Macbeth and his wife are portrayed as cunning and ambitious characters at the beginning of the play, and their ambition allows them to achieve their primary goal of becoming King and Queen. However, we see that it is this ambition that leads to their downfall later in the play, when they realise that wearing 'borrow'd robes' is not as rewarding as they had expected.

Macbeth's ambitious character is evident very early in the play - the fact that he 'starts' on hearing the Witches' prophecies suggests a sense of guilt, as if he has contemplated becoming King before the idea was voiced by the Witches. He is keen to hear more of this 'strange intelligence', so it is possible that Macbeth's ambition was not instigated by the Witches, but was present in his mind prior to the meeting on the heath. However, while he is fascinated at the prospect of becoming King, he believes he lacks the courage to murder Duncan to gain the crown - the thought of it is enough to 'unfix my hair' and 'make my seated heart knock at m

He feels that his position is worthless unless it can be secured for his own descendants. Macbeth chooses to ignore the Witches' prophecy of Banquo's children becoming Kings. His decision to murder Banquo and Fleance is perhaps a turning point in the play, as it shows just how much more ambitious Macbeth has become - up until now, he has always been forced into action by his wife, but he isolates her from this new plot, keeping her 'innocent of the knowledge'. In the end the 'reward' of being 'safely thus' is never achieved. Fleance's surivival rankles Macbeth, who, as a result, feels 'cabin'd, cribb'd, confin'd, bound' in fears and doubts.

Lady Macbeth herself knows how ambitious Macbeth is: 'Thou wouldst be great', yet she fears that he does not have the 'illness' that should accompany this ambition, so that he may 'seize the nearest way'. It is because Macbeth is 'too full o' the milk of human kindness' that she feels she must goad him and manipulate him into doing the deed. He thinks he is being too ambitious, like a horse trying to 'o'erleap' a jump. Lady Macbeth manages to persuade her husband by challenging his manhood, implying that he is a coward.

Macbeth's and Lady Macbeth's ambition also leads to the breakdown of their relationship - in Act one, Macbeth affectionately refers to his wife as his 'dearest partner of greatness', yet he hardly reacts to the news of her suicide in Act five. She is able to be reassuring when he is tormented by his guilt, yet Macbeth can only say 'she would have died hereafter' in response to her death. Their ambition initially brings them closer together, but as Macbeth strengthens in evil resolve, he becomes more self-absorbed in his own role.

By Act five, however, we see

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Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)