Apart from his own ambition and desire to become King, Macbeth is greatly influenced by Lady Macbeth. He is proud of his physical courage, and is therefore more vulnerable, for instance, to her suggestion in Act 1, sc 7, that he is not a real man if he does not act decisively in relation to Duncan.
...Art thou afear'd
To be the same in thine own act and valour
As thou art in desire? "
She asks whether he would rather give up his hopes of becoming king
"And live a coward in thine own esteem...."
Macbeth replies to her critisim with the strong retort "I dare do all that may become a man" but is still influenced by her comeback "When you durst do it, then you were a man". In this scene, the audience sees Macbeth's resolve developing. At the start of the scene he is still unconvinced, and wrestles with the immorality of killing the king. By the end of the scene, however, his wife has convinced him.
"I am settled, and bend up
Each corporal agent to this terrible feat".
Later in the play, Macbeth's lust for power has grown to such an extent that he cannot even bear to think of Macduff having snubbed him by refusing to attend the banquet. He sees this as a threat to his complete power and control over the thanes, and that is one of the reasons that he visits the witches a second time.
Finally, Macbeth craves the power of self determination. When he knows that he is beaten, he makes a conscious decision to fight to the death , rather than be taken alive, where he might have to "kiss the ground before young Malcolm's feet" ( Act 5, sc 8).
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