Macbeth

"Texts of integrity shift with time and place. What was old can become new again!" Macbeth as a universal play can take on a number of different interpretations. As a play is passed throughout the ages, the meaning of it is changed, yet can still have the same morals. For a text to have integrity it must have more that one meaning. A play that has integrity caters to a large demographic on a social and cultural level. Macbeth is a classic example of a play that has integrity. It's appropriated and performed in many different cultures and countries, but it still holds the same morals. The areas I will discuss in terms of integrity are the supernatural, ambition and guilt and fear. The two critical responses I will be analysing are, "Macbeth and Analysis of Fear", and "Blameless Macbeth". I will also be asserting that Macbeth's downfall was due mainly to ambition and then guilt.

In today's context, in order to validate Macbeth and promote its authenticity, we must take a psychological approach to all things supernatural in the play. Shakespeare used the supernatural theme as one of the most potent aspects in Macbeth. As a theme it is used to signify madness but also to indicate the important role witchcraft had in the early 1600's. The supernatural theme plays an important, if not the most important role in the whole play. As an underlying culprit it attaches itself quite suddenly into Macbeth, forming the main theme of the play. The imagery and focus of darkness was brought on by the presence of the witches; modernistic views now feel the darkness was not brought on by witches, but rather by the conflicts Macbeth had with himself. Seeing a bloody dagger is indeed observed today as a psychological flaw of the mind. Later in the play, before his unruly killing of the King, Macbeth has wild visions of a floating dagger in front of him.

"Is this a dagger which I see before me,

The handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee.

I have thee not, fatal vision, sensible

To feeling as to sight, or art thou but

A dagger of the mind, a false creation" (Act II, sc. 2.)

Is this the witches or is it his mind playing tricks on him? We now see this as a psychological metaphor. 'Seeing things', like Macbeth and Lady Macbeth did alike, is not attributed with supernatural forces. It is now recognized as a mental difficulty, as one is disturbed enough to believe they have in reality done wrong and bring upon themselves hallucinations. The witches were not at all provoking Macbeth to kill the King, but rather that they merely served as a psychological justification for him to do what he felt he had to do, in order to become King.

Another aspect of Macbeth is ambition. As we see, Macbeth is driven by the witch's prophecy, believing in fulfilling the prophecy, he will become King. Macbeth, only for a short time does think of the consequences, that maybe the witch's prophecy is not exactly right. Or that maybe the witches also have a vengeance, and pride themselves on wreaking havoc in mortal people's lives. In Act 1 Scene 7, Macbeth leaves the chamber to be plagued by fear about the coming murder of Duncan. Lady Macbeth comes after him as Macbeth is worry-stricken, thinking they will fail.

Macbeth: If we should fail?

Lady Macbeth: We fail?

But screw your courage to the sticking-place

And we'll not fail.

Here Lady Macbeth is the driving force behind Macbeth's ambition. She wants Macbeth to become King just as much, if not more than he does himself. This force can corrupt a person's world, forcing them into extremes of believing they're doing the right thing, when in the long term, the effect can be devastating. There are many different types of power which a person may have. Some of the time, however, the person in that power is not the best person to be in that power. Throughout the course of the play, the Three Witches and Lady Macbeth are the people with the most power over Macbeth's life. The more power that a person has; the more corrupt they become.

As ambition, in today's society, it is propelled by greed for money, as well as power. Ambition is a play for power. Macbeth is a brave man who is not naturally inclined to perform evil deeds, yet he desperately wants and desires power and succession. This is common among today's politicians and people of high social standings. They all desire and want a power of more, until their ambition destroys them. Social hierarchy also plays an important role in ambition. As nature and appearance of the social hierarchy in Macbeth has changed, the idea is still very applicable. The people of modern times in high places have unrealistic goals, determinations which turn into ambitions. Although now, a person wouldn't necessarily kill for power, the inclination to do something drastic is still there.

Guilt is another major influence in Macbeth, which ultimately saw his downfall, although it was not as strong as his ambition. Even before Macbeth kills Duncan, we can see glimpses of his guilt and fear coming out. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth did many things in the play to have a mind full of guilt. Macbeth just handled it better than Lady Macbeth did; she let the guilt take her like a disease. She couldn't handle the truth of what she did. Committing a crime like murder will leave you ultimately feeling guilty, in any time, no matter which way you interpret it.

No matter whom you are and no matter what title you have, guilt can take over anyone. You could handle your guilt well like Macbeth or you could handle it like Lady Macbeth but it's still there. Guilt can ultimately drive a person mad and lead to their down fall. In contemporary interpretations, committing murder or any form of violence will leave you feeling guilt of some sort. A friend or family also who commits a crime like murder, can also leave you with feelings of guilt at what they have done; you may feel it's your fault.

One critical response I will analyse is "Macbeth and Analysis of Fear". In this