Answer:
Macbeth is a tragedy that tells the story of a soldier whose overriding ambition and thirst for power cause him to abandon his morals and bring about the near destruction of the kingdom he seeks to rule. At first, the conflict is between Macbeth and himself, as he debates whether or not he will violently seize power, and between Macbeth and his wife, as Lady Macbeth urges her husband toward a course of action he is hesitant to take.
Once Macbeth stops struggling against his ambition, the conflict shifts. It then primarily exists between Macbeth and the other characters, in particular Banquo and Macduff, who challenge his authority. Macbeth is the protagonist in the sense that he is the main focus of the narrative and that audiences frequently have access to his point of view. However, as he often acts against his own best interests, as well as the best interests of the other characters and his country, he is also the antagonist. The characters who oppose Macbeth and eventually defeat him do so in order to restore order and justice.
The play actually opens with the consequences of someone else’s ambition. In the first scene, audiences hear about the bloody conflict that resulted from the rebellion led by the Thane of Cawdor. The rebellion foreshadows the consequences of overreaching one’s role. The conflict is initiated when Macbeth encounters the witches who prophesize that he will become first the Thane of Cawdor, and then the King of Scotland. As soon as he learns that their first prophecy has come true, he is awakened to the possibility of the second also being realized. As Macbeth marvels to himself, “Two truths are told/As happy prologues to the swelling act/ Of the imperial theme” (1.3.128-130).
In a crucial turning point in the play, Macbeth is faced with a choice: to take decisive action to claim the crown as his own, or to simply wait and see what happens. Every choice he makes, and every thing that happens for the rest of the play stem from his decision here. Macbeth feels ambivalence, as he wants to be king but also knows that he owes Duncan loyalty both “as his kinsman and as his subject” (1.7.13).
The tension between duty and ambition sharpens when Lady Macbeth learns of the prophecy that her husband will become king, and immediately begins strategizing ways to bring about the fulfillment of the prophecy. Now Macbeth is torn between loyalty to Duncan and loyalty to his wife, who does not appear to feel any shame, doubt, or remorse about the dark act she is plotting. She is eager to “pour my spirits in [Macbeth’s] ear/And chastise with the valor of my tongue/All that impedes [him] from the golden round” (1.5.25-27). The audience has the sense that Lady Macbeth may have been longing for just such an opportunity where she can put her intelligence and strategic ability to good use.
Lady Macbeth successfully manipulates her husband into taking action, telling him, “when you durst do it, then you were a man” (1.7.49). This initial conflict over whether or not he can kill his king, which exists both between Macbeth and himself and between Macbeth and his wife, is resolved when Macbeth acts, murdering Duncan and then seizing power after the more obvious heirs flee in fear of being accused of the crime.
Explanation:
You're welcome.
