Ambition in Shakespeare's Macbeth Essay Sample

There are many consequences when one becomes greedy and selfish because of ambition. Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare is a story of Macbeth who was once loyal and turns into a selfish and greedy man. It is clear that in the play, that when one has too much ambition, it would lead to greed. This is presented through Macbeth’s selfish decisions of him taking the throne and killing his friend to prevent this friend’s child the title of the throne in the play. Later on, the points when ambition turns to greed were when he wanted to be king and had to take over the throne, and the other was when Macbeth eliminated Banquo due to him wanting to have the throne for himself, shall be further explained. 

The first time when Macbeth’s ambition turned into greed was when he forcefully took the title of king. This is shown when he sent a letter to his wife to take the throne for themselves. This was proven when Macbeth said in the letter that the witches told him that he will be king. Hearing this, Lady Macbeth later says to him after his arrival, “O never shall that morrow see”(Shakespeare 1.5. 60). This shows that Lady Macbeth influenced Macbeth to kill the king and take it by force by killing him. This shows how ambition leads to greed because Macbeth would be willing to resort to murder to get what he wants. In this case, his ambition to be king is making him think that murdering the king would be the fastest, easiest option to become king, showing his selfishness and greed to reach his ambitions. Furthermore, Macbeth has demonstrated the negative aspects of having too much ambition. Later on, his greed to become king overtakes him and he eventually decides to kill King Duncan. This is shown closer to the end of Act 2 Scene 1 when Macbeth says, “I go, and it is done. the bell invites me. / Hear not, Duncan, for it is a kneel / that summons thee to heaven or to hell”(Shakespeare 2.1. 61-63). This shows that Macbeth has gained too much ambition to be king, resulting in him committing murder and treason. It also proves that Macbeth believes the king doesn’t deserve to be killed but decides to kill the king nonetheless, showing his dark path of ambition to be king and the start of his corruption. Thus, Macbeth continues the path of greed to get to his goals further on in the play, and soon, he targets Banquo as he was a potential threat in Macbeth’s eyes.

The second time Macbeth’s ambition turned into greed was when he attempted to murder Banquo and Fleance. Macbeth wanted to keep his title of king and so he blamed Banquo that all of the murderer’s problems are being caused by Banquo. Proof that he blamed Banquo was when Macbeth said to the murderers, “Both of you know Banquo is your enemy”(Shakespeare 3.1. 117). He lied to them because this way he’d be killing two birds with one stone because this way he can prevent Fleance from the title of king as well as get rid of his paranoia of Banquo. This was unexpected because Banquo and Macbeth fought together and thus they have a good relationship. It was also unexpected because Banquo trusts Macbeth so much and so, he was betrayed by his ally. Thus, this shows that Macbeth has become so greedy and selfish that he killed his friend just to achieve his goal. However, as a consequence of killing Banquo, Macbeth began to see Banquo’s ghost and made Macbeth seem insane. Macbeth had also deceived the murderers to kill Banquo and shows that he has become more paranoid that someone will take Macbeth’s title as king. A quote that proves that Macbeth has become paranoid is when he says, “Our fears in Banquo / Stick deep, and in his royalty of nature / Reigns that which would be fear’d”(Shakespeare 3.1. 50-52). ​​This quote is significant because Mabeth has learned to lie to get what he wants and to keep himself safe. This strengthens his greed and ambition to stay as king, allowing him to gain more power, however, he has also become more reckless. Macbeth isn’t aware that he harms people around him, such as Lady Macbeth who goes insane due to all of the murders Macbeth has committed. This eventually leads to Lady Macbeth sleepwalking, and soon, taking her life. From Macbeth’s actions, we can see how his desire for power has made him greedy, selfish, a liar, and harmed the people he once cherished. This shows how much Macbeth has been blinded by his ambition and greed that he has now become self-centred. Further on, it will be visible to see how much Macbeth has developed due to his ambitions.

Macbeth’s ambition has led him to become very greedy and selfish, so much so that it blinded him. Through the points of when Macbeth took the life of the king to take the throne and the other being when he planned Banquo’s demise, are proof that too much ambition corrupts one’s mind. Thus, one shouldn’t resort to greed when they have a lot of ambition. If Macbeth had been patient, he wouldn’t have met such a cruel demise.