Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Pity for the Future King?
In Act II, scene ii, Macbeth seems genuinely shocked and even remorseful about his actions. First, how and why based on your interpretation of the text does he show or not show these traits? Please be sure to use at least three lines from the text to prove your point. Secondly, and most importantly, given his apparent sense of fear or guilt, should we not pity Macbeth? Do you feel sympathy for his character? Why or why not? Please answer both questions in AT LEAST TEN SENTENCES (that is, 10 sentences in total as your answer for both questions combined). Thanks and looking forward to your responses.
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Based on my interpretations of the text, first, Macbeth seems paranoid, then he seems becomes hysterical from killing Duncan, then I think he feels much more remorse. Macbeth seems to be very jumpy and thinks he's hearing noises. He says to himself, "Who's there? what ho!", which makes it seem like he's still nervous and out of his element from killing. Then later to his wife he also asks, "Didst thou not hear a noise?" I interpreted this to be Macbeth asking his wife almost for assurance to make sure he wasn't just hearing things. Later in the text, Macbeth starts talking passionately about having no sleep and the things he thinks he hears in lines 46-50. Around line 65, Macbeth says "I'll go no more. I am afraid to think what I have done." This is when he feels remorse. I feel sympathy for Macbeth because I think Lady Macbeth pressured him to do it and then acted as if it was nothing. After he kills Duncan, she even tells him to just forget about it, when she says, "Consider it not so deeply". Also, it's possible that the witches have something to do with his actions and thoughts, considering they have an apparent capability to take control of people's minds.
ReplyDeleteIn act one, scene two, Macbeth seems to be somewhat surprised at the deed he’s done. He shows regret about his actions and doesn’t quite know what to due with himself, due to the shock he’s in. “I am afraid to think what I have done. Look on ‘t again I dare not,” Macbeth says, showing the regret and guilt already setting in from the murder (p. 59 line: 66). Macbeth continues in the scene, acting very jumpy and nervous, showing that he feels guilt, but also is scared of being caught. Macbeth got much deeper into this than he could really handle. “Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood clean from my hand?” Macbeth says, fearing he will be stuck with the guilt of this deed forever (p. 59 line: 78). Macbeth feels that he will never be able to get rid of this horrible crime he’s committed, which adds to his regret. Earlier in the scene, Macbeth says, “This is a sorry sight,” further proving his guilt concerning the matter (p. 37 line: 28). The fact that he so quickly realizes what a horrible thing he’s done, shows that he didn’t feel as strong as he needed to be to have carried out the task. It shows that when the pressure’s off, his morals are in check, but when there is power to be had, he has trouble resisting it. I feel some pity for Macbeth because he so quickly realized his mistake. However, murder cannot be undone, and it was a horrible mistake to make. The fact that Lady Macbeth may have influenced him also leads me to a just a bit of pity, though it may be undeserved. Macbeth did commit the crime by himself, though, simply for power. It is also possible that the witches influenced his decisions because without the prophecy, he might have been plenty satisfied without being king. I would say I feel some pity for Macbeth due to outside influences, but my compassion for him is limited. It is appeasing to some extent to know that he at least realizes that what he has done is wrong, and for now, he gets some credit for that.
ReplyDeleteMacbeth: But wherefore I could not pronounce “Amen?” I had most need of blessing, and “Amen” stuck in my throat.
ReplyDelete“I had most need of blessing.” When he says this, it is obvious he feels like he is in most need of a blessing because he has just committed a horrible crime/sin. He feels as though, gosh, what have I done, I cannot even speak.
Macbeth: I’ll go no more. I am afraid to think what I have done. Look on ‘t again I dare not.
Here in this line, he feels horrified by what he has done and the last thing he wants to do is revisit the gory place in which he committed the act. I think the only reason he slightly stands up to her is because he physically feels as though he cannot go back there.
Macbeth: Methought I heard a voice cry “Sleep no more! Macbeth does murder sleep!”
He feels so afraid someone is going to find out what he has done that he starts imagining things, imagining the horrible possibilities, and knows what he has done is wrong.
