Preview

Duncan's Death In Macbeth

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1048 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Duncan's Death In Macbeth
Who is the one responsible for the death of king Duncan, Lady Macbeth or Macbeth? The mastermind behind the killing of king Duncan is Lady Macbeth. Now though that is evident the actual one who killed the king was Macbeth, but where Lady Macbeth comes into play is that she devised the plan and convinced Macbeth to do her killing, she ran the whole show. She did this because she wants to be queen so bad and really becomes crazy with the thought of having power. Lady Macbeth is the responsible one for King Duncan’s death with the help from the soon to be king Macbeth. In order to be Queen Lady Macbeth had to devise a plan to kill the king and get Macbeth on the throne. Lady Macbeth expresses a plan to kill the king and explains how that by planting …show more content…
The time has come, and the plan must go into effect immediately. Macbeth seems anxious but it must be done in order for Macbeth and Lady Macbeth to be in power. “I go, and it is done: the bell invites me. Hear it not, Duncan, for it is a knell that summons thee to heaven, or to hell” (2.1. 62-64). Macbeth’s duty is this, and the time has come. Killing the king is his job in order to be in power which is what they want. Even though the consequences could be death he knows that it must be done and he finally is showing courage to do this when before he wasn’t convinced to kill the king. Know that the deed is done, Macbeth must then move on to the next part of the plan. Which is staging the murder of king Duncan on his wasted guards. “I am afraid to think what I have done, look on’t again I dare not. Infirm of purpose! Give me the daggers, the sleeping and the dead are but as pictures. Tis the eye of childhood that fears a painted devil” (2.2. 50-54). After killing the king the next part was the staging of the guards, but Macbeth becomes soft/cowardly and can’t go through seeing what he has just done, that meaning, he can not finish the job. Lady Macbeth must now do Macbeth’s part and stage the guards with the bloody daggers, so she takes the daggers from the cowardly Macbeth, walks to the guards and disguises it to wear the guards killed king Duncan. Macbeth is known

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In my opinion Lady Macbeth is more responsible than macbeth for Duncan's murder. even though macbeth is more of the aggressive since he is the one who actually killed duncan, he had no intention of killing the king until his wife started harassing him. in act 1 scene 7 Lady Macbeth say "that made you break this enterprise to me? when you durst do it, then you were a man." In that quote she is basically saying he wont be a man until he kills the king.…

    • 480 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Macbeth is ultimately responsible for the murder of Duncan as he is the host and honour bound to offer protection to the visitor; he is also responsible for his actions and as an army general, he is capable of making his own decisions without letting anyone influence his ambition.…

    • 279 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    "Look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent under't." (Act I, Scene V). Macbeth is to blame for King Duncan's death and for Banquo's assassination. Macbeth is to blame for his own actions that resulted in the terrible events that happened to Banquo, King Duncan, and the guards. Macbeth kills King Duncan and no one directly forced him to do that.…

    • 497 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Macbeth Duncan's Murder

    • 270 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Lady Macbeth is more responsible for King Duncan’s murder because she had higher ambitions than Macbeth. She forced evilness upon herself and her high ambitions pushed her to the point of no regret for murdering the king. Lady Macbeth says, “Come, you spirits That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, And fill me from the crown to the toe topful Of direst cruelty”(1.5.30-32). This is a clear example of how her ambitions have driven her to the point of evil acts to commit this crime. The act of calling for the evil spirits in order to follow through with a murder is a good reason why King Duncan was murdered. Lady Macbeth also had not only forced herself to murder the king but to force her husband to follow through with the plan of the murder…

    • 270 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the first two acts of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, Lady Macbeth shows herself to be a formidable woman with aspirations and a plan. She is clear about her desire to become Queen of Scotland and by way of her internal conversation, she plans her manipulation. By knowingly manipulating Macbeth and applying consistent pressure, Lady Macbeth executes her plan. She encourages Macbeth to see killing King Duncan as the only logical next step to fulfill the prophecy. Lady Macbeth’s intent, blatant disregard for life, and emotional manipulation of her husband make her morally responsible for the murder of King…

    • 803 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the debate for responsibility for King Duncan’s death it would be typical to consider his murderer Macbeth. A number of factors led him to kill King Duncan. It is evident that he wasn’t entirely responsible. Lady Macbeth and the witches are also to blame as they were partly involved in the regicide.…

