Macbeth Mind Map

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Macbeth's moral struggle and absolute power corrupts absolutely

Macbeth’s moral struggle connects to the big idea that absolute power corrupts absolutely because of how Macbeth’s moral struggles change after he becomes king. Before he becomes king, Macbeth has a very hard time going through with killing King Duncan. This is shown through his soliloquy in act 1, scene 7. Macbeth says that he is “his kinsman and his subject,” meaning he should be loyal to him. He says that these connections with the king are “[s]trong both against the deed,” meaning they are good reasons not to kill Duncan. In addition, he reasons that “pity … [s]hall blow the horrid deed in every eye, / That tears shall drown the wind.” This means that Macbeth thinks that the masses will be sad when they hear of Duncan’s murder; their sadness is shown with the hyperbolic phrase “tears shall drown the wind.” Macbeth sees the sadness that the killing will cause as another reason why killing Duncan would be bad. While his hesitancy to kill King Duncan shows Macbeth’s moral struggle, this kind of moral struggle vanishes after he becomes king. In contrast with the previous example, the murders that Macbeth commits after his crowning are done without any cold feet beforehand. This is shown by the murder of Banquo, which Macbeth orders without any signs of moral struggle beforehand. Macbeth’s decision to kill Macduff provides additional evidence. Macbeth decides to have Macduff killed after hearing the second apparition in act 4, scene 1. By saying, “[t]hen live, Macduff: what need I fear of thee,” Macbeth shows that he knows Macduff is not a threat to him. However, immediately after saying that, Macbeth decides to have Macduff killed for extra safety: “[b]ut yet I’ll make assurance double sure, / And take a bond of fate. Thou shalt not live.” He also adds that killing Macduff will allow him to “tell pale-hearted fear it lies, / And sleep in spite of thunder,” which essentially means calm his unnecessary fears. The way that Macbeth decides to kill Macduff for no good reason, and without much deliberation, shows that he loses a lot of his morality as he gains power. In conclusion, Macbeth’s moral struggle shows that absolute power corrupts absolutely because Macbeth stops struggling with the moral issues of murder after he becomes king.

B

Macbeth's moral struggle and blood

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“He’s here in double trust: / First, as I am his kinsman and his subject, / Strong both against the deed …. And pity, like the naked newborn babe, / Striding the blast, or heaven’s cherubin horsed / Upon the sightless couriers of the air, / Shall blow the horrid deed in every eye, / That tears shall drown the wind” (1.7.12-25).

“Then live, Macduff: what need I fear of thee? / But yet I’ll make assurance double sure, / And take a bond of fate. Thou shalt not live; / That I may tell pale-hearted fear it lies, / And sleep in spite of thunder” (4.1.82-86).

Macbeth’s moral struggle connects to the symbol of blood because bloody hands are used to emphasise how guilty Macbeth feels about his murders. This is most clearly shown in act 2, scene 2, after Macbeth returns from killing King Duncan. Macbeth asks himself, “Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood / Clean from my hand?” By asking if an ocean would be able to clean his hands of blood, which symbolises guilt over the murder, Macbeth shows that he feels very guilty about what he has just done. Macbeth further shows his feelings of guilt when he answers his question: “No; this my hand will rather / The multitudinous seas incarnadine.” The word “incarnadine” means redden, so Macbeth is saying that his hands have so much blood on them that the ocean would be dyed red before they were clean. This hyperbolic amount of blood on Macbeth’s hands, which again symbolises his feelings of guilt, reveals that Macbeth feels even guiltier than he let on in the prior sentence. In summary, blood relates to Macbeth’s moral struggle because bloody hands are the key symbol used to emphasise how guilty Macbeth feels after he kills King Duncan.

C

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“Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood / Clean from my hand? No; this my hand will rather / The multitudinous seas incarnadine, / Making the green one red“ (2.2.59-62).

