Leaders In Macbeth

1. In the play Macbeth, king Duncan is viewed as a magnificent leader.  He is old and wise with many faithfully followers.  The one fault that Duncan expresses in the play is that he is to trusting in his comrades.  In  act 1, scene 4, lines 14-15, Duncan talks about the old Thane of Cawdor, whom he has killed for treason.  Duncan says "He was a gentleman on whom I built and absolute trust on."  Duncan then gives Macbeth the tile of Cawdor to Macbeth, whom we all know kills Duncan for the throne. Duncan gave out trust and respect too willingly to people whom appeared strong and brave. He should have been more cautious as king and thought over whom he trusted and admired.
2.  Machiavelli described a leader as a bold, brave, intelligent and courageous person.  Macbeth starts out with all these qualities but want and greed quickly lead him down the path to his demise.  When Macbeth is given the title Thane of Cawdor his thoughts are not ones of thanks and respect, his thoughts immediately jump to wanting more or becoming king.  Machiavelli says "It is not titles that honor men, but men that honor titles."  Macbeth does not honor his title because he is not loyal to his king.
    "Men rise from one ambition to another: first, they seek to secure themselves against attack, and then they attack others."-Machiavelli.  This is exactly what Macbeth dose when he becomes king.  He first secures himself as king by killing Duncan, then to further secure himself he decides to kill Banquo and Fleance.  By attacking others and killing of the "competition", Macbeth begins to sink  further into madness. 

Main Ideas in Macbeth

1. To the character Macbeth, it is hard to distinguish between appearances and reality.  He plots to achieve his deepest, darkest desires.  Desires that are fueled by the three witches that, in Banquo's mind, may not even exist.  Banquo questions the apparent witches and asks them, "...Are ye fantastical or that indeed which outwardly ye show?"  Macbeth is intrigued and asks the witches, " (1.3.51-52). Say from whence you owe this strange intelligence or why upon this blasted heath you stop our way.." (1.3.74-75).  Macbeth is blinded by his want and greed, and dose not question the lack of reality in the situation and instead jumps to his desire to become king.  Machiavelli thought that, "It is not essential that a Prince have all good qualities, but it is most essential that he should seem to have them." He thought that a prince doesn't need to be perfect, he just needs to appear good and honorable.
2. Gender roles were very important to keep back in the Renaissance ere.  Women were supposed to appear meek and caring while men had to appear brave and honorable.  In Shakespeare's Macbeth, these roles are switched for the characters of Lady Macbeth and Macbeth himself. Macbeth begins brave and honorable but soon degenerates to a weak and mad man.  Lady Macbeth appears sweet and caring to her husband and everyone around her, and I'm sure that she is on a level, but she really is a plotting women with cunning thoughts.  I think that Shakespeare wanted to show the public that the roles can be switched and that males and females can have the same qualities and  in-qualities.
3. Loyalty and honor are both betrayed in Macbeth.  Macbeth has much honor and loyalty for King Duncan but his greed for the crown over takes him and good thoughts for Duncan leave him.  Duncan trust Macbeth and gives him much honor and respect.  The respect and honor given to Macbeth is throne away when Macbeth plots to kill Duncan. "A son can bear with equanimity the loss of his father, but the loss of his inheritance may drive him to despair."  Machiavelli tells us that men can not live without their fortunes but can live with out the respect of their peers.  

Link for More on Machiavelli

Link: http://www.ctbw.com/lubman.htm

Ideas and Thoughts of Machiavelli

1.Niccolò Machiavelli was an Italian philosopher, poet, play-write and politician in the early 1500's.  He lived in Florence Italy during the renaissance period. He entered the world of politics in 1494 .  He quickly gained power and before long was engaged in diplomatic missions. He went allover the Europe meeting impotent political figures such as the pope and the King of France.  The person who interested him the most was Cesare Borgia, a cunning, cruel prince that inspired Machiavelli to write the infamous book, The Prince. Machiavelli's book earned him much criticism. People were outraged at the cruelties in the book and wondered what kind of man would have written it.  Machiavelli wrote The Prince to show the people what a ruler should be like and how they should act in order to gain power over the people.     2. "The wise man dose at once what the fool does finally." - quote from Machiavelli's Book, The Prince.  This quote relates to our world today because we live in a fast moving environment and when we hesitate to think, we loose our chance to act.  A good leader today must be wise enough to act quickly but rationally.  An example of this is a director.  Whether they are are directing a play, movie or sport, directors all act the same.  They all must choose and act quickly, but carefully to ensure a positive outcome.    3. "The ends justify the means." - The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli.  In our world today  thoughts and feelings of others are taken into account when we lead them.  Back in Machiavelli's time, rulers only took into account what they felt and wanted.  Leaders didn't consider the consequences of their actions and if they did they didn't truly care if someone got in their way or objected.  Rulers would just have them "taken care of".     4. "Before all else, be armed." - The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli.  This quote would have been useful to the Inca's during the battle with Pizarro because none of the Inca's were armed.  They thought that they would win merely to the fact that they out numbered Pizarro's army.  Pizarro knew that his army was outnumbered but he also knew that he had technologies and strategies that the Inca's did not. Machiavelli knew that a good leader must always contemplate the different outcomes and be prepared for the worst.