In my opinion, just though he feels guilty, doesn’t make up for what he has done, or prove the goodness of his character. I do not, overall, feel pity or that much sympathy for Macbeth. First of all, he is the one that came up with the plan to kill Duncan, and very seriously considered it. When he explained this to his wife, I think that he was expecting her to be calm and docile, a sidekick in his plan. When she made a detailed plan with feelings of excitement and played the leadership role, he took a step back, even saying “We will speak no further of this business,” because he felt that if he were the sidekick, he wouldn’t feel powerful, but rather guilty, and that he would be sort of a puppet, and why would he risk so much being that person, instead of the leader. She convinces him to do it, but I think that since she insulted his manhood and his courage (which, so far, everyone has praised him highly for) he almost convinces himself to do it, by telling himself that it’s the right thing, and even envisioning himself brutally killing Duncan. If he really didn’t want to kill Duncan, or didn’t like the idea of it, he could’ve stood up to her more than “We will speak no further in this business.” I do not think that he was bothered by actual act of killing Duncan, just of the repercussions of his actions, and the fact that he would always have to live with somebody finding out.
Macbeth seems to be experiencing extreme guilt, and is quite in shock about what he has done. He is so in shock he seems to be going crazy. On page 55 he says, "who's there? what, ho?" to presumably nothing. My theory is that the nothing he was responding to was himself, or rather, his conscience. Macbeth states, "I am afraid to think of what I've done", showing how truly horrified he is at himself, but perhaps a moral part of him is trying to force him to think about it, and if he is truly feeling so terrible and so on edge, he could be trying to talk the thoughts away. He also asks, "will all of neptune's ocean wash this blood clean from my hand? no." My theory is either wrong, or he eventually realizes he can't rid himself of guilty thoughts. The final quote, which made me feel pity for him, was when he said, "wake duncan with thy knocking. I would thou couldst." Right now, he is a broken man who obviously regrets what he has done and who is possibly under a curse, and possibly on a path to insanity. I do pity him right now, but I will probably stop pitying him eventually because, as Gregory informed us in class, basically spoiling the whole book and ruining our entire high school lit and composition experiences, he kills another person, his trusted comrade Banquo.
ReplyDeleteMacbeth does seem to show fear and regret for what he's done. He is scared by the fact that, "I could not say 'Amen' when they did say 'God bless us'". I think he is afraid that he is being punished for doing something bad, and that's why he couldn't say Amen. He says, "I had most need of blessing, and 'Amen' stuck in my throat." He directly states that he is scared of what he did when he says, "I am afraid to think what I have done. Look on it again I dare not." What he has done is so bad that he doesn't want to see it again, and he wishes he had never done so in the first place. Lastly, he says, "Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood clean from my hand? No, this my hand the multitudionous seas incarnadine, making the green one red." I think here, he is realizing the true implications of what he has done, and by saying it will turn the seas all to red, he is showing that the murder was so powerful that it could do that. I think he is also afraid that the blood will never wash off-- not literally, but in the sense that he will never get over what he has done. I can't decide if I feel bad for Macbeth or not. I feel bad that he is so horrified by what he has done and that he is in such a difficult situation. On the other hand, I think it's sort of his own fault. If he had said a firm no to Lady Macbeth, the whole series of events could have been avoided in the first place. So, I guess I think the situation is unfortunate, but at the end of the day, it really wouldn't have happened if Macbeth knew how to stand up for himself.
