Craig+and+Mitchell-+Macduff

The Uncanny Resemblance Between Macduff and The Game

Throughout //Macbeth// the issue of morality is very overt and one of the more important themes. Few characters within the play can be considered even the slightest bit moral. From the people who rule the country to the people at the very bottom doing their dirty work, no one can seem to see right from wrong. Both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth run crazy with the opportunity of power and the witches are nothing but deceitful. Even the insignificant people who did odd jobs for Macbeth were victims of gambits that kept them from making moral decisions. One of the only characters to have a concept of morality is Macduff. His true character can be seen very early on in the play. The first chance in which he reveals who he is comes with the death of Duncan. He is the one that discovers Duncan’s dead body after Macbeth carries out his plan. He seems to be the most affected by the horrible tragedy and this evident with his reaction. “O horror, horror, horror!/ Tongue nor heart cannot conceive nor name thee!” he yells when he realizes what has happened. He then proceeds to wake everyone from their sleep and pretty much call a state of emergency. While he is frenetically running all of the other characters just appear to stand around in shock. Not only did he feel for his lost king, he wanted to bring whoever committed the macabre crime to justice. This meant not just accepting what people said for facts. Macduff was the character that did not just let the words of Macbeth just pass on by. He questions Macbeth’s innocence by resigning to his castle in Fife during Macbeth’s coronation. Macduff creates a plan to return the throne to the rightful heir in act four. He goes to visit Malcolm in England to convince him to forcefully take back his position as king of Scotland:

Boundless intemperance In nature is tyranny. It hath been Th’ untimely emptying of the happy throne And fall of many kings. But fear not yet To take upon you what is yours. (4.3.80-84)

Macduff succeeds in acquiring the help of Malcolm to overturn the man who unjustly took the throne. Although he makes progress in dethroning Macbeth, he learns that Macbeth had ordered a hit on his wife and kids.

The role of Macduff as a foil to Macbeth comes full circle in the last act. They are complete opposites and they face each other in a brutal dual of justice. It is only right that Macbeth dies at the hand of Macduff, the man who was not completely born of a woman. Macbeth thought that he could not be touched and Macduff proved him wrong. After killing him he takes his head and says:

Hail, King! for so thou art. Behold where stands Th’ usurpers cursed head. The time is free. I see thee compasses with thy kingdom’s pearl, That speak my salutation in the minds, Whose voices desire aloud with mine. Hail King of Scotland! (5.8.65-70)

This is Macduff’s way of mocking Macbeth and ending his reign as a tyrannical king.

To be like Macduff a person must be willing to speak out against tyranny, loyal to his people, and he must do what is just. One person who fits this build is a rapper by the name of The Game. Jayceon Terrell Taylor (his given name) even fits the story of the play //Macbeth//. In the play, Macduff has a sense of morality. In the rap game this translates to a respect for the previous rappers and pioneers and not snitching on your peers.

In real life [|Birdman] would be the equivalent to Duncan and [|Lil’ Wayne], his son, would be the rightful heir to the top of the charts. This is not how it played out though. Instead of Lil’ Wayne taking over, [|50 Cent] (Macbeth) suddenly entered the mix and almost usurped the entire rap game. [|The Game], who was previously acquaintances with 50 Cent, could not handle this and was one of the first to speak up. The problem with 50 Cent is that he is new to the rap industry and he does not seem to care who came before him. He was also known for being very close with the cops of New York and reportedly gave up the names of people he did not like. The Game quickly left the record label that 50 Cent was also under. After leaving the company of 50 Cent, The Game made friends with Lil’ Wayne. The Game acted as a catalyst and almost motivated Lil’ Wayne to step up his career. The Game also sided with and worked with a bunch of the rap greats to even further his cause. This is what makes The Game such a great foil to 50 Cent. He has respect for those who paved the way for rappers like him. He studied rappers like Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, and N.W.A. to become a better lyricist. At this point nothing but ruining 50 Cent’s career mattered to The Game. This escalated to the point where there was a confrontation that included a gun fight between The Game and 50 Cent. This did not stop The Game and he continued to “plan an attack” on 50 Cent’s career. The “beheading” of his reign of the rap industry came at the hands of The Game. Constant freestyles and metaphorically ridiculous lyrics concluded 50 Cent’s prominent run in the driver’s seat. One of the most significant of these onslaughts is called //Poison Bananas// and there was no way 50 Cent could ever make a rebuttal. Since then, Lil’ Wayne has taken almost complete control of the charts and everyone knows who he is. He might want to thank his very own Macduff for helping him claim what was originally his.

Works Cited Garcia, Orlando. The Game. Photograph. Orlando Garcia. __Teen Hollywood__. 5 Mar. 2009 . __Macduff__. Photograph. Press Enter Productions. 2008. __Press Enter Productions__. 2008. 5 Mar. 2009 . Moore, Guy. Macduff killing Macbeth. Photograph. 2006. __Extra Extra__. 5 Mar. 2009 . Shakespeare, William. __Macbeth__. Ed. Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine. New York: Pocket Books, 1992.