Most famously in what is called the “To morrow and To morrow and To morrow” soliloquy that gives us these gems about the nature of life: It may not be a quotable as (the much longer) “Hamlet,” but it has comparable moments. Despite being short, it does include its share of great Shakespearean language. I didn’t count lines, but it certainly seems right – the play reads very quickly. This is said to be the shortest of Shakespeare’s tragedies. It seems to be working out for him, too, until he tees up for battle with Macduff – the same Macduff whose wife and children Macbeth had murdered, and who – apparently – was delivered by caesarian section. Macbeth brandishes this prophecy as a weapon along side his sword. Besides Macbeth’s madness-skewed worldview, he becomes foolhardy because the witches present him with another prophesy, that no person born of a woman can defeat Macbeth. Macbeth is joined in madness by his wife, who famously can’t seem to get a spot of blood off her hands and - ultimately - commits suicide. Macduff is competitor for the crown, and, while Macduff isn’t home to be assassinated, all his potential heirs are executed. The vilest of the murders that Macbeth is responsible for are those of the wife and children of Macduff. (Banquo was present when Macbeth met the witches, and thus he knew too much for his own good.) Banquo’s murder triggers a nervous breakdown in Macbeth, who sees his old friend’s ghost at a dinner party.

The murder that most devastates Macbeth is that of Banquo, who was a close friend and confidant, but whom a paranoid Macbeth felt needed to be killed. From that point on the murder train starts picking up steam - though Macbeth outsources the rest of the dirty work. Macbeth kills the king, making it look like Duncan’s own servants did it. When the king, Duncan, comes to visit to bestow an additional title on Macbeth for service well rendered, the opportunity presents itself. The sprout is watered and nurtured by Lady Macbeth, his wife, who encourages her husband to take an active approach. He begins to think about what he must do to make the witches’ prophecy come true.

With this tidbit of information, the seed of ambition in Macbeth sprouts. Three witches tell Macbeth, a victorious military commander, that he will be king. Macbeth is the tale of how a little nudge can send an ambitious man on a catastrophic and murderous course.

Macbeth play by william shakespeare