ReplyDeleteI think that Macbeth, in this scene, is contemplating his actions and he does seem shocked, but not necessarily in a remorseful way. He seems to be thinking on his previous actions almost in awe. When he says in Lady Macbeth's presence, though mostly to himself, "I have done the deed" and then to her,"Didst thou not hear a noise?" it seems almost as though he is looking to prove something to Lady Macbeth. He is trying to make her aware of his manliness and his bravery in completing the action and he is looking for her praise. As he continues to analyze out loud the deed he has just done, however, it seems as though a realization takes place and he goes from contemplating his actions in awe to showing confusion over what just occurred. After he has continued for a while he says, "...As they had seen me with these hangman's hands, List'ning their fear." At this point, Macbeth seems to be astonished and only a little bit repulsed by his actions, however I think that his need to be manly and to prove his worth to his wife overrides these feelings. Him calling his own hands "hangman's hands" can be interpreted many different ways, and one way is that he is awed that he was able to accomplish such a feat mixed with the smallest bit of proud repulsion. Lady macbeth goes on to further find fault in his actions by pointing out that he wrongly took the daggers with him, failing to frame the guards. I think that his fear is only of appearing unmanly and losing his title and the admiration of the people. He does have some moral sense and the fact that he is pushing that aside and murdering Duncan anyway takes away some of the pity that I would feel for him. He's not an unintelligent guy and he, along with his wife, planned to kill Duncan; he just distanced himself from his actions while she seemed more resolute. Macbeth would hardly win out against his insistent wife if those were her plans, but he was in on them all the same and therefore I attribute little if any pity to Macbeth.
ReplyDeleteAct II scene 2 portrayed Macbeth weaker than how he starts in the opening scenes. Macbeth does feel remorseful about murdering Duncan, and he possesses a feeling of fear deep inside of him. In line 38, Macbeth starts talking about the voices he heard while doing the "deed." Macbeth says, "As they had seen me with these hangman's hands, List'ning their fear. I could not say 'Amen' when they did say 'God bless us.'" Macbeth felt uncomfortable because regularly he would respond to the phrase 'God bless you' saying 'Amen.' Later on during Act 2 scene 2, in line 66, Macbeth says, "I am afraid to think what I have done." It seems as if he regrets the murder, especially because he was the one who did it. So far, Macbeth does not mention the consequences he could face if someone reveals the 'deed.' It will be interesting to see if he gets caught and/or if he faces severe consequences. "Wake Duncan with thy knocking. I would thou couldst." In this line, line 94, it almost seems as if Macbeth wishes that Duncan still reigned as king.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Macbeth does show some sort of remorse, and that he is sorry for what he has done. Throughout the play, he possesses great ambition to reign as king. Lady Macbeth also contributed to the 'deed' by convincing Macbeth to do it. In Act 1 Scene 7, Macbeth tries to convince Lady Macbeth that Duncan is a great, just king, but she responds by calling him a coward. Once Macbeth hears that, he instantly responds by saying that he is no coward and that he is willing to murder Duncan. Both these characters played a great role in the murder of Macbeth, and yes, Macbeth regrets it. I personally kind of pity him. He could have been intelligent enough to think of the consequences, but then again, he was facing the cruel insults, such as coward, from his wife.
Act 2 Scene 2 Lines 42-44 "But wherefore could not I pronounce "Amen"? I had most need of blessing, and "Amen" stuck in my throat." This shows two traits about Macbeth. The first trait is that he fears for his soul and the second is that he fears that he will never get spiritual rest. He says that at that time, he needed a blessing, either to forgive him or to stop him from commiting an evil act, and he couldn't say "Amen" to bless himself. This shows that he thinks he has fallen from spiritual cleanliness and will never regain it. Also, "Amen" is a sort of holy word, and when he reports that he could not say "Amen," whether he really tried to or not, it means that he believes his soul is too evil to let him say such a word.
ReplyDeleteAct 2 Scene 2 Lines 65-68 "I'll go no more. I am afraid to think what I have done. Look on 't again I dare not." This line shows that Macbeth is genuinely regretting what he did and refuses to accept that he killed someone by his own will. The previous quote shows mores religous fear, while this one mostly shows guilt. The only fear is of looking at the bodies and knowing he killed them. The guilt is where Macbeth expresses that he does not want to think about what he did.
Act 2 Scene 2 Line 76 "How is 't with me when every noise appalls me?" This quote shows that Macbeth is so fearful and guilty that he is becoming paranoid. I take this quote to mean that every noise scares him and reminds him of his guiltiness of the appalling things he did. I believe that we should and shouldn't feel pity for Macbeth. We shouldn't because he killed someone, but we should because the act has seriously traumatized him and he mainly only did it because his wife made him.
