Commitment Issues in Macbeth - Essay Example

Commitment Issues in Macbeth Macbeth tells the story of a Scottish general, Macbeth, who has seenvictory in battle just as he meets with three witches up on the moors. These witches tell him he will first become Thane of Cawdor, which is thought to be impossible as it is a rank of nobility and already occupied, and then that he will become King of Scotland, again a position already taken. Although this encounter starts Macbeth’s descent into wickedness, it is his inability to balance and manage his various commitments that eventually drives him to his doom. Hearing the news, Macbeth’s wife is unwilling to allow time to lay the course and convinces Macbeth to murder the present king that very evening. This, of course, leads to increasing levels of violence as Macbeth attempts to retain control of the crown and secure his position. Because Macbeth cannot justify his actions because of some commitments, but was required to carry out these actions because of other commitments, he is quickly overwhelmed and inadvertently becomes dedicated to evil. The primary commitments Macbeth fails to appropriately balance throughout the play are his commitment to his king, his commitment to his friends, his commitment to his wife and, finally, realizes the commitment he has made to the forces of evil. At the beginning of the play, Macbeth is not even present as news of his deeds in the service of his king and employer are reported to King Duncan. Macbeth himself is in the battlefield, defending Duncan’s kingdom from the forces of Macdonwald, a man from the ‘Western Isles.’ It is clear that Macbeth honors his commitment to Duncan in the way that he is willing to risk his life in defense of his king’s lands as is reported by the wounded captain in Act I, Scene ii. He tells the king the battle was “As two spent swimmers that do cling together / And choke their art” (I, ii, 8-9), indicating that the two sides were equally matched for skill. However, the captain also reports that despite Macbeth’s skill and talent, Fortune was favoring Macdonwald. “But all’s too weak / For brave Macbeth (well he deserves that name) / Disdaining Fortune, with his brandished steel … unseamed him from the nave to th’ chops” (I, ii, 15-17, 22). After receiving this news and finding the old Thane of Cawdor a traitor to the throne, King Duncan works to further Macbeth’s commitment to him by awarding him the now vacant title. While Macbeth’s commitment to Duncan is obvious to the audience, it is acknowledged by Macbeth himself as he considers the idea of assassination: “He’s here in double trust: / 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” (I, vii, 12-15). Beyond this, he also knows that Duncan has been a good and fair king and killing him is unjustified. Of course, his recent elevation to Cawdor reinforces the information Macbeth has been given on the moors by the witches, which introduces another, stronger commitment that pulls at Macbeth’s nerves. This commitment is the one he made to his personal interests, primarily represented by his wife and social position. Macbeth’s acknowledgement of the strength of his commitment to his wife is illustrated as he addresses her in his letter, “This have I thought good to deliver thee, my dearest partner of greatness” (I, v). This commitment plays a large role in his actions, decisions and mental state in ensuing scenes as it is Macbeth’s wife that continues to push him into the actions that are in direct opposition to his commitment to his king. For example, when Macbeth expresses his misgivings regarding the plot to kill the king, Lady Macbeth eggs him forward with the plan by calling his manhood into question. Although Macbeth has very compelling arguments not to take action, Lady Macbeth confronts him with a nearly impossible choice. When Macbeth decides for honor’s sake that he will not kill Duncan this night, it is Lady Macbeth who spurs him forward with the plan anyway, asking if all his resolve was just a show. She promises “From this time / Such I account thy love. Art thou afeard / To be the same in thine own act and valor / As thou art in desire?” (I, vii, 38-41). In making this speech, Lady Macbeth not only calls into question the strength of Macbeth’s commitment to her, but also his commitment to himself and his manhood, something that was even more important to the individual then than it is today. She indicates she is the stronger character because “I have given suck, and know / How tender ‘tis to love the babe that milks me: / I would, while it was smiling in my face, / Have plucked the nipple from his boneless gums / And dashed the brains out, had I so sworn” (I, vii, 54-58). Rather than allow his wife to be more masculine than himself, Macbeth determines he has no option but to follow through with the plan. Macbeth’s commitment to evil, though, is a slowly developing process that only begins with his letter to his wife from his first encounter with the witches. Although he knows he has no reason to move against his king other than “vaunting ambition, which o’erleaps itself” (I, vii, 25-27), his commitment to his wife and his greed proves overpowering, forcing him to the act. This single evil action thus commits him to further evil acts. When Macbeth willingly participates in murder, this quickly escalates to massacres of perceived enemies and the propagation of lies and deceits as a means of maintaining the perception others have of him. As Macbeth confesses to his wife his fears regarding his inability to say ‘Amen’ (II, ii) following his first murder, she consoles him and warns him against the future both share, “These deeds must not be thought / After these ways; so, it will make us mad” (II, ii, 32-33). Despite this warning, though, neither character seems