    • 1122 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    To illustrate, Macbeth kills the guards to try to maintain his appearence of innocence. After just killing Duncan in his sleep, Macbeth and his wife are anxious and paranoid. Macbeth wants to eradicate anyone that may know the truth about Duncan’s mysterious death; killing the guards was necessary to ensure Macbeth’s own security. However, Lady Macbeth had already framed the guards by placing the bloody knife by them. As a result, Macbeth’s action is not just act of protection, but an act of apparent loyalty in order to keep the crown. Next, Macbeth plots the murder of his friend Banquo. Banquo starts getting suspicious of Duncan’s death because it happened so incredibly close to when the witches told Macbeth he would be king. He starts to perceive that maybe Macbeth killed Duncan to get his position. Macbeth worries that Banquo would be suspicious because he is the only other person that knows of the prophecy. In addition to that, the witches also said Banquo’s children will be kings, making Macbeth doubt the safety of his reign. Macbeth is so eager to ensure his long rule that he order’s murderers to kill Banquo and his son Fleance. Now that he has the crown, he will never let it escape him. Furthermore, he also kills Banquo to maintain his kingship. After getting word of Macduff’s flee to England, Macbeth believes that he is a traitor. In order to…

    • 914 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Macbeth Soliloquy

    • 805 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Macbeth has made his decision to kill the King and take the crown as his own. Inspired in part by his own ambition, the decision to murder Duncan is aided by the prophecies of the Witches as well as the insistent urging of his wife. He is wracked with guilt over what he is about to do, as his mind races with thoughts and emotions of such an evil action. He begins to hallucinate and sees a bloody dagger in the air, which will be his instrument of murder. He goes on to comment on the wickedness of the world, thoughts which are interrupted by the ringing of the bell, a signal from Lady Macbeth that Duncan's guards are drugged and sleeping and he states. Shakespeare's Macbeth is notable for hallucinations, terrifying dreams, witches, prophecies and all of the combining forces of nature which lead to chaos and murder in the gloomy countryside of Scotland.…

    • 805 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Macbeth has a strong desire to become King of Scotland. He is constantly thirsty for power and his tragic flaw is having ambition. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth have a strategy how to kill King Duncan. Their plan involves getting…

    • 988 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Macbeth's treason in murdering Duncan is blatantly an erroneous choice. Macbeth initially rationalises his choices, reasoning that "If chance will have me king, why chance may crown me / Without my stir" [1:III:142-143], and that it would be unseemly to assassinate Duncan "First, as I am his kinsman and his subject, / Strong both against the deed; then as his host, / Who should against his murderer shut the door." [1:VII: 13-15]. He also realises that "He (Duncan) hath honour'd me of late" [1:VII: 32], generosity which defies his morale conscience in killing Duncan. All rationales for not murdering Duncan are sound; yet Macbeth eventually opts to kill Duncan in order to satisfy his "…black and deep desire" [1:V:51] of gaining kingship. Macbeth had many opportunities to choose another path, but he abided by the dagger which "…marshall'st me the way I was going" [2:I:42], a representation and foreshadowing of the violent and bloody path he would later ‘build' his kingdom on. Although Macbeth recognises "the consequence" [1:VII: 3] which would follow after murdering Duncan, he ignores such risks. Later in the play, it is the cumulative effect of such recklessness and consequences which leads to his downfall. After the murder, Macbeth believes that that "…all great Neptune's ocean (will not) wash this blood / Clean from my hand" [2:II:63-64], indicative of a…

    • 1199 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Shakespeare’s play The Tragedy of Macbeth three witches prophesied that Macbeth would be king. Doing what anyone else would do, he told his wife and she brewed up this plan to murder the king. The king would be staying at the Macbeth’s castle, Inverness for a party. At first Macbeth was against the plan but Lady Macbeth was not backing down and talked him into it. “Macbeth talks himself into a kind of thoughtful stupor as he tries to work out the situation for himself. In the following scene, Lady Macbeth will emerge and drive the hesitant Macbeth to act; she is the will propelling his achievements. Once Lady Macbeth hears of the witches’ prophecy, Duncan’s life is doomed.”( Shakespeare A 1, 1–4) Her plan was well thought out and she could not wait. He patience overpowered her excitement though as she waited for him to fall fast asleep. Soon after he was asleep she had drugged the guards and Shoved Macbeth in towards the kings resting area. Macbeth was…

