Response to Morgan

Morgan, I agree that enough will never be enough for MacBeth.  He has dug himself such a deep hole that it is impossible to repent for his sins.  You said he had the choice to run away, continue to kill or kill himself.  Here is where I think you are wrong.  None of these options sound like the character of MacBeth, besides, perhaps, continuing to kill.  Instead I believe that MacBeth chooses to show the power he holds to intimidate anyone apposing his throne.  At this point, many people suspect MacBeth as a psychopathic murderer.  Instead of killing anyone he suspects, I believe the next step for MacBeth is to blot out any uprising by becoming the ultimate tyrant that no one dares to cross.  Either way, the downfall of MacBeth is unavoidable as Shakespeare writes to prove a point about the destructive capabilities that unbridled ambition and lust for power can have on a human being.

The Witches and Their Meaning

It is interesting to see the different ways the witches predictions twist the mind of MacBeth.  In the first case, they light the prospect of power and MacBeth takes this as a sign that he is to kill the king. The next prophecies are warnings, "Beware of Banquo."  MacBeth again takes this to mean he must kill.  Finally, the witches predict Fleance to become the next king.  Instead of heading the words of the witches and taking them as truths, as he had done before, MacBeth seeks out to stop the prophecy and kill Fleance.  This contradiction shows how the witches have no true power over him, but simply influence his thoughts.  The witches put forth an idea, but it is MacBeth who chooses how this idea will influence the world around.  To me, this symbolizes how we perceive things in life.  We may see signs in life and choose to perceive them as a positive influence or a negative influence.  Likewise, we are provided opportunities, but it is our choice in what we choose to make of them.

The Toll of Murder

In scenes three and four, we see MacBeth turn from a man feeling the immense guilt of one murder, to a maniacal killer, willing to do anything to maintain his power.  I do not understand how this can happen over such a short time.  Within a matter of days, MacBeth has either killed off or alienated all of his friends and turned into a cold-blooded monster.  The guilt of one murder, instead of acitng as an inhibitor, acts as the driving force behind the following massacres by MacBeth.  His wife, many predicted to be the driving force behind MacBeth's ambitious characteristics, is now deathly afraid of the monster she has made.  I do not believe that the obsession that overtakes MacBeth is realistic for the time period set forth by Shakespeare, however, Shakespeare puts forth a fast-forwarded version of what can happen to an ambitious man with no moral restraints.  Guilt and suspicion plague MacBeth's concience as he strives forward to maintain his reign.