capable of escaping the inevitable deterioration of the soul that their actions have brought upon them. Because of their relationship and dual commitment, though, the crime must be imprinted on both their hands. While Macbeth plunged the blade into Duncan, it was Lady Macbeth that smeared the old king’s blood upon the persons of the chamberlains so as to frame them for the crime. Because both characters had a duty to honor and protect their king and guest, both characters experience the same decline into madness as a result. Macbeth’s own deceit of Duncan despite the fact that Duncan had been a benevolent leader and a guest in Macbeth’s house also makes it impossible for Macbeth to consider the possibility that his friends did not have similar evil thoughts in mind regarding himself. As a direct result of his own deceitfulness, then, Macbeth is unable to see innocence in friends and instead sees nothing but the possibility for harm. These thoughts force him to consider the possible schemes of Banquo, thus leading him to order murder once again. When Macbeth and Banquo meet just before the murder of Duncan, Banquo brings up the subject of the weird sisters, but Macbeth pledges him to silence. “If you shall cleave to my consent, when ‘tis, / It shall make honor for you” (II, i, 25-26). The fact that Banquo would bring up the subject makes Macbeth consider these dangers and take action to prevent them from occurring once Banquo’s suspicions regarding the old king’s death are aroused. “Our fears in Banquo stick deep, / And in his royalty of nature reigns that / Which would be feared. ‘Tis much he dares; / And to that dauntless temper of his mind / He hath a wisdom that doth guide his valor / To act in safety” (III, i, 49-54). Macbeth seems to realize that Banquo’s silence regarding the weird sisters and what he must suspect regarding Macbeth’s involvement in King Duncan’s death is brought about not because of any loyalty to Macbeth personally, but instead with an eye toward safety and awaiting the best situation for Banquo. As a result, Macbeth realizes that he has Banquo’s silence only for so long as keeping silent benefits Banquo, thus Banquo becomes a threat and must be eliminated. Macbeth’s increasing commitment to evil is highlighted in the fact that Banquo had no real intention of doing anything to bring about Macbeth’s downfall because he was looking forward to the benefits that would probably fall to his own son based upon the prophecy provided him at the same time as Macbeth’s. The audience, if not already aware of Macbeth’s newfound commitment to evil as a force even above his commitment to his family and position, this commitment is made clear in his deliberate seeking out of the three witches. “I conjure you by that which you profess, / Howe’er you come to know it answer me … Even till destruction sicken, answer me / To what I ask you” (IV, i, 50-51, 60-61). In his call for the witches, Macbeth acknowledges that these creatures are creatures of death and destruction. With this recognition, Macbeth is seen by the audience to have completely crossed over to the side of evil, but he does not seem to recognize himself as having fully made the commitment yet. For their part, the witches drive Macbeth to further evil action in his seeking of Macduff, “beware Macduff! / Beware the Thane of Fife!” (IV, i, 71-72), even as they fill him with an intentionally false sense of confidence in his own immortality by suggesting that “none of woman born / Shall harm Macbeth” (IV, i, 80-81). Unknown to the audience or to Macbeth at this point, Macduff was born through Cesarean section and thus was not ‘born of woman.’ While there is at least partial justification for Macbeth’s murder of Banquo as a means of protecting his evil investment to date, it is his actions against Macduff’s family that finally reveals, even to himself, his final commitment to evil. To avenge himself on Macduff for having escaped him, Macbeth orders the massacre of Macduff’s entire family, none of whom had any conception of what was happening or why they were to be executed. The best warning they receive is the arrival of a messenger, who tells Lady Macduff, “I doubt not that some danger does approach you nearly. / If you will take a homely man’s advice, / Be not found here” (IV, ii, 66-68). Unfortunately, on the heels of this messenger are the murderers themselves, who quickly carry out their orders. While there may be some justification for the search for Macduff, who has been labeled a traitor and has now been named by the witches, there seems no justification for the murder of a harmless woman, completely unaware of recent events, and an innocent boy. Through Macbeth’s journey through the play, it can be seen how his failure to honor commitments continues to push him toward an ultimate commitment to wickedness from which he cannot be saved. First failing his commitment to his employer, benefactor, lord and king, Macbeth struggles to find a balance between his own ethical beliefs and his commitment to his wife. In attempting to hold on to his shaky position in society after the murder of the king, Macbeth finds it increasingly difficult to honor his commitment to his wife as well, continuing to lose his grip on sanity and failing to find in her the foundation he believed was there. His murder of Banquo demonstrates his failure to honor the commitments of friendship and brotherhood while his active seeking out of the witches illustrates the final stage in his decline into wickedness. This is proven in his orders to kill everyone in Macduff’s family as punishment for Macduff’s ‘traitorous’ actions and escape. Works Cited Shakespeare, William. “Macbeth.” William Shakespeare: The Complete Works. Alfred Harbage (Ed.). New York: Penguin Books, 1969: 1107-1135. Read More