Jack VanderMolen
Mrs. Wood
English 11A- 1st hour
15 February 2016

Macbeth

It is difficult to find a dynamic character that can outweigh Macbeth.  He goes through numerous changes throughout the play from far right to far left.  Macbeth is easily manipulated by the people around him and by the end of the play, the traits that he gains on his way to power are the only characteristics that stay.  The loyal and brave Macbeth no longer exists.  He is truly a tragic hero because he shows a few fatal flaws such as his hunger for power.  Although Macbeth is dutiful to the King at the start of the play, as the plot progresses, his dominant characteristic switches from loyalty to opportunism and depravity.
At the beginning of the play, Macbeth was a noble and loyal thane who served the King.  On multiple occasions, people told Macbeth how deserving he was of power,  “And for an earnest of great honor… call thee Thane of Cawdor; In which addition, hail, most worthy thane!”(1:iii, line 104-106).  This was said when Macbeth first walked into the King's castle and all the men of power were consulting with the King.  Also, Macbeth’s closest friend Banquo sees how strong he is, “ For Brave Macbeth- well he deserves that name”(1: ii, line 16).  Banquo fought in battle with Macbeth and has seen his heartiness first hand.  Everyone saw the best of Macbeth and would never think that he would become more monster than man at the conclusion of the play.
As the thought of gaining power weighs on Macbeth, he is torn between two halfs, ambition and loyalty.  During this period, Macbeth does not know how any man can be sain in the hands of so much power.  He says, “O, full of scorpions is my mind”(3:ii, line 36).  This is a tough time for Macbeth because he wants to be King and can not get the thought of it out of his head.  Lady Macbeth tries to corrupt Macbeth during the story.  “When now I think you can behold such sights, And keep the natural ruby of your cheeks, When mine is blanched with fear.” (3:iv, line 114-116).  In this situation, Macbeth does not know how Lady Macbeth can be so calm in face of such evil.  Lady Macbeth finally persuades her husband to murder King Duncan.  After doing so, Macbeth felt remorse, “This is a sorry sight”(2:ii, line 20).  Macbeth is fighting his own ambition.  He is fearful that the evil inside him will overcome all of the good traits he used to have.
Once the King is killed,  Macbeth takes the throne.  This seals the deal and turns Macbeth pure evil.  He feels no sympathy for any of the crimes he commits, “I have almost forgot the taste of fear” (5:v, line 9).  He is too worried about keeping hold of the throne, this results in Macbeth losing all compassion for his foes.  Macbeth loses his mind and has no control, “let not light see my darkest desire”(1:iv, line 51).  He does not want the good side of him to return because he needs the darkness to ensure he will accomplish his dirty deeds.
Macbeth went through many changes throughout the play.  It showed Macbeth being a loyal and respected man at the start.  However, about one-third of the way through, he started fighting with his ambition.  He found that his hunger for power was too great and it eventually took over Macbeth.  This resulted in a man who was pure evil and did not feel any sympathy for his wrongdoings.