Macbeth, victim or a villain?

I'm supposed to write about this and I feel other people's perspectives would be helpful, to open my mind on Macbeth a little more.

So, what do you believe?
Was he a victim?
Or was he a villain?

Reply 1

username3934898

If Macbeth is seen as a victim then I think he is only a victim because of the power of the witches. If the supernatural existed in the play, everything was predestined for him. Did he deserve it? Probably not. He killed King Duncan out of his own cowardice which begun a chain reaction - or his hubris made him underestimate every situation from the beginning. His irrationality may have been because he was cursed. Macbeth lusted for power and he wanted everything that he couldn't have. In a way it mirrors the behaviour of humans who are always wanting more - the only difference is his desire led him to commit unforgivable sins.

Personally I believe he was a villain. I have no sympathy towards a cold hearted killer. As I mentioned the sins he committed were indeed unforgivable. If the witches were a figment of his own imagination then he was foolish and reckless. If Macbeth believed the equivocation then he shouldn't have been driven by his ambition. He should have restrained like Banquo, although Banquo was interestingly enough fated to die too. Macbeth could have had redemption but he didn't even have the guts to murder Fleance, a child.