Open Prompt

2005, Form B. One of the strongest human drives seems to be a desire for power. Write an essay in which you discuss how a character in a novel or a drama struggles to free himself or herself from the power of others or seeks to gain power over others. Be sure to demonstrate in your essay how the author uses this power struggle to enhance the meaning of the work.

            Power is one of the many things most humans strive for, whether it is power over a spouse or an entire country, people seem to want power.  In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the title character spends the entire play forcing his way towards the seat of power, the throne.  Shakespeare uses Macbeth to assert that power, the ascension to power, corrupts only those who thirst for it.  This becomes obvious through his treatment of Macbeth as opposed to Malcolm.

            Shakespeare portrays Macbeth negatively as soon as he begins thirsting for power.  The first passage Macbeth is ever mentioned in, he is a war hero.  The language used is elegant and Macbeth seems almost god like.  But as soon as Macbeth begins his quest for power, he loses his hero like qualities.  His sanity comes into question, and the audience sees the blood of his victims.  Although the audience does not witness the murders, they must see the mess he creates both figuratively and literally.  This unavoidable visual impresses on them how corrupt Macbeth has become because of his desire to rule.

            Malcolm is hardly a main character; although he plays a large role in the plot, he appears relatively rarely.  In one of Malcolm’s largest scenes, he tests Macduff’s intentions in order to assure that his country will be safe despite being exiled from it.  The throne was forced upon Malcolm, although he may have desired it, he never attempted to murder his way up the chain.   In this way he is displayed very positively next to Macbeth, who did everything in his power to become King and no longer answer to any authority.

            Malcolm and Macbeth are not complete opposites, but in their rises power, Shakespeare makes it very clear that Macbeth’s thirst for power lead to corruption and his ultimate demise, where Malcolm remained pure and successful.