Macbeth, a play by William Shakespeare, tells the story of a young Duke as he comes into his horrific destiny. Because of his tendency to indulge in the equivocations of the three witches, Macbeth ultimately finds himself at the end of his killer’s sword. He does not, however, fall into an endless spiral of trying to outsmart fate without the aid of his toxic ideal of masculinity. This mindset, as written by Hamblin _____, entitles men to dominance and control (Hamblin, 2016). Because toxic masculinity is not innate but rather a construct created by society, Macbeth’s environment changes him from a grateful and honored Thane to an insane, impulsive dictator. Even though Macbeth controls his own actions, toxic masculinity acts as an enabler,
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It quickly escalates, and as he begins to lose his grip on his fate, Macbeth turns from simply having dangerous ambition to a state of near psychosis. Despite killing Duncan, Macbeth still has a moral and guilty conscious: “I am afraid to think what I have done,” (2.2. 66). Looking back, he is distraught with shame and guilt, even though he fulfills the prophecy. His dangerous need for power, however, overcomes his guilt leading to to impulsiveness and lack of empathy that resemble psychosis. Even after fulfilling the witches’ prophecy of power, Macbeth still feels the need to control every aspect of his fate. Instead of working to accomplish his destiny, he now focuses on preserving it. He forgets the power he holds as he becomes riddled with the paranoia of his demise. In an effort to secure his reign and control his fate by ensuring his longevity, Macbeth revisits the witches. In this meeting, Macbeth no longer faces the witches with awe. Instead he faces them with anger and threats: “Deny me this, and an eternal curse fall on you! (4.1 119-120). The need to control his fate through anticipating the future has turned into a burning passion within Macbeth. The toxic masculinity that once enabled him to achieve his highest power now disables him. Once Macbeth receives the prophecy of his demise, he uses every resource to prevent it by continuing to kill. As Macbeth moves to kill Banquo and his son Fleance and then Macduff’s family, he grows emotionally detached from his victims. After killing Banquo, Macbeth is haunted by his ghost as a manifestation of his repressed guilt, however, despite his guilt, he morally does not feel remorse for the crime. Before killing Macduff’s family he says that “To crown my thoughts with acts, be it thought and done,” (4.1.169-170). In the beginning, Macbeth had thoughts of murdering Duncan that he
It quickly escalates, and as he begins to lose his grip on his fate, Macbeth turns from simply having dangerous ambition to a state of near psychosis. Despite killing Duncan, Macbeth still has a moral and guilty conscious: “I am afraid to think what I have done,” (2.2. 66). Looking back, he is distraught with shame and guilt, even though he fulfills the prophecy. His dangerous need for power, however, overcomes his guilt leading to to impulsiveness and lack of empathy that resemble psychosis. Even after fulfilling the witches’ prophecy of power, Macbeth still feels the need to control every aspect of his fate. Instead of working to accomplish his destiny, he now focuses on preserving it. He forgets the power he holds as he becomes riddled with the paranoia of his demise. In an effort to secure his reign and control his fate by ensuring his longevity, Macbeth revisits the witches. In this meeting, Macbeth no longer faces the witches with awe. Instead he faces them with anger and threats: “Deny me this, and an eternal curse fall on you! (4.1 119-120). The need to control his fate through anticipating the future has turned into a burning passion within Macbeth. The toxic masculinity that once enabled him to achieve his highest power now disables him. Once Macbeth receives the prophecy of his demise, he uses every resource to prevent it by continuing to kill. As Macbeth moves to kill Banquo and his son Fleance and then Macduff’s family, he grows emotionally detached from his victims. After killing Banquo, Macbeth is haunted by his ghost as a manifestation of his repressed guilt, however, despite his guilt, he morally does not feel remorse for the crime. Before killing Macduff’s family he says that “To crown my thoughts with acts, be it thought and done,” (4.1.169-170). In the beginning, Macbeth had thoughts of murdering Duncan that he