Macbeth

• Ambition is a major theme in Macbeth, as the main characters' desire for power drives the plot.
• Macbeth at the start of the play is brave and ambitious, he is portrayed as a 'mighty warrior' during Act 1 Scene 2
• Macbeths' hamartia(tragic flaw) is his 'vaulting ambition'
• Lady Macbeth is also ambitious but her ambitions are more focused on personal gain rather than political advancement
• Macbeth is tormented by thoughts of the evil things he has done. However, he is caught in a spiral of evil and does not seem able to stop himself.
• Macbeths's guilty conscious is shown by him seeing a 'danger of the mind' when going to kill Duncan in Act 2 Scene 1
• Lady Macbeth is, perhaps, even more determined than her husband to become king and queen, and suggests in Act 1 Scene 7 she emasculates Macbeth by saying he is 'too full o'th'milk of human kindness'
• Lady Macbeth is very manipulative towards Macbeth, she uses guilt to make him do what she wants
• guilt-stricken Lady Macbeth sleepwalks, she remembers all the evil things she and her husband have done and tries to wash imaginary blood from her hands (Out, damned spot: out, I say!)
• Banquos ghost represents the supernatural world and shows how Macbeth is being haunted by his conscience
• Macduff is an example of someone who can resist temptation and remain loyal to King Duncan
• Macbeth became a greedy tyrant, was making secretive decisions and didn't care when lady M died.
• Macbeth wishes to keep power for himself and his own family, and orders to have Banquo and Fleance killed, 'For Banquo's issue have I filed my mind'
• Macbeth becomes increasingly paranoid about threats to his rule, he kills anyone who poses a threat to him or his position
• Macbeth's actions become more brutal and violent as time goes on, he murders innocent people such as Macduff's wife and children
• The witches are used as a symbol of evil and chaos, they represent the darker side of human nature that Macbeth has succumbed too
• The Witches' predictions encourage Macbeth to think wicked thoughts and carry out evil deeds.
• The witches are often referred to as 'weird sisters', this is because their behaviour is strange and unnatural, suggesting that they are not normal beings but supernatural ones.
• Their appearance is described as being ugly and repulsive, with one having a 'withered and wild hand'. This shows that they are not attractive or pleasant creatures, further emphasising their sinister nature.
• They use language which is full of paradoxical statements, contradictions and ambiguities, making it difficult to understand what they mean.
• The witches are associated with darkness and evil, they appear at night and their presence causes fear and unease.