Here, Macbeth sees himself as a hero in his own play, whilst this is blatant dramatic irony, it also hints at Macbeth’s willingness to lie. In terms of context the Jacobean audience at that time will have known that plays involved lying; where protagonists pretend to be someone that they are not. Later on in the play, this is reflected in Macbeth being ‘dressed in borrowed robes’.
In this metatheatre, the ‘act of th’imperial theme’ represents the final act with an imperial or royal theme- as it is the part of the play when Macbeth becomes king. Furthermore, Macbeth describes the first two prophecies or ‘truths’ as the prologues; suggesting that him receiving the first two titles was just the beginning or introduction of his ‘play’. Subsequently, this implies that his ambition is causing him to be ignorant to the honorable titles that he has received as he doesn’t consider them as the ‘main act’ but just as the beginning- as if they are not worth as much value.
Additionally, the fact that these ‘prologues’ are described as ‘happy’ unlike ‘th’mperial theme’, could foreshadow the ‘unhappy’ path Macbeth will have to follow to accomplish his desires of becoming king; this further emphasizes how Macbeth’s ambition will cause him to go to extreme lengths to satisfy his hopes and dreams, even if they are morally wrong or ‘unhappy’. Although these lines hint at Macbeth’s ambition and foreshadow his later actions, the fact that he doesn’t describe ‘the imperial theme’ suggests that at this point in the play, he seems to refuse to consider acting upon it; implying that his ambition is causing him confusion as he still tries to resist his deep desires.
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In relation to the entire quote ‘(aside) two truths are told, as happy prologues to the swelling act of th’imperial theme’, this appears to be repetition of an identical line Macbeth has said only a couple of line earlier, where he also says it aside: ‘(aside) Glamis, and thane of Cawdor! The greatest is behind.’ The fact that Macbeth has repeated this idea strongly shows how his ambition is causing him to constantly think about the witches’ prophecies and cannot help but say it out loud since he feels the need to take stock of things; implying that his ambition is causing him to have an unstable mind and loose mind.
Additionally, since Macbeth is shown to speak about the prophecies in a passionate tone in the second time- this suggests his strengthening trust towards the witches, as well as a change in perspective. In regards to Shakespeare’s utilization of foreshadowing within this phrase, this could also hint at the tragic ending as a result of Macbeth eventually achieving this royal standard in which he is desperate of. This is due to the fact that he has deserved the first two honorable titles from his courageous success, but will have to commit a crime to receive the title of king. Essentially, Shakespeare uses this quote to link the theme of ambition to the theme of kingship as well as presenting the ideology of the Divine Rights of Kings.
Through the previous line ‘two truths are told’, the audience have already received the impression that the prophecies, which have potentially sparked the ambition within him, will lead Macbeth down a dark path where he will commit evil and wicked decisions- foreshadowing the possible murder of King Duncan.
Generally, this quote foreshadows that Macbeth will have to commit a crime- which will most likely be the murder of King Duncan, due to the fact the witches’ witchcraft acts as the foundation of this future crime; therefore the worst form of misdemeanour is to be expected. Also, it is expected that Macbeth will have to murder King Duncan as this appears to be the only way for Macbeth to become king.
This directly relates to the theme of kingship and how macbeth will eventually go against the Divine Rights of Kings, as he isn’t appointed by god to become king; but rather by the witches. The Jacobean audience would see the bad effect of ambition on Macbeth as he isn’t only going to commit a terrible sin against god that was practically funded by the witches through their witchcraft, but is also going against the choice of god in regards to who is chosen to be king.
King James I, who is ultimately the most crucial member of the Jacobean audience, would have been satisfied with Shakespeare’s presentation of this ideology as King James I strongly believed in the Divine Rights of Kings. Moreover, King James I would have also expected Macbeth to commit some form of immoral and unrepentant decision, as Macbeth is becoming king through the means of witchcraft, which James described as ‘high treason against god’ in his own book about supernatural beings ‘Demonology’ (which was published in 1597, six years before the performance of Macbeth).
King James I was overly paranoid of espionage, conspiracies and rebellions because he felt insecure about his sovereignty. Due to King James’ insecurities about his position as king, he might have slightly been unsure if the Divine Rights of Kings were completely true and he could not have been appointed by god after all. Since ‘Macbeth’ was mainly written for King James I as tribute, Shakespeare presents the strong reliability of the Divine Rights of Kings as its principles are presented throughout the whole play and are constantly applied to Macbeth, as he is eventually punished by going against it.
Due to the fact that the Divine Rights of Kings is presented as being true, makes King James I feel better about himself, as it shows that he was truly appointed by god to become king. Therefore watching the play Macbeth would have given him relief and assurance that he was divinely appointed to become the monarch of both England and Scotland and therefore nobody was to replace him.