A

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Macbeth's Tragic Downfall (Nick Ferreira)

The tragic downfall of Macbeth is a result of external struggles and internal conflicts leading into his critical decision to kill Duncan, and the aftermath of his treacherous act reflects this choice. Firstly, the most foremost factor guiding Macbeth into his downfall is his excessive ambition as talked about in the section of hamartia. He is inevitably led to follow his overwhelming ambition to become king and in doing so, his judgement is clouded and his actions are easily swayed by the Weird Sisters and Lady Macbeth. Building onto Macbeth’s status as a person of high degree and the corruption that comes from his becoming of Thane of Cawdor, the bestwoment of this title reinforces what he deeply wants to believe is true, and that he is entitled to the title of king. Furthermore, in the moments of his hysteria following Duncan's murder we can see how negatively an act against the world order has affected him, and how there will only be a spiraling downward trajectory from here on. In the end, Macbeth’s downfall can be described as a result of his hamartia and the poisonous ideas placed into his head by the Sisters and Lady Macbeth. The trajectory of his character past Duncan’s death shows his continuous descent into someone not even his wife recognizes, stating his rugged appearance and his newfound independence. We can even compare and contrast Macbeth to Aristotle's description of a tragic hero in Poetics. Aristotle states that a tragic hero must be a honourable nd noble man who through his own error or fault is lead to their own destruction. Macbeth is in every aspect, a tragic hero. Every aspect except for the recognition of his error in the end, which speaks volumes as to how far gone he is, and how much his hamartia has consumed him.

“Which of you have done this? …. Thou canst not say I did it” (3.4.50-51).

“Take any shape but that, and my firm nerves / Shall never tremble” (3.4.103-104).

Moral Struggle (Ben Mills)

Connections

Macbeth's moral struggle and hallucinations

Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely, Loyalty/Treachery, World Order

Quote(s)

Macbeth’s moral struggle connects to the symbol of hallucinations because hallucinations are used to show Macbeth’s feelings of guilt about killing Banquo. The hallucination that shows this is in act 3, scene 4, when Macbeth hallucinates Banquo’s ghost. Upon seeing the hallucination, Macbeth asks who killed Banquo: “[w]hich of you have done this?” He follows this up by saying, “Thou canst not say I did it,” pleading innocence to the murder. One reason why Macbeth says this is that he thinks that the lords can see the ghost as well, so he pretends not to have ordered Banquo’s killing. However, Macbeth also says this because he doesn’t want to face the fact that he killed his close friend. This unwillingness to accept what he has done shows that he feels guilty about the murder. Further evidence appears later in the same scene, when Banquo’s ghost appears a second time. Macbeth says to the ghost, “Take any shape but that, and my firm nerves / Shall never tremble.” This indicates that rather than fearing the hallucination because he is afraid of ghosts, Macbeth is disturbed because it is Banquo in particular. This further proves that Macbeth feels guilty about his murder of Banquo for the same reason as before: he is unwilling to accept what he has done. In conclusion, the symbol of hallucinations connects to Macbeth’s moral struggle because hallucinations are used to show that Macbeth feels guilty after he has Banquo killed.

"Hey now, my lord! Why do you keep alone, of sorriest fancies your companions making using those thoughts which indeed have died with them they think on..." (3.2 27-29)

Macbeth’s moral struggle manifests in 2 main ways. Firstly, it appears in the form of hesitation to commit immoral acts. Secondly, it manifests as feelings of guilt after the acts have been committed.

Tragic Downfall and Absolute Power

Tragic Downfall and Treachery

Tragic Downfall and World Order

The power bestowed upon Macbeth as Thane of Cawdor clouds or 'corrupts' his judgement and makes him easily swayed and convinced he has no free will towards murdering Duncan

Macbeth's moment where he 'crosses the rubicon' is when he commits treachery against the monarchy and kills Duncan. This event not only is a treacherous act but it infects his loyalty to the closest people in his life

In killing Duncan, Macbeth is commiting an unspeakable crime. This violation of world order starts to slowly drive him mad and leads him to eventually be killed for this crime

Macbeth's hamartia and Lady Macbeth

“The raven himself is hoarse / That croaks the fatal entrance of Duncan / Under my battlements. Come, you spirits / That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, / And fill me, from the crown to the toe, top-full / Of direst cruelty” (1.5.39-44).

