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Andrew Montoya

Ms. Katie Feek

Honors Advanced Composition

04 December 2018

Macbeth Argumentative Paper Assignment: Prompt 1

Although it is easy to blame a person’s circumstances on fate, with an omnipotent view,

we can analyze the root cause of a person's decisions. When we look at the case of Macbeth, we

can clearly see that from the beginning of the play, other forces are immediately involved. It is

apparent that Macbeth is a victim of the witches, Lady Macbeth, and his own weak will.

The play opens with the three witches. Immediately the atmosphere is filled with an eerie

sense of foul play as they chant “Fair is foul, and foul is fair” (​Macbeth​ 1.1.10-11). It is the

witches that reveal to Macbeth that he shall be king which begins his descent into tragedy

(​Macbeth​ 1.3.49-51). Had the witches not intervened in the first place, it can be reasonably

inferred that Macbeth’s ambitions would not have been fueled by a false sense of grandeur.

Immediately after this encounter with the witches, Macbeth questions the supposed “fate” that

has been set out for him: “This supernatural soliciting / Cannot be ill, cannot be good… Whose

horrid image doth unfix my hair / And make my seated heart knock at my ribs” (​Macbeth

1.3.134-140). Macbeth’s heart, his intentions, have been influenced by the witches and put into a

state of uncertainty. It is this vulnerability that opens Macbeth to the intrusion of evil. Without

this initial push, Macbeth would not have been lured to murder Duncan. Even Hecate, the leader

of the witches, scolds the three for laying a heavy hand in Macbeth’s affairs (​Macbeth​ 3.5.3-8).
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Later on in the play, when Macbeth seeks the witches again, the witches provide him with three

Apparitions that give him a misleading sense of invincibility (​Macbeth​ 4.1.71-103). The

continuation of the witches’ involvement put the final stake in Macbeth’s coffin. After this

encounter, Macbeth, still believing that no one born of a woman could defeat him, goes on to

challenge Macduff (​Macbeth​ 5.8.27-34). The resulting battle ends in Macbeth’s ultimate demise.

While the witches play a critical role in the downfall of Macbeth, they are not the only

contributors. Lady Macbeth acts as a catalyst to Macbeth’s misdeeds especially in times of his

doubt. In the murder of the king, Lady Macbeth is the mastermind that uses Macbeth as a puppet

for her own benefit. She is the one that hastily suggests that Duncan not leave their dwelling

alive: “O, never / Shall sun that morrow see” (​Macbeth​ 1.5.60-61) Lady Macbeth consistently

goats Macbeth to play along with her scheme. After being dubbed Thane of Cawdor, Macbeth

proclaims that “We will proceed no longer in this business: / He hath honored me of late, and I

have bought / Golden opinions from all sorts of people” (​Macbeth ​1.7.32-34). If at this moment

Lady Macbeth had agreed to cease her plans, the play would end. Instead, she asserts that if she

had promised to do something, she would uphold her word, even if it meant brutally killing her

own child (​Macbeth​ 1.7.55-60). It is with this heinous image that Macbeth’s resolve is restored.

It is later revealed that Lady Macbeth’s bold claim was nothing but an empty statement as she

finds herself unable to kill Duncan because he resembles her father (​Macbeth​ 2.2.11-13). So

much for keeping her word. Aside from influencing Macbeth, Lady Macbeth plays an active role

in the murder of Duncan. With Macbeth in horrific shock after killing the king, Lady Macbeth

says, “Infirm of purpose! Give me the daggers. The sleeping and the dead / Are but as pictures”

(​Macbeth​ 2.2.52-54). In the case of the witches, Macbeth’s downfall is the result of
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misinterpretations, but here we can clearly see Lady Macbeth is furthering her husband’s descent

into treachery with definitive action.

Most people would argue that at the end of the day, it is Macbeth’s choice to act on

temptation. Those people are absolutely right. The problem is, acting on temptation is not the

result of an innate evil within Macbeth. It is Macbeth’s feeble character that is unable to guard

against the imposed ploy of other characters. It would be evil if Macbeth acted without remorse

or a second thought, but time and time again we see Macbeth plagued with an immense amount

of guilt and regret. After the murder of Duncan, Macbeth evaluates his guilt to the measure of the

ocean: “Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood / Clean from my hand? No; this my hand

will rather / The multitudinous seas incarnadine” (​Macbeth​ 2.2.60-62) Not even the ocean could

wash away his sins. This is a man who is broken and wishes he could take it all back. He even

wishes Duncan would wake up again with some knocking (​Macbeth​ 2.2.73-74). Another

manifestation of Macbeth’s grief is the ghost of Banquo. At this point, Macbeth has been

consumed by utter anguish to the point of insanity. Macbeth shouts at the ghost, “Avaunt! and

quit my sight! Let the earth hide thee! / Thy bones are marrowless, thy blood is cold,; / Thou hast

no speculation in those eyes / Which thou dost glare with” (​Macbeth​ 3.4.96-99) This reaction is

the product of a weak will, not of evil.

Like most things, nothing is ever really black and white. With enough analysis, we can

dissect the motives of each character and how each action intertwines with one another. With

Macbeth, it is obvious there is more to his character than the motive of a malicious spirit. His

tragedy is the consequence of multiple people getting involved where they shouldn’t and of his

own accord.
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Works Cited

Shakespeare, William. ​Macbeth​. ​myPerspective British and World Literature,​ edited by Ernest

Morrell, Elfrieda Hiebert, Kelly Gallagher, and Jim Cummins, Pearson, 2017, pp.

260-347