Introduction
Since early history, power has been known to insinuate the most outrageous murders, as people tend to ignore moral limits and humanity in the name of acquiring the throne. A similar case is portrayed in the Tragedy of Macbeth, which is a play that tells the story of a nobleman named Macbeth, whose life took a rather drastic turn after he met three witches who foretold that his kingship would not be passed on to his heirs, but rather to his relatives’ sons (Shakespeare). After the revelation, Macbeth murders the then king of Scotland, Duncan, in order to cling to the throne, after which he goes on a killing spree throughout the play as a means to bury his past and control his future as Scotland’s King. Though the first murder can be forgiven since there was seemingly no other practical way of securing the throne except by killing Duncan, the other murders he proceeded to commit were undoubtedly unwarranted, and there was absolutely no reason at all for his incessant murderous acts, as they led to his ultimate demise.
A Trail of Bloodshed and Destruction
In a bid to ensure that no other male heir could challenge his reign, Macbeth goes on an incessant killing spree, even murdering Macduff's children and wife. In Act II, Scene III, Lines 113-115, Macbeth is quoted saying, “There’s nothing serious in mortality; All is but toys: renown and grace is dead” to imply that he does not really care about preserving life so long as it is in his way to glory. This is after murdering Duncan, an act aimed at ensuring the retention of the throne.
As bewildering as it seems, Macbeth still goes ahead to murder Banquo, a longtime friend who was also present during the witches’ prophecy. In Act III, Scene III, Lines 25-26, Banquo gasps, "O, treachery! Fly, good Fleance, fly, fly, fly!” just before he dies in the hands of murderers hired by Macbeth. Macbeth orders the murder of Banquo simply because of a mere disagreement, though he was already secretly planning on killing Banquo since he considered him a threat because he knew that Macbeth was behind the killing of King Duncan.
Unraveling the Dynamics of Power and Violence
It's worth noting, however, that it was not Macbeth’s nature to use violence and murder as a means of acquiring and retaining power. In fact, it is his wife, Lady Macbeth, who urges him to kill King Duncan so as to assume the throne (C. Booth). In Act, I, Scene V, Lines 80-83, Lady Macbeth says, "Only look up clear: to alter favor ever is to fear: Leave all the rest to me," meaning Macbeth was reluctant to kill Macbeth, though his wife coaxed him to commit the murderous act, after which he proceeds to claim thousands of lives in an attempt to elongate his reign. The notion that Macbeth was not to blame for the murders he committed, but rather it is his wife's fault, however, fails to hold water since his wife constantly attempted to coax him not to commit the rest of the murders, yet he proceeded anyway.
Despite the presence of other more effective and less bloody ways that Macbeth would have employed to ensure his elongated stay on the throne, he still chose murder and violence to protect his future as Scotland’s king. The killing spree involving the murders of Macduff and his family eventually led to his downfall, rather than securing his future as king, yet he could have employed other methods of rule, which could have resulted in a more stable and elongated reign. Macbeth’s demise was henceforth his own fault as he also refused to follow his wife's advice against the incessant killings since there was really no point in killing the families of those he thought were heirs to the throne as foretold by the three witches.
