In Shakespeare's Macbeth, the title
character thinks of killing Duncan to become king at least as early as Act 1.3.136-139,
when, in an aside, he refers to his thoughts, thoughts that take the form of a
suggestion which is a "horrid image," which "unfix[es} my hair" and makes his "heart
knock" at his ribs. The suggestion, Macbeth says, is "Against the use of nature." The
suggestion amounts to "horrible imaginings (line
140)."
The suggestion can be no less than that he will
need to kill Duncan in order to be king.
The possibility
does indeed exist, however, that Macbeth thought not only about being king before the
witches make their predictions, but also that he thought about killing Duncan before the
predictions.
When the witches hail Macbeth as he who will
be king, he starts, as Banquo refers to it. He flinches. Banquo sees Macbeth's
reaction and asks him:
Good sir, why do you start and seem to
fear
Things that do sound so fair? (Act
1.3.52-53)
Macbeth is not a
man to be afraid, and he is not a man to show fear. The witches have given him an
exciting title, a glad tiding, if you will. Banquo is right to be surprised. Macbeth,
hero of the day's battle, flinches and shows fear when he is greeted as a future king.
One has to ask why.
What would make Macbeth flinch? The
same horrible imagining that bothers him later. What else? Being king is only fearful,
if it takes killing a king to get it. This suggests Macbeth has thought about killing
Duncan before, and been filled with horror by the thought
before.
Is this a certainty? No. Is it a possibility?
Yes.
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