Macbeth stands out among Shakespearian tragedies. By using elements of free will, history and language, Shakespeare weaves a complicated text worth a Sunday afternoon. First, let’s define a tragedy.
Thomas Hardy once said, “The best tragedy…is that of the worthy encompassed by the inevitable.” Tragedies are the worst events befalling a protagonist. In Shakespeare, this is the death of Hamlet’s father, Othello’s distrust in Desdemona and King Lear’s spurning by Cordelia. These emotional episodes push the protagonists to their limits and spur the eventual tragedy.
Macbeth differs from this format in that Macbeth’s emotional episode is the discovery of his fate. His eventual role as king pushes Macbeth towards tragedy. This is what makes Macbeth a fascinating play. Macbeth acts where Hamlet debates; he is not bound to family like King Lear and the only person who whispers into his ear is Lady Macbeth. Macbeth’s involvement in the tragedy is characterized by opportunity, an element that is in part to Macbeth’s origins.
The play’s main plot comes from pages of Holinshed’s self-created Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland. Holinshed chronicles the story of Donwald, a man who killed the king to obtain the throne. The Scottish tale was a direct inspiration to Macbeth, and was possibly done to appease King James I.
King James I was of Scottish descent and had an avid fascination with witches. This fascination materialized in his book on witches called Daemonologie, which was reprinted in England close to two years before Macbeth was put on. James' interests directly influenced Shakespeare’s play troupe to add elements to appease the king, resulting in the play’s distinctive style.
Macbeth opens on the three witches as they prepare for the approach of Macbeth. After a bloody battle, Macbeth encounters the three witches who tell him that he will be Dane of Glamis, then Cawdor and then become king. Macbeth is Dane of Glamis, and his return to camp earns him the title of late dane of Cawdor, resulting in Macbeth’s belief he must be king.
For Macbeth he is put into a position of thinking of the future and thinking of the past. Reflected in his language, Macbeth becomes obsessed with the events that have transpired and events that will. For Macbeth, his actions seem preordained, and although he makes efforts to avoid his eventual demise, he can’t escape his fate.
This struggle of free will creates an interesting question. Does Macbeth choose his fate by acting it out or was it preordained? The answer is left to the reader to decide as the events of the play transpire.
This makes Macbeth a great introduction to the tragedy. Macbeth is aware of the confines of the story, and in this role his monologues and soliloquies take on a new weight. Compared to Hamlet, whose soliloquies are about his active involvement in murder, Iago's deception of Othello and Lear, who slowly descended into madness. Physical issues can be found in any tragedy, but Macbeth challenges this with an existential meaning of fate and one’s control of free-will.
The play adds further to the canon of predestination. How does knowing the witches’ prophecy inform or create his own fate? Was his fate written before or do his actions create his fate? Macbeth walks this fine line of control, and presents it with a tragic lens. Macbeth’s awareness of his pre-ordained fall heightens the play's tragic end.
Macbeth is a remarkable tragedy that questions free will and ability to control one’s fate. Known for its boisterous soliloquies and brutal violence, Macbeth has earned its legacy. In adaptations ranging from Macbeth (2015) to the brilliant Throne of Blood, Macbeth’s story still inspires and enchant’s readers today.
Benjamin Ervin is a senior studying English literature and writing at Ohio University. Please note that the views and opinions of the columnists do not reflect those of The Post. Want to talk more about it? Let Benjamin know by emailing him be425014@ohio.edu.
