Even thought the phrases ‘victim of ambition’ and victim of fate’ appear inconsistent with the character of Macbeth, elements of both ambition and fate surface in his life. Although it appears that Macbeth might have always preconceived the desires to be king, this is not revealed until he meets the three witches, who prophesize that the ball is set in motion thereby bringing his ambitions to light. After this meeting with the witches, several instances of both fate ambition and fate mold Macbeth’s character. By the end of the play, though his wife’s ambitions and the prophetic proclamations of the witches (Benjamin, pp. 110-113). Additionally, despite the fact that fate does not appear necessarily kind to him, this paper is for the opinion that his ambitions ultimately led to his downfall.
Upon his meeting with the witches in I, iii, Macbeth says, "stay you imperfect speakers, tell me more" (Shakespeare 1.3.70) about his future as King of Scotland and Thane of Cawdor. This reveals that the proclamations of the witches awakened Macbeth’s sense of ambitions and reestablished his interest. After hearing these prophesies promising him the crown, Macbeth can no longer silence the voices of ambition inside him (Bloom, p.24). If he did not have such ambitions, Macbeth would have disregarded the witches, but instead gave them credence and becomes obsessed with these words. He wishes to know what these words could mean and how these events would transpire.
Through his aside, Macbeth further proves his ambitious nature naming Malcolm “The Prince of Cumberland”. He states, "That is a step / on which I must fall down or else o'er leap, / for in my way it lies" (1.5.49-51). This signifies that Macbeth is determined to use anything possible, even if it implies that he will have to use force in order to achieve his goal of becoming King. These thoughts make him more than likely to consider killing Malcolm because he appears to be a hindrance to Macbeth’s ambitions. Swamy Bala agrees that Malcolm’s flight to England was a wise decision because "Macbeth does not mediate the deaths of Banquo and Macduff through personal fear of them, but because his ambition renders the former obnoxious to his envy, and the latter his hatred" (pp. 2-3).
His letter to Lady Macbeth also shows Macbeth’s ambitiousness. He is sure that Lady Macbeth will provoke him to take actions that will make him king even if he lacks enough bravery to take these measures on his own. Even though there are several instances in the play indicating that Macbeth regrets the weight of this letter, or even writing the letter in the first place, the courage of writing the letter itself indicate that he is at least brave and ambitious to indicate his plans to his wife. His wife even reminds him that Killing Duncan was his idea. Later in the play in III, i, after Killing Duncan and becoming king, he reconsiders the prophecies of the witches. He also reconsiders that he should kill Banquo and the son Fleance to be sure of his security and that of his wife. His ambitions propel him to ensure that the murder of Banquo is successful. Macbeth leaned to be wicked in his actions. He says, "Things bad begun make strong themselves by ill" (3.2.58), which implies that he is aware of the evil deeds and in control of the situation.
Every continual visit that Macbeth makes to the witches further proves his ambitious nature. When he visits the witches in IV, i, Macbeth is so ambitious and bold that he says that even if the whole world has to fall apart as a result, he has to get certain answers with regard to his proclaimed prophecy of becoming king. It might be argued that Macbeth did not plan to meet the witches, which is fate, however, beyond this fate; he advances his ambitions to pursue a desire that seemed premeditated, even before meeting these witches. Therefore, his continual demands for information from the witches only prove his ambitious nature, and not fate.
On the other hand, whilst ambition definitely leads to Macbeth committing the first murder in the play as well as the subsequent murders, fate also contributes to his actions. If it were not for fate, Duncan would not have been a guest in their house on the same night that his wife received the letter from Macbeth, and decides he has to die. Additionally, meeting the witches was absolutely fate.
In conclusion, even though Macbeth is more a perpetrator than a victim in this play is, both fate and ambition affects the events of his life. However, in my opinion, the proofs that Macbeth is too ambitious outweigh fate. Macbeth is ambitious enough to carry several murders in order to pursue his interest of becoming the king, and ill fated enough to have some unconstructive circumstances occur to follow through his ambitions. Even though the fate of meeting the witches occur in the play, ambition proves that, he would have otherwise done these actions willingly.
Works Cited:
Bloom, Harold. William Shakespeare's Macbeth: Bloom's modern critical interpretations. New York City: Infobase Publishing, 2010. Print
Parris, Benjamin. "The Body Is With the King, but the King Is Not With the Body": Sovereign Sleep In Hamlet And Macbeth." Shakespeare Studies 40. (2012): 101-142. Academic Search Complete. Web. 22 Oct. 2013.
Shakespeare, William, Hort John, and Hort Leela Shakespeare's Macbeth: A Shortened Version in Modern English, Inessential Shakespeare: Shakespeare in Modern English Series. Nottingham Beeston: The Kabet Press, 1989. Print.
Swamy, Ch. Bala. "Macbeth's Tragic Flaw and the Causes of His Disaster." Golden Research Thoughts 3.3 (2013): 1-3. Academic Search Complete. Web. 22 Oct. 2013.
