Macbeth Even though Macbeth is influenced by Lady Macbeth and the witches throughout the play, his hamartia makes him do things he couldn't have done. When Macbeth received the prophecy from the witches about becoming king, it made him believe that it would come true. In reality the prophecy pushes him to commit murder in order to become king, but at the same time the witches knew that this would happen. Macbeth goes mad when he tries to make the witches' prophecy come true. When he commits Duncan's murder the madness sets in, and from then on he is in a state of paranoia. The first murder that Macbeth committed, trying to fulfill the witches' prophecy, was when he killed Duncan. Macbeth's paranoia begins before he even commits the act. "Is that a dagger I see in front of me, with the hilts pointing towards my hand? Let me hold you." (Act II, Scene I, lines 33 and 34) In Act two, Scene one, as Macbeth is walking towards Duncan's room, he says he sees a dagger which is pointing him towards Duncan's room. This shows that Macbeth knows that what he is doing is wrong but tries to find a way to justify his actions. In this same act Macbeth states that Duncan's two grooms shout the words "Murder" and "God bless us". (Act II h Scene II lines 20 and 24). This also shows that Macbeth feels things and knows that what he is doing is wrong. He doesn't want to commit these murders but Lady Macbeth brings out his virility. Lady Macbeth wants to be in power more than her husband and continues to push Macbeth until he fulfills the prophecy. This is still Macbeth's fault because he never had to kill Duncan and start this period of horror. This is also the same time Macbeth says "Glamis has killed sleep, a... half of paper..." what it has caused him has not allowed him to enjoy it. Macbeth is responsible for all the actions that drive him mad. All this happens after receiving the prophecy from the witches on how to become king. Before committing the first murder, he says he sees a dagger that points him to Duncan's room. This dagger he sees is a figure of his imagination that justifies to himself that it is right to commit the murder. When they are at dinner and the ghost of Banquo appears and Macbeth is the only one who can see it, but this time Macbeth feels a feeling of regret for having his best friend killed. While Lady Macbeth and the witches may have pushed Macbeth to do this, it was actually Macbeth who caused all the madness. Works Cited Shakespeare, William and John Crowther. Shakespeare: Macbeth. and. New York: Spark Publishing, 2003. Print.