macbeth and ambition

Macbeth by William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616) Type of Work: Tragic fatalistic drama Setting Eleventh-century Scotland Principal Characters Macbeth, a noble Scottish chieftain Lady Macbeth, his wife Batiquo, Macbeth's warrior-friend Fleatice, Banquo's son Duncan, King of Scotland, a gentle and perfect ruler Macduff, a rebel lord Three Witches Story Overveiw On a stormy night, Scottish armies managed to suppress a rebellion, largely through the valor of two noblemen Macbeth and Banquo. They had also frustrated a Viking …

…lives were "blessed" by the witches, escapes temptation: first, by refusing the seductions of ambition; and second, by refusing to conspire with Macbeth against Duncan. He is, as the witches prophesy, "lesser than Macbeth, and greater ... not so happy, yet much happier." It is by no accident that Shakespeare's Banquo is a pure, upright fellow. The historical Banque was the direct ancestor of James 1, the King of England at the time of Macbeth's first performance.