ACT+II+THEMES

=**__Appearance vs.Reality__**= =The main theme of //Macbeth//—the destruction wrought when ambition goes unchecked by moral constraints—finds its most powerful expression in the play’s two main characters.= =**__What is a man?__**= =Macbeth is a courageous Scottish general who is not naturally inclined to commit evil deeds, yet he deeply desires power and advancement. He kills Duncan against his better judgment and afterward stews in guilt and paranoia. Toward the end of the play he descends into a kind of frantic, boastful madness.= =**__Disorder__**= =In each case, ambition—helped, of course, by the malign prophecies of the witches—is what drives the couple to ever more terrible atrocities. The problem, the play suggests, is that once one decides to use violence to further one’s quest for power, it is difficult to stop. There are always potential threats to the throne—Banquo, Fleance, Macduff—and it is always tempting to use violent means to dispose of them.= = = =BY:Drae Robertson=