Macbeth’s excessive ambition connects to Lady Macbeth because she is also overly ambitious, and has the same goal as him: becoming royalty. Her ambitions are shown through her soliloquy in act 1, scene 5, after she receives the news of the prophecy through Macbeth’s letter. The first thing that Lady Macbeth says after finishing the letter shows her ambition: “thou … shalt be / What thou art promised” (1.5.16-17). This shows that she aspires to become royalty because her immediate reaction to learning the prophecy is a determined statement that she will ensure it comes true, showing that she finds becoming royalty to be very desirable. She reveals that her ambition is excessive through what she is willing to do in order to pursue it. Later in act 1, scene 5, when Lady Macbeth receives the news that King Duncan is going to come for dinner, she immediately decides that she and Macbeth should kill him. This is shown by how she refers to Duncan’s entrance into her castle as “fatal,” and how she mentions her castle’s “battlements.” Battlements are used for combat, and thus serve as a symbol of violence. She continues by calling on evil spirits which “tend on [deadly] thoughts” to help her go through with the murder by filling her with “direst cruelty.” This shows how badly she wants to become royalty, because she even resorts to asking evil spirits to partially possess her in order to achieve her goal. This, along with the fact that she is willing to kill the king, shows that Lady Macbeth’s ambition is excessive. In conclusion, Lady Macbeth connects with Macbeth’s hamartia because she possess excessive ambition to become royalty, just like the ambition that serves as Macbeth’s tragic flaw.

This quote also connects with the big idea of the relationship between masculinity and cruelty / violence. This is because Lady Macbeth, as she is asking to be filled with “direst cruelty,” also asks to be “unsexed.” The word “unsex” means remove the qualities typical of one’s sex, so Lady Macbeth is asking to have her feminine qualities removed. Because she is asking for this right before going through with a murder, and while asking to be filled with “direst cruelty,” Lady Macbeth’s words support the idea that femininity comes with an inability to do cruel and violent things. This connects with the big idea of the relationship between masculinity and cruelty / violence, because if women are typically unable to do cruel and violent things, as the play asserts here, then it follows that those actions are linked to masculinity.

Connections

Blood, Hallucinations

The Tragedie of

Since the beginning of British history, an important political doctrine has been the Divine Right of Kings. This is the idea that monarchs are chosen by a divine being to rule on earth. This was a very timely idea in Scotland when Macbeth was written: In 1610 King James VI popularised the idea when he went to parliament and called himself “god’s lieutenant”. Macbeth obtains the throne illegitimately, by killing the King, supposedly upsetting the natural order and hierarchy of the world as designed by God. The idea of world order ties into the idea of loyalty. Noblemen such as Macbeth owe their loyalty to the King, as well as their God. Killing their king who is selected by God violates their duty to be loyal to both King and God. Because Macbeth is not a legitimate King, he is not answerable to God. This causes chaos in nature, such as the deceased King Duncan’s horses eating each other, and an owl killing a hawk: “‘Tis unnatural, / [e]ven like the deed that’s done. On Tuesday last / [a] falcon, tow’ring in her pride of place, [w]as by a mousing owl hawked at and killed.” (2.3.10-13) and “And Duncan’s horses–a thing most strange and certain … ‘Tis said they eat each other” (2.4.14&18).

World Order and Hallucinations

Hamartia (Ben Mills)

Macbeth and the Lady Macbeth also experience personal consequences for their sacrilegious actions: they begin to hallucinate and the Lady Macbeth sleepwalks and grows increasingly paranoid. Her doctor even announces that she doesn’t need medicine, she needs God: “More needs she the divine than the physician” (5.1.78). This shows that she has grown distant from natural order and God due to her actions.

World Order and Blood

Macbeth's hamartia and absolute power corrupts absolutely

Macbeth's Violation of World Order

“For Banquo’s issue have I filed my mind; / For them the gracious Duncan have I murdered; … and mine eternal jewel / Given to the common enemy of man, / To make them kings, the seeds of Banquo kings! / Rather than so, come, fate, into the list, / And champion me to th’ utterance” (3.1.65-72).

For the world to return to its natural order, Macbeth must be deposed and likely die. Macduff and Malcolm are keen to remove the tyrannical Macbeth from his throne. When Macduff finally kills Macbeth and presents his severed head to Malcolm, he hails Malcolm as King of Scotland, and announces that the world has returned to its rightful order: "Th' usurper's cursed head. The time is free" (5.8.55) showing that darkness has been defeated so the world can

return to order.