In the US court of law, a defendant can plea insanity if the situation permits it. I believe Macbeth would fall under this category of insane. Sure he did some horrible things but when he did them he was not in his right mind when he did the action and now he is regretful. It is obvious he is regretful when he says, “This is a sorry sight,” here it is clear that he feels bad about killing Duncan. It also clear that he is insane when he says “Me thought I heard a voice cry, “Sleep no more! Macbeth does murder sleep”. Here it is clear that he is insane when start hearing fantastical voices. Later it is shown again that he is feeling regret for what he has done when he says, “I’ll go no more. I am afraid to think what I have done.” Once again this shows he was crazy when he did it and now he feels regret. In the US court of law, when someone pleas insanity they do not get off scot free, they still get punished just in different ways. Macbeth deserves the same treatment with out perception on him, While we should feel some sympathy for him because he was not in his right mind when he murdered, he is still a murderer so we can not hold him in as high regard as before.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Macbeth is shocked and rather remorseful about what he has done in 2:2. On page 59, when Lady Macbeth tells him to return the daggers, he says, "I'll go no more. I am afraid to think what I have done. Look on't again I dare not." This clearly shows that he is not proud of his actions. I think he is even a little disgusted with himself. Then again on page 59 he says, "Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood clean from my hand?" Neptune is the Roman god of the sea, and he is afraid that not even the ocean could wash the stain of what he has done from his hand. This also reveals how he is certainly not content with his actions, (at this point in time at least). The last line I have chosen is on page 61 he says, "To know my deed t'were best not know myself." He is saying that if he acknowledges the crime he has committed, he will not know who he is anymore, and would want to nothing to do with himself. At this point, I feel some remorse for the new king. I don't think he really wanted to kill Duncan. He seemed to be a man who thinks moral principles are important, and was not very willing to break them for his own gain. But Lady Macbeth talked him into it, and at this point he does regret his actions. But during 2:3, I think he begins to lose all sense of remorse. He lies to all of his colleagues and friends without a second thought, and seems to have gotten over his bad feelings. Here is where I began to lose most of my respect for him. I think if he had continued to feel guilt over the deed, I would give him some sympathy, but now I have close to none.
ReplyDeleteBased on my interpretation of the text and, specifically, Act II scene ii, Macbeth is horrified and somewhat remorseful about his actions. I found this easy to discover when acting out this scene earlier and playing the character of Macbeth. In the line, "I have done the deed. Didst thou not hear a noise?" (2.2.19), Macbeth only begins to realize the dreadfulness of what he has done and is already somewhat afraid of himself and of his actions. As the scene progresses, Macbeth says, "This is a sorry sight," (2.2.28), again showing his fear of his own actions and self-hate for what he has done. Macbeth further shows his shock as he is recounting the murder (2.2.30-40). Macbeth goes on later to say, "I'll go no more, I am afraid to think what I have done. Look on 't again I dare not." (2.2.65-67). This line shows the extent of Macbeth's fear and self-hatred.
ReplyDeleteI do not believe that we should show pity for Macbeth, however. Macbeth was given a prophecy in the very early scenes of the play that he was to become thane of Cawdor and then go on to become king. However, by no means did Macbeth have to fulfill this prophecy. He allows himself to be convinced by himself and by his wife to execute Duncan, an action that was completely unnecessary and never would have happened were it not for the witches and for Macbeth's decision. As the play progresses, matters get even worse: Macbeth's morality declines even further as he continues to lie to many of his peers to hide the fact that he committed the murder. One thing, however, that Macbeth could be shown pity for would be the fact that he has to deal with so much internal conflict regarding morality and other matters. However, this was somewhat self-inflicted conflict. Therefore, very little pity should be shown toward Macbeth.
I think Macbeth was both shocked and remorseful about killing Duncan, as how we portrayed it in our skit in class. "One cried "God bless us" and "Amen" the other, as they had seem me with these hangman's hands..." (Pg 57, L36-40) Later in the quote Macbeth says "List'ning their fear. I could not say "Amen."" Macbeth is feeling sorry for the people, not feeling good he had just killed the king and now he cannot say amen with his people. "I'll go no more. I am afraid to think what I have done. Look on 't again I dare not." (Pg 59, L 65) I think in this passage Macbeth is regretting killing the King, thinking about what outcome might be. He doesn't wanna face his kingdom and himself. My past passage, is probably best and the most revealing. "To know my deed 'twere best not know myself." (Pg 61, L94) Macbeth is saying he is not a murderer, and to know that he murdered someone is against his morals. I feel sympathy for Macbeth, I know I shouldn't, but it wasn't all his doing. His wife convinced him somewhat to do it, if it had not been for her he probably wouldn't have killed Duncan.