    • 500 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Macbeth needed to kill King Duncan in order to get closer to his goal of becoming King but was scared. Macbeth states, “[I]f th’ assassination/ Could trammel up the consequence and catch,/ With his surcease, success; that but this blow/ Might be the be-all and the end-all here,/ But here, upon this bank and shoal of time,/ We’d jump the life to come.” (1.7.2-7). Macbeth is weak and does not have the courage to commit murder. He fears all the consequences and problems that will arise if the King is murdered. A man that is weak and lacks courage shows a feminine quality according to the stereotypical gender roles. Furthermore, Macbeth feels guilty after killing King Duncan in his sleep. He states, “ Methought I heard a voice cry 'sleep no more!/ Macbeth does murder sleep', the innocent sleep,/ Sleep that knits up the ravelled sleave of care,/ The death of each day's life, sore labour's bath,/ Balm of hurt minds,” (2.2.35-39). Macbeth kills King Duncan and he starts to hear voices in his head because of the guilt. Macbeth experiences a shock of hearing these voices as he realizes what he has done. Not to mention, he is weak and cannot control his actions after the murder as he fails to hide the evidence, the dagger. The stereotypical gender roles subvert as weakness is seen as a feminine quality. Then, Macbeth kills the family of Macduff by planning murders using his power. He states, “To crown my thoughts with acts, be it thought and done:/ The castle of Macduff I will surprise/ Seize upon Fife, give to th’ edge o’th’ sword/ His wife, his babies, and all unfortunate souls/ That trace him in his line.” (4.1.149-153). Macbeth feels powerful and wants to take desperate actions. He uses his power as he wants to attack the castle of Macduff. The plan also includes murdering the family of Macduff. Macbeth gets the family killed and is showing signs of power during…

    • 1393 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Macbeth’s desire for power and his will to be King drives him to execute a murder by killing King Duncan so that he could take his place as the leader of Scotland. Before Macbeth performs this treasonous act, Macbeth is extremely unwilling to do so and his brain begins to play tricks on him. “ Is this a dagger which I see before me, / The handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee,” (Shakespeare 2.I.40-41). Although Macbeth feels guilty before he kills Duncan,…

    • 403 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Macbeth pays more for Duncan’s death then Lady Macbeth although he was more reluctant to do it. Macbeth is valued as an hero at the beginning. This is shown when many people are talking to each other about how Macbeth is gallantry and strong , as he can not describe himself. The witches then sowed a seed when Macbeth was told the prophecy. When Macbeth sent a letter to Lady Macbeth about the prophecy he had jus received and how “two truths had come” (Him being Thane of Fife then almost immediately after the witches prophesied he became Thane of Cawdor). His power hungry wife saw this as a chance for both her and her husband to climb up the ladder. While the witches had sown the seed , Lady Macbeth has watered , leading to the disastrous consequences and saddening downfall. Lady Macbeth was an extremely cocky woman while planning the cunning death of Duncan, whereas her husband was more of a coward and had low levels of self esteem. However after the murder was committed, they seemed to of swapped roles. The cocky Lady Macbeth had crumbled into a coward, where as Macbeth had grown in confidence from being reluctant hero into a confident slaughterer. However, both had paid a major price. Lady Macbeth had paid quite a lot, which is shown as its own scene. She had plotted to kill Duncan at the cost of losing her own sanity. She, in my opinion was the driving force, indirectly killed Duncan. She took advantage of him and was extremely selfish as she only thought about killing him for the power and honour she would get. The doctor said “ What dark deeds has she done” when the nurse reported that she always wanted to have the light on. The nurse also reported that she was always “ washing her hands”. This is an example of cohesive time, when in Act 2 Macbeth had said “ I can not clean my hands “ after he had blood over his hands from the murder of Duncan. The irony is that while Lady Macbeth condition has worsened, both emotionally and physically, Macbeth has gained…

    • 668 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Change In Macbeth

    • 595 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Macbeth is now about to kill King Duncan, all because Lady Macbeth told him that it was a good idea. Macbeth is very angry at himself and his decision to kill King Duncan. “I have thee and yet I see thee still./Art thou not, fatal vision, sensible/To feeling as to sight” (2.2. 36-38)? Yet he still does it because he is greedy for power. He wants what he does not have and has what he does not want. Because of this he is greedy for what King Duncan has which is power. Macbeth is angry about killing King Duncan and is paranoid about it Macbeth and Lady Macbeth both hear knocking after they kill King Duncan. Macbeth tells Lady Macbeth that he wishes that King Duncan could just wake…

    • 595 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays