Response to Act 1 of Macbeth

eq: What is ambition?

Ambition is the desire for a personal achievement. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth both show ambition for power in act 1.  Macbeth shows ambition when he finds out that Malcolm will be the heir to the king. He sees that Malcolm is another thing blocking him from becoming king, and try's to think of a way to get around it. His ambition for power is awakened by the witches' prophecy. When he found out that he would become the thane of Cawdor, he began to think that the witches' prophecy was true. Macbeth says "If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown men./Without my stir. (1.3.29)". This shows that his is wondering whether he will become king by chance or if he will have to do a dark deed to become king. This starts to spark his ambition to become king. Lady Macbeth shows ambition for power when she finds out that the witches' prophecy told that Macbeth was to become king. She thinks that Macbeth lacks the will to become king. So she convinces him to go after becoming king. She makes the plan for Macbeth stab the king in his sleep and make it look like the servants did it. Lady Macbeth shows her ambition for power as she taunts Macbeth into killing the king so that she may gain power. Lady Macbeth says "It is too full o' the milk of human kindness/to catch the nearest way: thou wouldst be great: art not without ambition: bit without/the illness should attend it. (1.5.39)." This shows that Lady Macbeth knows that Macbeth has the ambition to become king but she thinks that he is not manly enough to do it. Overall, both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth show ambition in act 1.