EQ: What does it mean to be human?
How does power corrupt?
In Act 4 Scene 1, the 3 witches brew a potion that can tell them the future and what will happen under which circumstances. Macbeth requests to look into the potion to see his own prophecy concerning his future. The apparition show an armed head, a bloody child and a child crowned with a tree in his hand. These are symbols of what may happen in the future that can strip him of his power as king. Now, Macbeth knows too be aware of the than of Fife, that no man born of woman shall harm himself and that he will be vanquished "when Great Birnam wood to high Dunsinane hill shall come against him" (Line 101-102). Then, when the witches leaves, Lennox comes and notify the king that Macduff has fled to England and it is then that Macbeth orders the death of Macduff's family and kin.
What does it mean to be human?
To Macbeth, the concept of being human hasn't passed through his head since he gained the power of a king. Now, he is power hungry because he already had a taste of what it feels like to be king. This is also another example of being human, because it shows how vulnerable we are and how easily influenced we are by what we are exposed to. "Time, thou anticipatest my dread exploits:" (Line 158) This line shows how Macbeth does not wish to be exposed of his weaknesses, although they seem unlikely to happen. This is proof that he wishes to stay in power
How does power corrupt?
We can also see in this Scene how becoming king, gaining all that power, has really corrupted Macbeth. Instead of just ordering the death of his friend, he wishes to kill another friend's family to show off his power, but also because he is frightened. In the beginning, the quest for power corrupted Macbeth into the king that he was loyal to. Now, after gaining all that power, Macbeth has to do more bad deeds to remain in power, which includes killing those that he was/are close to. "The cast of Macduff I will surprise; Seize upon Fife; give to the edge o' the sword His wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls" (Line 164-166). This shows us clearly that Macbeth wishes to eliminate the family of Macduff
You have good points and you have brought in support. I want you toconnect them. In class if we can go online I will show you what I mean. At times I want it so it is all integagetd. Or if you could print off a copy. This is the downside of blogs.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Mrs. Caldwell about the fact that your overall write up is excellent. You have good points, and you bring in direct examples from the text which can support your points. The problem however, is connecting them. You bring your quotes in near the end of each response/paragraph, and don't really go deep in context with them, and just kind of go straight to a conclusion. Overall though, you made excellent points, and answer interesting questions.
ReplyDeleteMy name's Matt, and I approve this message.