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GCSE AQA 'Macbeth': Evil Essay
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An essay from studying evil elements contained within the play. I scored 27/30 on this essay.
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To what extent is Macbeth presented as evil in this extract and the rest of the play?Shakespeare uses ‘Macbeth’ to embody the theme of evil in this extract and in the rest of
the play. We see ‘Macbeth’ transformed from a noble, loyal soldier, to a ‘monster’ intent
upon committing Regicide because of his hamartia: ambition. Through Macbeth committing
the sinful act of regicide, Shakespeare depicts him going against the King and committing a
sinful crime against God, as the Jacobean audience believed in the Divine Right of Kings.
However, it can be argued that Macbeth is not wholly evil and through the manipulation of
Lady Macbeth, she acts as a catalyst and encourages her husband to adopt a more
aggressive persona.
Initially, in the extract, we witness Macbeth contemplating the prophecies foretold by the
‘Weïrd Sisters’ through the use of sibilance, ‘supernatural soliciting’. The use of sibilance
captures the sinister thoughts of Macbeth and Shakespeare uses the sibilant sound to
create a hissing effect to reinforce the malevolent intentions of Macbeth. The
Furthermore, this phrase shows that Macbeth is strikingly certain that he achievements
suggested by the powers of evil. To enhance, Macbeth’s evil intentions, Shakespeare
reinforces his capacity for evil by using equivocation, a device employed by the witches.
Macbeth says that it ‘cannot be ill, cannot be good’. We see that Macbeth is unlike Banquo
and is unable to recognise the evil intentions of the witches. Therefore, the Jacobeans, who
feared witches, would be shocked to see Macbeth’s reaction to the witches and recognise
him as capable of evil.
In the extract, Shakespeare shows Macbeth considering murdering King Duncan. The
protagonist alludes to the act of Regicide when he says, ‘why do I yield to that suggestion
whose horrid image doth unfix my hair...’ The ‘suggestion’ to which Macbeth refers is
murdering Duncan and the verb ‘yield’ seems to imply that his mind is overcome with
murderous thoughts and metaphor ‘doth unfix my hair’ highlights how chilling his thoughts
are that it makes his hair stand on end. Combined with the preposition phrase ‘against the
use of nature’ suggest he is unwilling to allow the witches’ prophecy to happen naturally. To
the Jacobeans, Macbeth would be committing a number of sins in murdering the King: he
would be breaking the rule of Xenia and committing Regicide.
Furthermore, throughout Macbeth’s aside, Shakespeare uses a consistent motif of
euphemism to further highlight that Macbeth is trying to conceal his evil intentions. The use
of euphemisms reveals that Macbeth secretly knows his thoughts are sinister by using the
phrase, ‘horrible imaginings’. The use of the adjective illustrates his negative state of mind
and his predisposition for evil, which is why the Witches chose to manipulate Macbeth,
rather than Banquo.
Equally, later on in the aside, Macbeth uses the abstract noun ‘murder’ to foreshadow what
he will do to King Duncan. The Jacobean audience can witness the murderous intentions of
Macbeth first-hand and see his evil thoughts. However, towards the end of the aside, the
audience sees that Macbeth admits that these are only his ‘thoughts’ and his ideas are
‘fantastical’. The adjective could imply that these thoughts are confined to his imagination
and he does not have the ‘illness that should attend it’. Lady Macbeth later on in the play,
uses this metaphor to expose that she thinks that Macbeth is not ruthless enough to kill
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