Macbeth’s hamartia is his excessive ambition. This primarily manifests throughout the play as ambition to become king and, once he becomes king, ambition to retain his power. Macbeth’s excessive ambition is shown through the actions he takes in order to achieve his goals, such as killing King Duncan in order to steal the crown. Macbeth reveals that he does this solely because of his ambition to become king in act 1, scene 7, when he is debating whether or not to go through with the murder. At the end of the soliloquy, after listing the moral reasons why killing Duncan would be bad, Macbeth says, “I have no spur / To prick the sides of my intent.” A spur is a spike on a boot, used for convincing horses to move; Macbeth uses “spur” as a metaphor for a moral incentive, with his “intent” being like a horse that would typically be driven by a spur. However, Macbeth says that there isn’t a spur - which means there is no moral reason for him to kill the king. This leads Macbeth to the conclusion that the only thing driving him to kill the king is “[v]aulting ambition, which o’erleaps itself / And falls on th’ other.” Since he describes his ambition as “[v]aulting” then “fall[ing],” Macbeth reveals that he is aware his ambition is going to cause harm to him eventually (since the harm done by falling occurs solely because of attempted vaulting). Despite knowing this, and having just decided that killing King Duncan would be immoral, Macbeth proceeds to murder Duncan anyways. The fact that Macbeth’s ambition is so powerful that he chooses to follow it in spite of his reasons not to shows that Macbeth’s ambition is extremely powerful, to the point that he is unable to resist it. This excessive ambition is Macbeth’s hamartia because, as previously shown, it is the reason why Macbeth undergoes his tragic downfall: killing King Duncan.

Macbeth’s excessive ambition connects to the big idea that absolute power corrupts absolutely because Macbeth’s power primarily corrupts him by increasing the strength of his ambition. This is best shown through Macbeth’s decision to murder Banquo in act 3, scene 1, which occurs because his ambition has grown stronger. Macbeth says to himself, “[f]or Banquo’s issue have I filed my mind; / For them the gracious Duncan have I murdered.” The word “issue” means offspring, so Macbeth is saying that, ultimately, everything he has done to become king will benefit Banquo’s children. He knows this because of the prophecy Banquo is given when the two of them meet the weïrd sisters: “[t]hou shalt get kings, though thou be none” (1.3.67). Macbeth continues by saying, “and mine eternal jewel / Given to the common enemy of man, / To make them kings, the seeds of Banquo kings!” Macbeth starts to express anger, as shown by the use of exclamation points, at the fact that he will be punished (by having his “eternal jewel,” or soul, given to the “common enemy of man,” the devil) while Banquo’s descendants will reap the rewards instead of his own. Macbeth ultimately decides to attempt to try to change the fate of Banquo’s descendants because of his ambition to have a line of kings for himself: “[r]ather than so, come, fate, … And [fight against me to the death]!” Macbeth does this by ordering Banquo and Fleance’s murder soon after this soliloquy, saying to the murderers, “Both of you / Know Banquo was your enemy …. So he is mine, and in such bloody distance / That every minute of his being thrusts / Against my near’st of life” (3.1.14-18). Macbeth kills Banquo because of his ambition to have his descendants be kings, but Macbeth’s ambition was not always this strong. He knew as early as act 1, scene 3, that Banquo’s descendants would replace his as kings, but he never took action until now, after being corrupted by kingly power. In conclusion, Macbeth’s tragic flaw relates to the big idea that absolute power corrupts absolutely because power corrupts Macbeth by magnifying his hamartia, causing him to do things he wouldn’t do otherwise.

“I have no spur / To prick the sides of my intent, but only / Vaulting ambition, which o’erleaps itself / And falls on th’ other” (1.7.25-27).

Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation.

- Romans 13:1-2 KJV

Macbeth as a person of a High Degree

Other Characters

Macduff

The exposition of William Shakespeare’s Macbeth clearly demonstrates Macbeth as a person of a high degree, and he continues to gain status throughout the play. At the start of the play, Macbeth is already Thane of Glamis. When he meets with the three weird sisters, they tell him he will become Thane of Cawdor, and later King of Scotland: “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis! / All hail Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of / Cawdor!/ All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be King hereafter” (1.3.48-50). Macbeth is made Thane of Cawdor soon after he receives the prophecy, not only a symbol of his high status but a testament to his courage, bravery, work ethic and character: “call thee Thane of Cawdor … hail, most worthy Thane!” (1.3.105-106) .

