Theme Of Corruption In Macbeth

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Power Always Corrupts (Topic 1)

In the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare, the theme that power corrupts automatically is portrayed multiple times throughout the play. From the time Macbeth hears his prophecy of becoming a king all the way to his death, the idea of power leading to corruption is prevalent. By exploring different examples of how Macbeth’s greed for power leads to corruption, it’ll be easy to distinguish how power ultimately lead to corruption.

In the first Act of Macbeth, the three witches are revealing Macbeth’s future. They reveal to Macbeth that he’ll be thane of Cawdor, “All hail, Macbeth, hail to thee, thane of Cawdor!...All hail, Macbeth, thou shalt be king hereafter!,” (Act 1, Scene 3). The three witches revealing this to him is important because it leads to Macbeth planning to kill King Duncan so that he can be …show more content…
If ’t be so, For Banquo’s issue have I filed my mind,” (Act 3, Scene 1).
Macbeth’s honesty and morality are rapidly changing as he becomes more persistent in becoming thane of Cawdor. He’s willing to kill anyone who gets in his way of obtaining power which portrays how his need for power is leading to corruption. However, as the play moves along and Macbeth takes many more lives, his greed for power ends up getting him killed. He is killed in his battle with Macduff, but if he hadn’t become so determined to kill and lie to get power, he would’ve never had to battle with Macduff. His desire for power leads to his ultimate corruption.

In conclusion, Macbeth’s character represents the idea that power automatically leads to corruption. Macbeth hearing that he will be powerful in the future by being thane of Cawdor leads to his corrupt actions and death. Power always corrupts and in Macbeth’s case it happened

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