Whenever individuals in our society take action, their brain evaluates both the positive  and negative consequences for that specific event. The positives are evaluated in the region  called the superior temporal sulcus (STS) while the negatives are evaluated in the inferior  parietal lobule (IPL). These two regions continuously work together through series of neural  networks for us to sensibly evaluate our surroundings and decide what the best course of action  will be. Yet, sometimes, greed takes over, and the necessity to do something, even if it is  dangerous, is insatiable. This can and in most cases will lead to insufferable consequences that  the individual did not anticipate before committing the action. The most notable consequence  will be a guilty conscience, which is a lingering feeling that you have done something wrong.  Specifically, the guilty conscience will continue to haunt a person if they have done something  irreversible, which is the fate of most Shakespearean protagonists. Exhibited by William  Shakespeare’s tragedy, Macbeth, the idea that a guilty conscience leads to one’s inevitable  demise can be recognized through the detrimental actions of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth.  

As one’s consciousness continues to expand with guilt, the need for dominance can drive  them to act impulsively and without self-awareness. Macbeth is the main protagonist who  continuously yearns for power but acts recklessly. He and Lady Macbeth decide to murder the  reigning King, Duncan, as a way for Macbeth to secure the throne and hold authority over all of  Scotland. He fails to realize that after committing the atrocious act, there will be severe  implications on his mental stability. After Lady Macbeth leaves to frame the King’s guards by placing the bloody daggers in their vicinity, Macbeth exclaims, “Will all great Neptune’s oceans  wash this blood / Clean from my hand? No, this my hand will rather / The multitudinous seas  incarnadine / Making the green one red.” (Shakespeare 59). Macbeth uses an allusion to the  Roman God Neptune – controller of all the seas, winds, and storms – to emphasize the amount of  guilt he holds. The “multitudinous seas” may be vast and filled with abundant amounts of water,  yet they will never cleanse Macbeth. In turn, Macbeth will infect the seas with his impurity by  “making the green one red.” His hands will turn the seas to the color of flesh and blood and will  spread the news that he was the one who committed murder. This red sea can be interpreted as an  allusion to the symbolism of the Red Sea found in between Africa and Asia. Famous from the  biblical story in the Old Testament, it is known that Moses led the Israelites to the Promised  Land. However, it is important to note that before the promised land was reached, the Israelites had to endure and travel through the wilderness for forty years and they had to face an encounter  with numinous symbols of baptism. Only after the entire trial was successfully completed could  they reach the Promised Land. Macbeth alludes to this sea to show that he yearns to go to a  promised land filled with peace and an atmosphere free of wrongdoing. More so, his guilty  conscience will continue to haunt him, even if he is begging the high powers for forgiveness. If  Neptune himself appeared, riding in his seahorse drawn chariot, his shield would be impaled by  the amount of unfavorable actions Macbeth has committed. Macbeth’s weakened mental state  will continue to infect others around him and eventually poison him to an afflictive death.  

Guilt continues to corrupt the consciousness – the idea that their actions can do no wrong  manifests, and they do not need to improve in any areas of themselves. Macbeth unfortunately  does not learn from his past mistakes and behaves like a social deviant. He plots against his  closest allies because they hinder his ability to keep the throne secure. One such ally is Banquo,  who had to be assassinated since he knew too much about the three witches’ prophecies. During a banquet Macbeth holds in honor of the Scottish thanes, Banquo’s ghost haunts Macbeth. This  leads to Macbeth not being able to distinguish if this is reality or a vision. Macbeth outspokenly  declares, “Why, what care I? If thou canst nod, speak too. – / If charnel houses and our graves  must send / Those that we bury back, our monuments / Shall be the maws of kites.” (Shakespeare  105). Macbeth employs the reference to the “charnel houses and our graves” to compel both the  ghost and him that Banquo is dead, now, and forever. His bones are buried deep underground,  and there is no physical way they can be resurrected. Imagery allows readers and Macbeth to  realize that the skin and flesh of Banquo are not a threat anymore. Specifically, “shall be their  maws of kites,” with kites signifying the fierce hawk – a bird of prey that hunts small animals in  order to stay on top of the food chain. The “maws” are the digestive chain of command of the  hawk, starting with the beak and the gullets, all the way to their stomach. These hawks act as  cleaners for Macbeth – they dissolve all evidence of his involvement in murder and conspiracy.  To him, they act as a symbol of prophecy and independence, something that Banquo cannot take  away anymore. Macbeth himself has announced, “Why, what care I?”, as he is trying to seem  unyielding in the presence of a source of his guilt. Paradoxically, the same guilt will silently  continue to gnaw on his mental state until his doomful demise.  

When guilt fully corrupts one’s consciousness, self-need must persevere, and so the  people around oneself do not matter anymore; not even the people that were closest to them. As  Macbeth continues to harness the necessity of power, he ignores the plight of Lady Macbeth.  After murdering Duncan and being the one responsible for framing the guards, the murder is a  burden on her conscience. She suffers from sleepwalking and unconsciously washing her hands  throughout the night, emphasized by her chapped hands. On one such instance, one of the maids,  accompanied by a doctor she brought in, witness Lady Macbeth inadvertently crying out, “To  bed, to bed. There’s knocking at the gate. Come, come, come, give me your hand. What’s done cannot be undone. To bed, to bed, to bed.” (Shakespeare 165). Lady Macbeth utilizes repetition  when saying “to bed” five times, and she is not only saying this because she desires to fall  asleep. To bed also signals toward the idea that she wants to solve her daunting problem and  cleanse her mentality. The repetition indicates exactly how much she desires to rest and let her  issue resolve itself. This desire is unfruitful, as her sleepwalking continues throughout the  tragedy and will be the unseen cause of death for Lady Macbeth. “Give me your hand” allows  readers to vividly imagine the Grim Reaper, foreshadowing that death. Depicted in European  folklore as wearing a dark, hooded cloak with a sharp scythe in his bony hands, the Grim Reaper  is attempting to pull Lady Macbeth into his world filled with the sorrowful souls of everyone that  has died with guilt in their minds. This punishment will be given to her, as she acts like a witch and does not perceive that her actions will result in someone else’s loss. After all, “what’s done  cannot be undone” – nothing can bring back Duncan to reign happily with his sons and her soul  cannot be purged. The only place left for her to go is the afterlife, which is the reason she hears  “knocking at the gate.” Going unnoticed by her husband, Lady Macbeth will slowly continue to  drive herself toward her own death as she cannot bear the amount of iniquity on her conscience.  

William Shakespeare’s tragedy, Macbeth, expands on the belief that a guilty conscience  is fatal when one does not atone for their actions and faces severe consequences. The issue is  mirrored in today’s world when we examine the ongoing, raging war between Russia and  Ukraine. Numerous soldiers are being recruited to be sent to Ukraine to fight for the tyrant  Russia has for a President. The pointless war is simply resulting in more deaths in the world, and  suicide is one of the hidden factors. A variety of news outlets have reported findings and  sightings of Russian soldiers killing themselves because their guilt took over their mentality.  There are reports that these soldiers would rather kill themselves on the battlefield than go back  home to face not only humiliation, but also claimed torture. The IPL of these soldiers makes a concrete decision that being on that battlefield is the most negative outcome possible, and the  only solution is to leave this world and all the accumulated guilt with it, even if it means to  sacrifice their life for the cause. The generals and higher powers on the Russian side should  consider that the amount of mental trauma a soldier has is too much to bear and handle when  trying to fight for a worthless cause. Without proper ways to help heal the soldiers’ minds, the  higher powers will have their hands stained with the soldiers’ blood until the time that they too  eventually die.