Final answer:
Macbeth hesitates to murder King Duncan due to his loyalty, his duty as a host, and the fear of consequences. Lady Macbeth's pressure and Macbeth's ambition ultimately lead him to commit the deed. Their plan involves intoxicating the guards and framing them for the murder.
Step-by-step explanation:
Macbeth's Decision and Hesitation::
In Shakespeare's Macbeth, Macbeth ultimately decides to carry out the plan to murder King Duncan after a period of intense indecision. Initially, Macbeth hesitates to commit the murder for several reasons: his loyalty to Duncan as a kinsman and subject, his duty as a host to protect Duncan, and the understanding of the consequences that such an act of regicide would entail. Lady Macbeth chastises his lack of resolve and questions his manhood, pushing him toward the decision to follow through with the plan.
Macbeth's internal conflict is a central theme of the play, as he wrestles with his ambition, the moral and ethical ramifications of regicide, and the consequences of the act not only in this life but in the life to come.
Macbeth's thought process is riddled with uncertainty as he contemplates the potential benefits against the grave repercussions.
The pressure from Lady Macbeth and his own ambition eventually tips the scale, overcoming his initial scruples. Lady Macbeth's assertion that their failure is not an option, and her calculated plan to intoxicate the guards and frame them for the murder, provides Macbeth with a false sense of security and the ruthless courage needed to proceed.