ReplyDeleteAct 2. Scene 2, line 37 “But wherefore could not I pronounce “Amen”? I had most need of blessing , and “amen” stuck in my throat.” Macbeths lack of words, shortly after the murder made him seem hesitant. Not only was he unsure of his words but also if the heinous act was really done by his own hands. Act 2. Scene 2, line 77 “ What hands are here! Ha, the pluck out mine eyes. Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood clean from my hand? No, this my hand will rather the multitudinous seas incarnadine, making the green one red.” Macbeth sees his repercussions on others, and feels as though he can never wash the guilty deed from himself. Act 2. Scene 2, Line 93 “To know my deed ‘twere best not know thyself.” The previous line reflects on a fact that Macbeth is in a conundrum of sorts, also moving backwards a bit in the reading, Macbeth knew in his heart what he was going to do was wrong but the rest of him told him to carry on anyhow. I feel a tinge of sympathy for Macbeth, but this is only because he realized his wrongdoing. Though some may say it is too late for him to just now realize what he did was wrong, we know he will forever more carry this burden with him and he will most likely take better care when making important decisions.
ReplyDeleteI think that Macbeth shows these remorseful traits because he genuinely regrets killing Duncan, and wishes he hadn't done so. I believe this based on the last two lines of scene two, "Wake Duncan with thy knocking. I would thou couldst." Here, Macbeth is hearing someone knocking from offstage and wishing that it could wake up Duncan. Lady Macbeth and Macbeth are the only people in this scene, so Macbeth has no reason to show false remorse. In addition, Macbeth is becoming increasingly paranoid regarding the consequences he may face if people find out that he killed Duncan. I, personally, do not pity Macbeth at all. At the end of act two scene one, he states, "I am settled, and bend up Each corporal agent to this terrible feat." Here, Macbeth is saying that he has made up his mind, and work with every muscle in his body to commit the crime. I commend Lady Macbeth for saying,"My hands are of your color, but I shame To wear a heart so white." I believe that Lady Macbeth finally confronted Macbeth directly about his uneasiness and uncertainty. He, unlike her, is never sure of his decision. Therefore, I do not pity Macbeth in any way.
ReplyDeleteI think that we should not pity Macbeth for committing MURDER against Duncan. Macbeth did feel an extreme amount of pity on himself after committing the crime and talking to his wife. But, he still went through with it just because his wife tricked him into doing it as seen at the end of Act 1, Scene 7 when Macbeth says “I am settled and bend up each corporal agent to this terrible feat.” We know that Macbeth felt pity on himself after committing the crime on Act 2 Scene 2 Lines 48-50 “I’ll go no more: I am afraid to think what I have done; look on’t again I dare not”. He says this in response to Lady Macbeth telling Macbeth to go and put the daggers back in Duncan’s room, and smear the evidence (the blood) on the servants. Macbeth is saying that he feels so bad for what he did, he does not have the will to go back and look at what he caused. He seemed to have the thought of Duncan’s innocence still on his mind, which may have put pressure on him. I think that we should put some pity on Macbeth, but should also realize that he let his ambition, and greed get the better of him. This is the same greed and ambition that he said was the only thing pushing him to do the deed, but ambition will only put you in a bad place.
ReplyDeleteMacbeth, who in the past had been a lawful, loyal, and moral character, feels emotional pain after killing Duncan. He feels guilty that he has betrayed his king, who had recently honored him. My first textual example is when he says "This is a sorry sight," while looking at his hands. I believe that he's not only referring to the blood on his hands that represents what he has just done, but he's also unhappy seeing himself as a murderous traitor instead of a honorable Thane and Captain.