Catharsis at the end of Macbeth

Nobility and Masculinity & Violence

Macbeth’s final moments in act 5 elicit a cathartic response from the audience in two ways: Audience members feel pity and some sense of sadness for Macbeth as a flawed human, yet are relieved that his violent spree is over and the Kingdom-and world- will return to order. When he meets with the apparitions, he leaves with a false sense of security. One of the apparitions tells Macbeth “none of woman born / [s]hall harm Macbeth (4.1.80-81). Another tells him “Macbeth shall never vanquished be until / Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane Hill / [s]hall come against him” (4.1.92-93). He later realizes he isn’t invincible when he realizes Macduff was born by Caesarean section and therefore he isn’t women born: “Tell thee, Macduff was from his mother’s womb / [u]ntimely ripped (5.8.15-16). This realization brings with it a feeling of terror that causes the audience to feel pity for him. The audience also recognizes that Macbeth was a powerful man of strong character, who had potential but wasted it all by killing the King, which eventually led to his untimely death. .

Many powerful men throughout the play are examples of how masculinity and violence are connected. These men feel they need to be brave, strong, and sometimes violent to fulfill their expectations, and other people’s expectations, of them as men. For example, Macbeth feels the need to kill the King to fit her husband’s expectations of him, which are shown when she tells him “But screw your courage to the sticking place, and we’ll not fail” (1.7.60-61)

The Scottish Play

Catharsis and Blood

At the same time, the highly religious audience understands that Macbeth must die for the world to return to its natural, stable state. This ties in with the symbolism of blood: Macbeth’s blood must be spilled to atone for his sins and crimes and remove his evil from the world. Macduff announces that the world is once again back to normal after he kills Macbeth, saying “Th’ usuper’s cursed head. The time is free. (5.8.55)

Nobility and Loyalty & Treachery

Nobility and Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely

He has had his first taste of power and as a result is lead to believe that he can become King. He will do anything possible to achieve this power, including treason and sin, demonstrating that absolute power, specifically the pursuit of it, corrupts absolutely. Macbeth commits unimaginable acts, such as killing the king and his servants, to advance his status. He verbally admits to these thoughts in an aside after Malcolm is named heir: "The Prince of Cumberland! That is a step/ On w which I must fall down or else o'erleap" (1.5.49). This quote shows that he is planning on dethroning the King and his sons to achieve more power- the Kingship.

Themes of power and Macbeth’s high degree also illuminate the ideas of loyalty and treachery. Macbeth is loyal to King Duncan, but only as long as it serves his own interests. When Macbeth isn’t satisfied with his current role and will kill his King to advance his status. Many other powerful men take drastic actions against more powerful people throughout the play. For example, Malcolm and Macduff raise an army to dethrone Macbeth and regain their lost power. Macbeth's servant tells him: "There is ten thousand ----- / Geese, villain? /Soldiers, sir. (5.3.12-14). Their construction of an army to fight against the powerful King Macbeth demonstrates how the desire for absolute power, and the corruption of morality necessary to obtain it, is universal and can lead to treason.

Other Characters

Catharsis and World Order

The audience feels a sense of relief and release of pent up tension and fear from his reign, and feel a sense of comfort in that the world will return to its natural state. The audience feels a similar relief to the characters on stage when Macduff announces "Th' usurper's cursed head. The time is free ... As calling home our exiled friends abroad / That fled the snares of watchful tyranny (5.8.55 & 66-67). The audience, and characters feel relief that the world is no longer threatened by Macbeth's cruel reign and that Malcolm's family is safe, as Malcolm is one of the most morally good characters in the play.

Catharsis and Light vs Evil

In the end, the audience is relieved that light has presided over evil, reflected in the characters language on stage, when Malcolm calls Macbeth a "dead butcher" (5.8.69), showing exactly how the characters on stage felt about Macbeth.

Macduff, King Duncan, and YOU!

N Ferreira, B Mills, and A Tweddell