Macbeth Major Essay
Macbeth’s downfall was caused by himself, due to a sense of over-confidence and ambition. The witches’ prophesies led him to the path of destruction but the end of his reign was caused by his greed for more power. There are many scenes in the play which shows this.
Macbeth was his own enemy and he was the cause for his own downfall. He decided to react to the witches’ prophesies by murdering and doing whatever he can to achieve his goal, to be over-confident to reach his ambition. The first three prophesies was that Banquo’s kinsmen would become king which caused Macbeth to kill Banquo, his best friend.
Macbeth was became over-confident with his actions however dangerous they were. This was caused by the prophesies as ‘none of woman born shall harm Macbeth’ and that ‘Macbeth shall never vanquish'd be until Great Birnam wood to high Dunsinane hill shall come against him’. Macbeth believed that it was not possible for him to fall as trees cannot walk and all men and women are born from a woman. The over-confidence caused him to take many risks, to make sure he was to stay as King as long as he can. Examples of this are shown in the play. In Act V Scene 7, he is fighting the young Siward, he says ‘Thou wast born of woman but swords I smile at, weapons laugh to scorn, brandish'd by man that's of a woman born’ which shows that Macbeth was sure that he would win the fight as the young Siward was born from a woman. Also, when he is fighting Macduff in Act V Scene 8, Macbeth says ‘Let fall thy blade on vulnerable crests; I bear a charmed life, which must not yield to one of woman born’. He tells Macbeth to drop his weapon as he has a charmed life that will not allow him to die from the hands of a man born from a woman. At this stage of the play, his over-confidence is what drives Macbeth to fight Macduff. However, in the next line, Macduff says, ‘Despair thy charm; and let the angel whom thou still hast served tell thee, Macduff was from his mother's womb
Untimely ripp'd’. This causes Macbeth to fear Macduff and due to his over-confidence being shattered by his comment, his downfall occurred.