ReplyDeleteMacbeth also talks about how he heard voices in his head, "Still it cried 'Sleep no more!' to all the house: 'Glamis hath murder'd sleep, and therefore Cawdor Shall sleep no more; Macbeth shall sleep no more." This shows how emotionally unstable Macbeth is at this point of the play.
My last quote is "I'll go no more: I am afraid to think what I have done; Look on't again I dare not." Macbeth doesn't want to be reminded of what he's done, and he can't bear to look back on his actions.
I think that Macbeth deserves some sympathy. He was never eager to kill the king, and he only did because his wife and fate pressured him into doing it. It is unclear to me if fate (the witches' prophecy) is what is making this happen, or if Macbeth is trying to make fate play out.
In Act 2 Scene 2, Macbeth returns from killing Duncan seemingly frightened of what he has done. I think that this is the case because of when Macbeth says, "I'll go no more. I am afraid to think what I have done. Look on 't again I dare not" (pg. 59 lines 65-67). I think that Macbeth is in disbelief at what he has done because he is finally coming back to his right mind and has realized what he has done. Remember, Macbeth originally knew that killing Duncan would be an extremely bad thing to do, so after he killed him and came back to his right mind, he knew he had done a terrible thing. I don't feel pity for Macbeth. I feel as though he could have made the decision not to kill Duncan and what he did was very selfish. He married Lady Macbeth and should be able to have his own opinions. Even though she tempted him, Macbeth should have realized that killing someone is wrong (obviously) and that he shouldn't kill Duncan.
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ReplyDeleteIn Act 2 scene 2 , Macbeth seems genuinely shocked and even remorseful
"Listening their fear, I could not say 'Amen,'
When they did say 'God bless us!' "
In this line, Macbeth is saying he doesn't feel worthy of God's blessings because of the terrible thing he's done. In Christianity Jesus's blood is suppose to wash away your sins ,but Duncan's blood plagues Macbeth with a sin so great Macbeth doesn't feel worthy enough to talk to God.
"I had most need of blessing,"
In this excerpt, he is portraying himself as a victim a little bit. It seems like he is making a plea for salvation. This is very annoying for 2 reasons. One is because he doesn't talk about who really needed a blessing --- Duncan. The second reason is I feel like he's trying to put some of the blame on God because God didn't stop him from killing Macbeth. In my opinion , I think Macbeth's "blessing" was his conscious telling him he shouldn't kill Macbeth.
The whole concept behind religion is to guide your life , not control it (but that depends on your beliefs).
"Macbeth does murder sleep', the innocent sleep,
Sleep that knits up the ravell'd sleeve of care,"
This line shows that right before Macbeth was going to kill Duncan he wasn't thinking of becoming king. He saw someone innocent and wholesome which extends the idea of Duncan being an angel.
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We shouldn't pity Macbeth.Maybe if he was forced to kill or tricked into killing Duncan we should have. The only reason he feels guilty is because he initially thought it was an immoral to kill Duncan. He clearly knew what he doing was wrong ,but didn't care. In real life if someone was to kill their husband for their insurance, I wouldn't have felt any sympathy even if that person hid out in their house 24/7 and became depressed ,never to see daylight again. Macbeth having remorse is not out of the ordinary , he killed a friend and employer in cold blood.
Macbeth shows significant signs of guilt and paranoia, but I don't think he was remorseful for murdering Duncan. In line 42, Macbeth says, "But wherefore could not I pronounce "Amen?" I had most need of blessing, and "Amen" stuck in my throat," (Shakespeare 57). Murdering is a tremendous sin, and Macbeth just realized that God may punish him in his next life. For him, saying "Amen" to God would be like saying "Hello" to a group of police officers while holding a bloody dagger. Macbeth also fears for Cawdor in line 54, and its future without King Duncan: "Still it cried "Sleep no more!" to all the house. "Glamis hath murdered sleep, and therefor Cawdor," (Shakespeare 58). Along with showing slight signs of insanity, this line shows Macbeth's fear for the kingdom without it's powerful leader. Macbeth murdered Duncan to take his throne, so he's not guilty for murdering and betraying the king. He's worried that the kingdom he hopes to rule will fall because it doesn't have a stable ruler. He's afraid for his kingdom, not for his actions. In line 66, Macbeth says, "I'm afraid to think what I have done. Look on 't again I dare not," (Shakespeare 59). I'm not entirely convinced that he's guilty about murdering Duncan. I think he's worried about flaws in his assassination. The most obvious flaw in his plan is the fact that Malcolm will get the throne. In order for Macbeth to rise to power, he would also have to kill Malcolm. His wife convinced him to murder Duncan, but Macbeth failed to tell his wife that Malcolm would take power after his father.
