Who Is Responsible For Duncan's Death? Essay Example
In the poem Macbeth it is obvious that there are 3 people who are responsible for the death of King Duncan. The first choice is off course the 3 witches, the second Macbeth and the third Lady Macbeth. It is clear that the witches are the starters of the corruption, Lady Macbeth the catalyst who motivates Macbeth into committing the crime and Macbeth, the man who actually delivered the crucial blow which sent King Duncan to his grave. I will explain what motives they had to kill the king and how responsible they each are for King Duncan’s death. Firstly the three witches motives were unknown so we just assume their only motive was to see pure destruction and unhappiness amongst everyone, this is a direct indication as to just how evil and twisted the witches are especially because they chose a noble, brave and loyal servant of King Duncan to manipulate into killing the King, also choosing Macbeth was perfect because he had gained the king’s trust and the king would not suspect Macbeth to try and kill him in addition this was also excellent because Macbeth’s fatal flaw was his ambition and this desire and ambition would lead Macbeth to bending the rules in order to get what he wants. Some might say that the witches are the most responsible for the murder of King Duncan because Macbeth has no plans to kill the king or wishes for the King's death until seeing the evil prophecies of the witches. This is a real turning point in the poem. Had the battle against Norway ended and Macbeth and Banquo gone home without seeing the witches, King Duncan would definitely not have been killed. Upon learning that the second prophecy was true Macbeth began considering the third prophecy and became more motivated in the deed. In fact even upon hearing the prophecy for the first time, Macbeth replies by saying, “to be king stands not within the prospect of belief.” Then, after learning of his new title, he says, “Glamis, and Thane of Cawdor! The greatest is behind.” Also killing a