Nature in Macbeth: How Images of Nature Apply to the Environment

The world around us can be seemingly similar to the lives that we live. We can always see the comparisons between our lives and the beautiful nature that surrounds us. Nature is always playing a role in the story of Macbeth. Macbeth rises to power, after hearing the witches' prophecy, by killing Duncan, the king. Through this murder, and a series of spilled blood, Macbeth becomes king and rules the country. He then starts facing internal struggles and is always having troubles maintaining his sanity. In the end, his rule becomes unjust and an army storms his castle, where the tyrants rule finally ends. The use of nature can be seen throughout this entire work of Shakespeare. It is used in many situations and can allude to different situations. There are also comparisons that are being made about nature and Macbeth's fragile string of understanding that eventually tear him apart. Through the use of nature imagery, Shakespeare demonstrates the supremacy that Macbeth gains and the troubles that he has after he starts losing his sanity.

Through the course of the beginning of Macbeth's story, he has been a good and loyal solider. After meeting some witches and hearing their prophecy of
him being king, he starts debating whether it would become true. His wife, Lady Macbeth, pushes him over the edge when she convinces him to kill Duncan,
the current king, at a dinner that they will host at their home. As Duncan is walking towards Macbeth's castle, he comments that "This castle has a pleasant
seat; the air / Nimbly and sweetly recommends itself / Unto our gentle senses" (I.vii.1-3). At this point in time, Macbeth still is a loyal solider, but this quote can
allude to the fact that the castle will eventually become a house of death. It will hold the greatest tyrant, so great that "Not in the legions / Of horrid hell can come
a devil more damned / In evils to top Macbeth" (IV.iii.55-57). It's ironic that Duncan does not realize that this castle will be his deathbed and Macbeth's
stronghold of power. Once Macbeth holds his power, he's absolutely confident that nothing can happen to him. He has started the change of events, having
"scotched the snake, not killed it" (III.ii.13). When Macbeth says this, he realizes that he has achieved the power, but still isn't finish. He needs to maintain his
power and keep himself out of danger and out of suspicion. He also realizes that he needs to kill Banquo, because the witches told him that one of Banquo's
family line will eventually become king. This threat is too much for Macbeth and sets out of kill Banquo and his son, Fleance. He hires some murderers, whom
go out and plan to assassinate both Banquo and Fleance. They come back to Macbeth and report that "There the grown serpent lies. The worm that's fled"
(III.iv.29). This line shows the fact that Banquo has lived, being the grown serpent, but his son, Fleance, has fled and successfully escaped and lives on. All of
these nature images enhance the power of Macbeth and how he uses his power. He is so confident that he boldly states: "What man dare, I dare. / Approach
thou like the rugged Russian bear, / The armed rhinoceros, or the Hyrcan Tiger" (III.v.99-101). He isn't afraid of anything and believes he can conquer
everything. He feels like the strongest man in the world, but eventually he accumulates troubles in his head and loses his sanity.

Later on in the tragedy of Macbeth, Macbeth starts to realize the troubles that he has. He is worried about losing his power and wants to keep it so much that he'll do anything, like killing his best friend, Banquo. He also realizes that he needs to do so much, and this starts wearing out his mind and begins to lose his sanity. It all starts after he killed Duncan and starts talking with his wife. Macbeth is so trouble that his mind is "full of scorpions" (III.iii.36). Scorpions are known for being deadly, holding poison, and are very capable of killing humans. The fact that Macbeth makes this comparison to the worries in his head, exaggerates the detail that he is extremely stressed out. This is when he decides to kill Banquo, and this could be detrimental towards his mental health, as Banquo is one of his dearest friends. Also, his previous actions probably put him at a loss of what to do. By killing Duncan, someone who has done no wrong to him, there will always be some inner guilt that will be waiting to be discovered. All that he is keeping inside wears out his mind and he starts to lose understanding. Later on he knows that there will be an army who are coming to march and take his castle. This increases his stress load, but at this point, he is so insane that he isn't his old self anymore. He is nervous and meets again with the witches again to hear his prophecy. They tell him that he won't fall from power until the woods near his forest march towards his castle, which is seemingly impossible. This, however, alludes to the fact that Macbeth will fall, but everyone is wonder, including Macbeth, "Who can impress the forest, bid the tree" (IV.i.95). Impress, being used here, means to control, and Macbeth is wondering who can bend the entire forest to move at command. Sure enough, when the soldiers cloak themselves with branches, their large numbers make it look as if the forest is coming up towards him. This impeding doom eventually comes down upon Macbeth is slain by Macduff. And even with all the warnings that Macbeth hears, he is still unable to protect himself from the conflicts within him that cause him to go insane and the conflicts around the outside world.

Macbeth loses himself through the power that he's gained, so these troubles show that man is its own enemy. By using this nature imagery, the reader can tell that Shakespeare illustrates Macbeth's power and the dilemmas that then surround his power. He is warned many times by the witches and by nature itself, but he never seems to realize that his fall from power would only be a matter of time. The idea of power consumes him, proving that man is its worst enemy and this conflict can be shown through Shakespeare's use of nature imagery. By comparing Macbeth's life to the nature that always surround us, we can gain a sense that everything relates to each other and the comparisons that are made can teach us much about what is going on. Everything seems to be falling about through the troubles that Macbeth has, but it was only a matter of time until he fell from his throne, high up, and thus creating the tragedy of Macbeth.