ReplyDeletePitying Macbeth would be like pitying a drug dealer: they both feel guilty and remorseful, but not for the right reason. A drug dealer is guilty about his business, and worries about being caught by police. They don't feel remorseful for the lives they've ruined or the difficulty they've caused police. Macbeth is worried about his plan, and is realizing that if the police don't punish him, God will take action. He's not guilty about killing King Duncan and betraying his trust. He's showing "selfish guilt," where he's worried about the consequences he will face.
I think Macbeth was more shocked than remorseful. When he says "This is a sorry sight", although sorry is typically an exclamation of remorse, it is more of a moment of justification; he believes if he is at least seemingly regretful it makes the murder okay. He also mentioned a moment of guilt he had during "the deed" when recounting the event to Lady Macbeth. "But wherefore could not I pronounce 'Amen'? I had most need of blessing, and 'Amen' stuck in my throat." After all, who needs saving more than a murderer? And who deserves it less? It was this guilt (which is not the same as remorse) that stuck 'Amen' in his throat. Macbeth takes the cowardly route, he can't face the terrible thing he has done. Shock plays into this, and possibly remorse, but once again, remorse and guilt should not be confused with each other. He's so afraid of his own actions, he refuses to truly acknowledge them. "I'll go no more: I am afraid to think what I have done; Look on't again I dare not." At least Lady Macbeth was gutsy enough to deal with what she did. It definitely makes me respect her more than him.
ReplyDeleteNo. We should not pity Macbeth. He murdered his friend and not only was that immoral, it was unnecessary. He could have lived a perfectly nice life without taking someone else's.
Macbeth is feeling shocked that he could even kill a man in cold blood, he can kill men, but only men he is fighting against in war. "I am afraid to think what I have done. Look on 't again I dare not." Act 2.2, line 66. In this line Macbeth is still in shock that he could even kill Duncan. He wants to just forget the whole thing ever happened. "Will all great Neptune's oceans wash this blood clean from my hands?" Act 2.2, line 77. Now Macbeth is feeling sad that he killed Duncan. He is wondering is all the oceans can clean up the sin that he has committed. "Wake Duncan with thy knocking. I would thou couldst." Act 2.2, line 94. In this line Macbeth even says that if he were given the chance to take back what he had done, he would do it. Macbeth is 100% regretful of his decision. That being said, I think we should pity Macbeth. Lady Macbeth was the driving force of the murder, I believe she was the seductress/temptress in this play. After this kill, Macbeth is sort of forced to kill all the others. He can't just stop killing once he has already started his plan, he would be found out and killed.
ReplyDeleteI believe that after the deed is done, there is not a drop of blood in MacBeth's body that feels he has done the right thing. The first off putting aspect to MacBeth's murder of Duncan is his lack of giddy disbelief. Despite however immoral his actions may be, after committing a crime that is sure to earn him a spot as king, MacBeth is strikingly unhappy. He is quick to see the downside in his actions, and expresses these in Act Two, Scene Two, when he says, "I'll go no more. I am afraid to think what I have done. Look on 't again I dare not." He does not, however feel any happiness or fulfillment from the deed he has committed, a reaction that, although morbid, is to be expected. Along with his depressing outlook, he seems truly regretful. At the end of Act Two, Scene Three, MacBeth expresses directly, "Wake Duncan with thy knocking. I would thou couldst." He is already so willing to duo his deed, that I have nothing but pity for him as a character. I know all to well the feeling of instant regret, and find that actions which illicit such strong emotion are rarely done at the height of one's moral ability, and therefore do not reflect the true meaning of ones character. Because of this, not only do I pity MacBeth, but I Iift a good deal of the blame from his shoulders.
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