wife, Lady Macbeth. She pushes him toward evil and brings out his dark, ambitious side, saying that he is a coward for not wanting to kill Duncan and become the king. In the end, his ego and ambition win over his virtues.
When Macbeth becomes king, he is plagued by guilt and self-doubt. He is haunted about killing Duncan and at the same time, he is worried about the witches prophecy about Banquo that said, “Thou shalt get kings, though thou shalt be none.(Macbeth I,III,70)” They said that Banquo would be a father to a king though he would never be one himself. This troubles Macbeth deeply because it means that his family would not stay on the throne. He decides to kill Banquo and his son, yet his son escapes which worries Macbeth. Also, his guilt about the murder of Banquo causes him to have hallucinations. Macbeth decides to visit the witches to see what fate has in store for him.
After his visit with the witches, Macbeth comes out arrogant and cocky because of the prophecy that he shall not be harmed by anyone “woman-born,” nor shall he be defeated until “Birnam Wood comes to Dunsinane.” Macbeth takes these words at face value thinking that everyone has a mother, so he is invincible and that a forest can’t walk to his castle, so he is safe. Macbeth shows that he can be easily deceived, which is his second greatest flaw.
Lady Macbeth
Lady Macbeth suffers from of the same qualities as her husband. She is ambitious, ruthless and bloodthirsty; stopping at nothing until she achieves her goal of becoming Queen. At the beginning of the play, Lady Macbeth was the stronger, more dominant figure in her and her husband Macbeth’s relationship. She pushes him to murder Duncan, the king, so that Macbeth can become king and more importantly, she will become the queen. She wishes she weren’t a woman at one point, so that she could murder Duncan by herself, she says, “Come, you spirits that tend on mortal thought, unsex me here, and fill me from the crown to the toe top full of direst cruelty.” She is portrayed more as a masculine influence, prone to bloodshed and violence, rather than a typical female. Women can be as cruel and conniving as men, but their social restraints keep them from pursuing their ambitions.
Lady Macbeth’s power over Macbeth is so strong that she is able to persuade Macbeth to murder Duncan. She manipulates Macbeth amazingly well and keeps him calm and settles him down after he murders Duncan. However, once Macbeth starts taking control his actions and becomes the more dominant one in the relationship, Lady Macbeth begins a descent into madness. Her ambition was stronger that Macbeth’s before Duncan’s murder and now guilt affects her more than Macbeth afterward. She sleepwalks throughout the castle “washing” her hands to try to wash away the blood stains. She is trying to get rid of the blood stains on her hands, which represent her guilt. Finally, Lady Macbeth’s guilt reaches a breaking point where she is no longer able to deal with the horrendous crime her and her husband committed, so she kills herself.
Banquo
Banquo is the foil to Macbeth in the play. He is pure of heart and follows his morals, never letting himself get carried away by dreams of power. Banquo does not have the extreme ambition that Macbeth has, which allows him to be a solid and wise character. After the meeting with the witches he warns Macbeth, “And oftentimes, to win us to our harm, the instruments of darkness tell us truths, win us with honest trifles, to betray’s in deepest consequence. (I, III, 135-138)” He realizes that the witches are playing games with Macbeth, trying to provoke his ambition and ultimately destroy him. Banquo is cautious and suspicious, wanting to know more about the witches and about their prophecies before he believes them. He is unwilling to compromise honor and integrity in order to get ahead in life. He would rather let fate have its way.
Macduff
Macduff, who is the King of Fife, has a major role in the play. It is he who kills Macbeth, thus restoring peace to Scotland. He is a secondary character at the beginning of the play, but begins rising in importance after Macbeth comes to power. He is a man of his convictions and does the right thing, even if it means betraying his friend, Macbeth. He believes that in order to save Scotland, Macbeth must be killed. He goes to England in order to help Malcolm bring down Macbeth. He shows he is more loyal to his country than to Macbeth when he says, “Bleed, bleed poor country! Great tyranny lay thou thy basis sure, for goodness dare not check thee. (IV, III, 39-41)” He feels as though Scotland is Scotland is losing its life, its vitality, with Macbeth as the King. No one dares to oppose Macbeth because they are afraid of punishment. Macduff is a noble and courageous character who will stand up and do what is right, even if it means risking death.