Sunday, September 29, 2013

In the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare, how does Macbeth's tyranny affect the entire Scottish nation?

Macbeth's tyranny undermines the loyalty that the Scottish
subjects have for their nation.  In the beginning of the play, Macbeth is the most
highly regarded Thane by King Duncan for his valour on the battlefield.  Duncan gives
him the title of Thane of Cawdor to honor the loyalty exhibited by Macbeth during the
battle with Norway.  In the eyes of all (except Macduff who is suspicious of Macbeth
early in the play), Macbeth is an honorable man, and they give their trust to him as
their king.  When the Thanes begin to realize that Macbeth is behind all the murders,
they leave his side to fight with the English army.  But this only happens late in the
play, and by then Macbeth's tyranny has robbed the country of a just king, a worthy
Thane (Banquo), and loyal citizens (Macduff's court).  At the end of the play, Malcolm
takes his rightful place on the throne, but there is the hint that it will take some
time to return Scotland to the peaceful land it once was.  Acts of tyranny leave in
their wake long periods of unease as shown in
Macbeth.

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