The Tragedy of Macbeth
by Sheridan Shears
Greed for Power
Although some may argue Lady Macbeth is to blame for Macbeth's downfall, she is not to blame. Lady Macbeth may have been responsible for convincing Macbeth to murder King Duncan, but the only thing we can blame here is Macbeth's greed for power. ¨Stars hide your fires;Let not light see my black and deep desires¨(1.4.58-59). This quote serves as Macbeth's greed entirely. Macbeth wishes his true intentions of becoming king and gaining power to be kept a secret from everyone, so that he is saved. Throughout the play Macbeth becomes more power driven and self destructive on his own, and Lady Macbeth cannot be put to blame for all of that. It is Macbeth's decision to murder and ruin lives; even if, Lady Macbeth got him started. "Vaulting ambition, which o'erleaps itself And falls on the other"(1.7) This quote here illustrates how Macbeth becomes aware that he is being overly greedy with wanting to kill Duncan. He is aware of the fact that being overly greedy will put you in a bad spot, due to overconfidence in yourself. By the end of the play not only does Macbeth realizes his greed is overtaking him, but so do others. "I grant him bloody, Luxurious, avaricious, false, deceitful, Sudden, malicious, smacking of every sin That has a name." (4.3) This quote expresses how greedy Macbeth has become; he is described by Malcolm and Macduff as someone who contains every last bit evil there ever could be in the world.