Macbeth
... Duncan¡¯s words ¡°valiant cousin¡± and ¡°worthy gentleman¡±, we see how trustworthy he thinks Macbeth is. Duncan even confers the Thane of Cawdor¡¯s title upon him and goes to visit his castle. Even so, under the effect of the witches¡¯ prophesies, Macbeth¡¯s ambition still propels him to betray the great king: ¡°Stars, hide your fires, Let not light see my black and deep desires¡¡± (I.IV.50-51) Without a doubt, this malicious ¡°deed¡± cannot be done without Lady Macbeth¡¯s aggressive instigation. Nonetheless, as Macbeth considers ¡°to be thus is nothing, but to be safely thus¡± he plots the assassination of his friend Banquo and his son all by himself. This implies that Macbeth is gradually turning to a total ¡°butcher¡± as he wants to kill the friend who has fought with him shoulder to shoulder. Later in the play, the most bestial and unforgivable crime is committed when revengeful Macbeth slaughters Macduff¡¯s whole family as a punishment for his disloyalty. ¡°The castle of Macduff I will surprise¡ ¡give to th¡¯edge o¡¯th¡¯sword His wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls¡¡± (IV.I.149-151) Malcolm sees how Macbeth¡¯s fatal flaw has led him to cruelty, detachment and brutality, but the word ¡°butcher¡± overlooks the noble characteristics in Macbeth. His courage and patriotism has already been shown in the first act of the play when he fights undauntedly for the country¡¯s victory. His heroic qualities is further reinforced in the final act while Macbeth fights the last battle of his life against Macduff. Although Macbeth has no hope in wining, he would rather fight to death than ¡°yield to kiss the ground before young Malcolm¡¯s feet¡±. On the other hand Malcolm also fails completely to notice any struggles in Macbeth¡¯s mind since he has fled to England. Malcolm has no idea that his conscience has so tortured Macbeth that he ¡°eats his meal in fear¡± and ¡°sleeps in the affliction of terrible dreams¡±. Macbeth¡¯s overwhelming remorse is shown even more vividly when the ghost of Banquo unnerves him: ¡°¡never shake thy gory locks at me! ¡Avaunt and quit my sight! ¡thy bones are marrowless, thy blood is cold.¡± (III.IV.50-94) Apart from the remorse, Macbeth is also extremely disillusioned toward the closing of the play. He compares himself to a ¡°yellow leaf¡±, which symbolises an autumnal season where life is near its end. After hearing of Lady Macbeth¡¯s death, Macbeth realises that life means nothing to him, it is a ¡°brief candle¡± and ¡°a walking shadow¡±. These metaphors demonstrate the vulnerable side of Macbeth and the impact of Lady Macbeth¡¯s death on him. If Macbeth is just a ¡°butcher¡±, these noble qualities and human characters within him would not exist. .Lady Macbeth¡¯s fiendish qualities are comparatively palpable when she goads Macbeth to commit the murder of the king by taunting him ¡°like the poor cat I¡¯th¡¯adage¡±. Without her continual attack on Macbeth¡¯s manliness, Macbeth definitely would not have accomplished the ¡°deed¡±. When facing the King, Lady Macbeth successfully disguises herself as an ¡°innocent flower¡± but remains ¡°a serpent under¡¯t¡±. She not only demonises herself, but also pushes Macbeth¡¯s ambition to the darkest place. Through her soliloquy, we see that Lady Macbeths¡¯s moral and feminine side has been entirely stripped away by her ambition a...