Question

It might be said that with every act in The Tragedy of Macbeth, Macbeth becomes more evil. In Act I, Macbeth hears the witches’ prophecies and considers doing evil; in Act II, he kills King Duncan; and in Act III, he kills his comrade Banquo. Discuss Macbeth’s crime in Act IV. Why does Macbeth commit it? How is it different from the crimes Macbeth commits in the previous acts? Support your points with details from Act IV.

Answer 1

The first time Macbeth killed someone, he was anxious and hesitant. He also did so for a specific reason, to gain power and control, in an attempt to steal the King's position. The murder that took place in Act 4, was a very different act of violence. He killed the wife and child of Macduff, two people of which were innocent and defenseless, unable to negatively harm Macbeth. This shows how he allowed himself to fall into a deeper madness, as he was okay with allowing the deaths of these two people. He killed them because he was very paranoid, as well as that the witches warned Macbeth about Macduff, saying "Beware Macduff/ Beware the thane of fife" (act 4). Macbeth used to only kill or have someone killed because doing so has a direct influence on his success. But he has gone down a new and darker path after killing innocent people, just to make him feel more secure and confident that he will not lose power. He killed these people to make sure that he can stay and power, and not risk it.

Step-by-step explanation:

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Answer 2

Macbeth ordered the murder of the Macduff family, which resulted in the death of innocent wife and children.

This act is different from all the other murders of Macbeth because he has started to kill blindly, without any sense of right or wrong and thereby led to the piling up of his sins even upon the blood of innocent people.

He committed the terrible crime of killing these innocent souls just to make sure that he is safe from any opposition in keeping his authority, just as the witches had warned him.

Step-by-step explanation:

In William Shakespeare's "Macbeth", the main character Macbeth commits evil acts, in each and every act of the play. Moreover, his actions become more and more cruel as the scene progresses.

Act I shows him encountering the witches and learning of the prophecy. Act II begins the real physical commitment of evil which progresses to Act III where he continues to murder Banquo. Then in Act IV, he did the most gruesome of murder, killing the family of Macduff just to secure his line of authority. This spillage of innocent blood, who have no role whatsoever in his life or didn't pose a threat in his way to authority, Macbeth becomes the pure evil, a monster that is the result of his greed for power. Lady Macduff's protest of being innocent proves the level of evil that Macbeth is ready to take to keep his power safe.

This murdering of the Macduff family happened after the witches gave him a warning, "beware Macduff; Beware the thane of Fife". So, he took the advice of the witches literally, just to "make assurance double sure", killing not just the person they had warned him against, but also annihilating the whole family 'just in case'.

Considering the previous crimes that he had committed, they were all part and parcel of his rise to power. King Duncan, Banquo are all the obstacles that he needed to get rid of if he wants to be king of Denmark. And in doing do, he had successfully rid himself of any form or opposition. But with the killing of the Macduff family, he shed innocent blood, which is a far more greater sin than anything.