The Tragedy of Macbeth shows what people call fate or destiny is usually a self-fulfilling prophecy whose nature of related actions, counter-actions, and characters of people involved are often defined by an initiating move that started all the events. One of the central plot points of this legendary work by William Shakespeare is the cowardly murder of King Duncan by Macbeth and his wife with a dagger while the ruler slept. When Macduff and Lennox discover the king’s body, Macbeth and his wife begin to act surprised, ostentatiously mourn, and express their regret, which is fake. Interestingly, the antagonist says that “All is but toys: renown and grace is dead / The wine of life is drawn…” (Shakespeare, 2021, p. 69.). A treacherous and brutal murder out of a lust for power was the initiating event that triggered the prophecy and robbed Macbeth of the previously present virtues. Shakespeare indicates a turning point in the plot with this litotic technique. Dead renown and grace is an allegory about the dead King Duncan, whose life supported the remnants of morality in Macbeth. The line about wine is a reference to Christianity, where this drink is sacred. Christianity is the core of ethics and morals of the Middle Ages and Renaissance, and the absence of wine of life hints at the beginning of evil and ungodly times. During the play’s ending, the audience sees that these times have come, especially for Macbeth himself. The antagonist now has only two options, which are death by Macduff’s blade or suicide. He says, “Why should I play the Roman fool and die / On mine own sword?” (Shakespeare, 2021, pp. 185-186). Today, some see it as a reference to Marcus Junius Brutus. However, it is also an indication by the author that Macbeth is among the lowest sinners. Here, Shakespeare uses Dante’s magnum opus, The Divine Comedy, to describe the central character’s final psychological and moral state. As one can see, malicious regicide leads to another regicide of an immoral tyrant.
Reference
Shakespeare, W. (2021). The Tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare. (B. A. Mowat & P. Werstine, Eds.). Folger Shakespeare Library.