Most importantly, this results in King James I being satisfied with the play, which was Shakespeare’s main aim of this play. Since most of the Jacobean audience were extremely religious and God fearing, they believed that everything was controlled by God, so they must behave properly in order to not anger the Gods. Subsequently, Shakespeare continues to relate common Jacobean ideologies as he decides to show how Macbeth’s ambition is causing him to not only trust the witches and their witchcraft and be willing to go to extreme lengths such as murder to fulfill them, but this wicked and cursed ambition is also causing him to go against god by murdering someone who has been appointed to be king by god.
As a result of this, Shakespeare has effectively presented his morals regarding ambition as he presents its harmful and ‘cursed’ effect upon an individual, as well as it being a trait of high treason against god. This further foreshadows Macbeth’s downfall from his ambition, as the Jacobean audience believe that his future crimes will indeed anger god. In relation to the modern audience, they are generally not superstitious nor religious and therefore are not wouldn’t believe in the Divine Rights of Kings.
In regards to this contrasting mindset, this further implies to the modern audience how ambition has completely corrupted Macbeth’s mind leading him to believe the nonsense that the witches have the ability to make him king. Therefore, the modern audience may think that Macbeth’s uncontrollable ambition is just making excuses to himself so that he could eventually become king. Summing up, this is how Shakespeare decides to further present his morals upon cursed and evil ambition, by linking it to common Jacobean ideologies involving the theme of kingship and the Divine Rights of Kings.
The major theme of ambition continues to be explored by Shakespeare through the presentation of Lady Macbeth’s perspective upon the dangerous quality, in regards to what she believes Macbeth must require to make effective ambitious decisions. My evidence from Act 1 Scene 5 of the play ‘Macbeth’ which strongly suggests this point is: ‘thou wouldst be great; art not without ambition, but without the illness should attend it.’
Lady Macbeth has just read the letter she has received from her husband, Macbeth, regarding his meeting with the weird sisters and their prophecies that are beginning to come into action- Macbeth tells her about the ‘greatness promised thee’. In her soliloquy Lady Macbeth reacts ambitiously to this great news and begins to think of how she can make her husband king and therefore starts to reflect on her husband’s character in terms of his ambitious abilities and ruthless capacity.
Additionally, she fears that he hasn’t the killer instinct that will allow him to achieve greatness, as this is a precursor to her telling him to be the serpent under the flower. The terms ‘wouldst’ translates to ‘would like to’, which means that Lady Macbeth is saying that Macbeth wants to become king; however Lady Macbeth might be actually hinting at her own desires, since she desperately wants him to become king- and since she wants him to become king, so would Macbeth. Moreover, this presents how Lady Macbeth’s ambition is making her the dominant and controlling one of the relationship where she decides what Macbeth wants based on her own yearnings, regardless of gender stereotypes.
Furthermore, Lady Macbeth described the third prediction as ‘great’- exactly how Macbeth has described it in the letter as well as previous scenes such as in Act 1 Scene 3: ‘greatest is behind’. This to further highlights their strong relationship at the beginning of the play, as they are presented to have the same ambitious approach towards the third prophecy. Due to the fact that they have a good relationship, where they both plan to achieve royalty, this foreshadows the possibility of the plan succeeding as they have they can work well as a team.
To elaborate, the fact that the audience are already expecting for Macbeth’s ambition to lead to his downfall (due to the way in which his immoral intentions are presented in previous scenes), this illustrates the idea that Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s relationship is bound to fall apart, dragging Macbeth as well as Lady Macbeth to their complete destruction. The presentation of Lady Macbeth’s perspective upon ambition is further presented through the noun ‘illness’ which acts as a metaphor for the ‘ruthless streak’ that she believes is necessary for ambition to be successful in their pursuit to the crown. Due to the fact that Lady Macbeth has only just started plotting for the crown, the use of the noun ‘illness’ implies that despite how early it is she knows what she is doing is immoral and will lead Macbeth down a dark path.
Alternatively, Lady Macbeth could use the noun ‘illness’ as a metaphor for ‘evil’, which foreshadows how Macbeth will indeed ‘catch’ evil, as one may catch a disease. As the play progresses, the audience will see Macbeth’s ‘symptoms’ develop and worsen, to the point where there is no hope for any cure- causing Macbeth to tragically die. Further into this, Lady Macbeth’s use of the imperative ‘should’ suggests that she sees this ‘illness’ as an essential requirement for effective ambition, where ambition will not work without it.
In simple terms, Shakespeare successfully presents Lady Macbeth as an ambitious character as she is seen as more motivated and determined than Macbeth, which would appear as ironic to the audience as not only is Lady Macbeth a female- but the prophecies are not even directly related to her, as they were mainly intended for Macbeth than her, yet she still is more ambitious than him. This could be due to the fact that she can only achieve the royal standard she wishes of if Macbeth receives the crown, therefore when he hesitates, she presents the required capacity of ambition for the both of them to succeed.
As well as her determination, Lady Macbeth’s serious and firm tone when planning illustrates that once she has worked out a stratagem, nothing will distract her from that path until her ambition and desires are fulfilled.
