Comparison And Contrast Of Macbeth And Kurtz

In Heart Of Darkness And Macbeth Essay, Research Paper

Heart of Darkness and MacBeth

Joseph Conrad and William Shakespeare are not traditionally paired up for a critical analysis. However, the characters MacBeth and Kurtz in MacBeth and Heart of Darkness, respectively, prove to be worthy of comparison. MacBeth and Kurtz share many common characteristics: both have vaulting ambition that leads both to their success and their demise, a superiority complex, and both make similar sacrifices to achieve their goal. Despite their many similarities, MacBeth and Kurtz differ in many respects. The way the authors present each character varies greatly, and the way each interacts with his surroundings contrast a great deal. The circumstances that follow their actions also differ since the societies in which they live are not similar in any aspect. Through their many similarities and differences, MacBeth and Kurtz prove to be characters filled with evilness, and upon a closer examination, the differing degrees of that evilness are seen.

Both MacBeth and Kurtz s initial actions are dominated by ambition. MacBeth chooses to overthrow King Duncan for the sole purpose of his own political gain. He even admits that he “[has] no spur/ To prick the sides of [his] intent, but only/ Vaulting ambition, which o erleaps itself/ And falls on th other” (Act I, sc. 7). Despite many other good reasons for overthrowing a king, such as for the good of the state or if the king is infringing on the people s rights, MacBeth claims only selfish intentions. Like MacBeth, Kurtz, too, starts his road to evil with ambition. Kurtz, in order to earn his Intended s hand, goes to Africa to make something of himself. Instead of going on a “heavenly mission to civilize”(Conrad, 70) the savages, Kurtz s intentions, from the start, are to make money as quickly as possible. And he does. This “vaulting ambition” leads both met to climb the ladder of success at a quick pace. MacBeth is named “Thane of Cawdor” after one brave battle; Kurtz is given control of the Inner Station because of his success in bringing in ivory. Ambition, though traditionally looked at as a positive characteristic cause both men to perform evil deeds.

With ambition and success comes a feeling of superiority. Both MacBeth and Kurtz are portrayed as men who think themselves to be above God. MacBeth knows that the crime of killing a king goes against the chain of being theory (definition: That men are put into classes by a higher power. Therefore, kings are put in their positions by God himself and no man can argue with their “divine right”.) and yet he feels that God cannot punish him so long as fate is on his side. He puts such confidence in the three Weird Sisters that he can t even see that their evilness is leading him down the wrong path. His appointment to Thane of Cawdor makes him believe that he is better than anyone else, even Duncan. Why should he be more qualified for the position of king that any one of Duncan s other trusted comrades? The truth is that he isn t; He only believes himself to be. This superiority complex cannot be illustrated better than through Kurtz. Not only does he believe himself to be higher than God, he actually thinks of himself as a god. The way the natives worship him and how the “chiefs . . . would crawl” (Conrad, 133) to him are examples of the way he tricked the ignorant natives into thinking of him as a god. They carried him around on a stretcher and just adored him even though he forced them to get ivory and punished them harshly. Because of his powerful position and because he truly believed that he was in many ways better than everyone else, Kurtz was able to convince everyone he came in contact with of this theory of his god-like stature. Both men thought of themselves as superior because of the titles and duties earned from their evil and cheated ambition.

MacBeth and Kurtz s evil ambition and feelings of superiority lead to their downfall. Both men follow the path that leads to evil and therefore they, in the end, must sacrifice their chance of eternal happiness. MacBeth recognizes his fate when he states, “Out, Out, brief candle!/ Life s but a walking shadow”(Act V, sc. 5). He no longer pretends to be a god because he knows that fate is no longer on his side. Because he murdered, he now must sacrifice his life, and by doing so, he will restore order to the chaos he has created. Kurtz, though not as perceptive as MacBeth, also pays for his evil deeds with his life. Whether he, in fact, recognizes his fate, is unknown, but his last words symbolize the contribution he has made to the society that surrounds him, “The Horror! The Horror!” (Conrad, 147).

Despite the many characteristics that MacBeth and Kurtz share, they differ in extraordinary ways also, such as the way the authors present each character. Conrad and Shakespeare, writers of different times and cultures, cannot be expected to write or develop characters in a similar way. Thus, MacBeth is presented much more directly than is Kurtz. MacBeth, at times, even speaks directly to the audience in the form of a soliloquy. Kurtz is barely even allowed to speak at all. Instead, Kurtz s character is developed through what others say and perceive about him. Conrad constantly makes reference to Kurtz s voice through characters such as the Russian and his statement of: “You don t talk with that man You listen” (Conrad,