POWER Flashcards
What is power in Macbeth
Macbeth is a play about the power of corruption in a man’s mind, due to aggravating factors and outside influences. There are many prominent examples of power in Macbeth, such as the power of persuasion in the form of the witches are prime examples of how power plays in role in the plot. Shakespeare portrays power from an interesting viewpoint, where he follows the rise and fall of a person through greed and ambition.
Macbeth - Power
In act one (I) scene two (ii), King Duncan gets a report on the recent war. The focus of the report is on Macbeth and how brave and ferocious a warrior he is. Specifically, the servant tells Duncan that Macbeth was slaughtering others and “he unseam’d [one of them] from the nave to the chaps.” In other words, Macbeth impaling opponents with a sword and then running the sword all the way up the chin. Based on this event and the language used in describing it, the reader understands that Macbeth is capable of extreme brutality given the appropriate situation; he has the ability to be physically powerful.
Once Macbeth becomes king, he then abuses his state power by murdering any person he deemed a threat, including women and children. Because Macbeth will kill anyone simply for the sake of maintaining his power, the reader can draw inferences into the composition of his character (characterization).
Lady Macbeth - Power
Once Macbeth is King, Lady Macbeth is the queen. The potential power she has is obvious; she is emotionally and physically close to Macbeth, thus able to influence his decisions.
Before Macbeth became king, he had to assassinate King Duncan. Duncan was a close friend, perhaps even a father-figure, to Macbeth and Macbeth has doubts about killing him. Lady Macbeth then takes on a more masculine role and challenges Macbeth. In I vii, “when you durst do it, then you are a man; / And to be more than what you were, you would / Be so much more the man.” In other words, she challenges his masculinity by saying that he is not a man until he has killed the king. When these words come from a person who is so close (especially during the Elizabethan period when genders dictated specific behaviors) they wield great power.
How is power represented in Macbeth
For example, if the kid in class who brags about getting a good score on a test because he’s naturally really smart. However, you saw him using a cheat sheet under his desk. Therefore, how he acts during a tough moment gives us significant insight into his character. In addition, the fact that he brags and lies further supplements our assessment of his character. This directly relates back to Macbeth
