er he thinks of a “horrid image” and speaks of his “horrible imaginings.” Macbeth also has the imagination to consider the consequences of the murder. Before murdering Duncan he imagines a dagger hovering before him and afterwards imagines a voice crying, “Sleep no more!” In the banquet scene only he sees Banquo’s ghost and Lady Macbeth believes that he imagined it. She dismisses it as, “the very painting” of his fear comparing it to the air drawn dagger. To Lady Macbeth imagination and fear are almost the same thing.A link between Macbeth and the witches is established in the opening scene of the play and it is Macbeth not Banquo they choose to lead astray with ambiguous promises. It may be due to Macbeth’s belief in the superstitious and the fact that he is easily lead which makes them pick on him and not Banquo. We know that Macbeth is ambitious and is excited by the witch’s prophecy. It is this prophecy and his ambition that leads to the downfall of Macbeth. There is a point in the play where he is told by the witches to be bloody, bold and resolute leading to him quickly deciding to give up thinking before acting and to murder Macduff’s family. The first signs of Macbeth’s dishonesty is when he pretends to Banquo that he has not been thinking of the witches, “I think not of them.” After this he becomes increasingly devious. He puts on a show of grief when Duncan’s murder is discovered and makes a seemingly innocent inquiry about Banquo’s plans in order to have him murdered.Macbeth’s decision to kill Banquo is a turning point in the play up until this point his wife has bullied him into action. Although he hints of his new plan from her he keeps her innocent of the knowledge. This begins to show that Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are not as close as they were before the murder with him becoming more independent.Another turning poin...
