Shakespeares Macbeth and Euripedes Medea :: comparison compare contrast essays

Shakespeares Macbeth and Euripedes Medea Shakespeares Macbeth, and Euripedes Medea, are both tragic plays in the classical sense. Both Medea and Macbeth thirst for the unattainable, and that lust destroys them. It can non be said which character is a truly tragic figure, because both fit the description. However, if either character deserves more sympathy it is Madea, the jilted wife, not Macbeth the King killer. Macbeths lust for power and his willingness to please his wife leads to his downfall. He murders the children of his one time friend, and suffers the consequences of that sin. Medea murders her own children in her quest to win back her lover Jason. She does this to hear revenge, since Jason sees the children not as theirs, only as his. She also, like Macbeth seeks to kill her rival, Jasons new lover, the daughter of King Creon of Corinth and a real Greek. Both Euripedes and Shakespeare use the supernatural to enhance their plays. Macbeth is influenced by the prophecy of the collar witches. Madea, who is a witch herself, is influenced by the mythological Gods of ancient Greece. Macbeths and Medeas ambitions and lust lead to tragic conclusions in their lives. Urged by his henpecking wife, Macbeth lusts for the throne. In the beginning of the play, Macbeth is likeable, but we soon see his dark side that will lead to his tragic downfall. The play starts with Macbeth and Banquo as co-leaders of the Scottish army, are returning from battle when they meet three witches. The witches prophesy that Macbeth will become Thane of Cawder and, later, king. bodyOffer() 1. Witch. All hail, Macbeth. Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis 2. Witch. All hail, Macbeth. Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor 3. Witch. All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be King here- after (Act 1. Sc. III, lines 50-55) They tell Banquo that he will not be king himself but he will have his descendants as kings 1. Witch. Lesser than Macbeth, and greater. 2. Witch. Not so happy, yet happier. 3. Wit ch. Thou shalt get Kings, though thou be none. So all hail, Macbeth and Banquo (Act 1, SC. III lines 70-74) Here we see Macbeths ambitions begin to appear. He begins to consider the possibility of becoming king There is a chance that King Duncan might choose Macbeth, a cousin, as his successor, but Macbeths hopes are destroyed when Duncan names his son, Malcolm.