Banquo+(King+James+cousin)

Emmalee Mauldin
Banquo had aimed to be the king, but it was later prophesied that Macbeth was to be the king. He tried to change the minds of the Three Witches but was unsuccessful since the prophecy came true and he was later killed by Macbeth. He never really had an influence over anything or anyone since Macbeth was to be king, so there was rarely a person who listened to him. But, if he did try to talk to anyone or convince them of something, it would be Macbeth and his followers. Banquo talks to those who are close to Macbeth because they've served under him and know what he wants. In Act 1, he discusses what the Three Witches prophesy with Macbeth and Ross, but jealousy overtook him and he no longer wanted to talk to them. Banquo believes that he should be kind, since he and Macbeth are (were) of equal power but evidently fate doesn't have those plans for him. He remains cautious and wise about what he says to certain people, because of the fact that he is destined to die. There is no real audience for Banquo, he just wishes that fate had a different destiny for him, but obviously that cannot happen.

Works Cited "StudyMacbeth - Banquo's Ghost." Wikispace.com. Wikispace.com, n.d. Web. 13 Nov. 2012. . "Banquo." Shmoop. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Nov. 2012. .

Shelby Stanton
Banquo is a major character in many important plays and novels, including //Macbeth// and //Chronicles//. Although not alive in the play //Macbeth// by Shakespeare for a very extended period of time, Banquo’s ghost played a massive part. In the play, Macbeth lusted for power and believed that Banquo would get in his way. Macbeth thought that Banquo would be more powerful than him, because witches told him, “Lesser than Macbeth, and greater. Not so happy, yet much happier” (Shakespeare). He killed Banquo in fear that he would get in the way of him getting power of the throne. Macbeth killed Banquo, even though Banquo thought that Macbeth would be king and wouldn’t get in the way of Macbeth’s ruling. “You shall be king.” (Shakespeare). Banquo’s ghost haunted Macbeth after that. The character of Banquo was originally from //Holinshed’s Chronicles//, which was written by Raphael Holinshed in 1587. In Raphael’s book, the characters are the same although the story was very different. Banquo accompanied Macbeth in murdering the King. The character Banquo in Shakespeare and Holinshed’s stories differ greatly. In Shakesphere’s play, Banquo had no role in the murder of the King, although in Holinshed’s, Banquo had a massive role in his murder. Works Cited "Banquo." //Wikipedia//. Wikimedia Foundation, 11 Dec. 2012. Web. 16 Nov. 2012. . "BanquoAbout Our Definitions: All Forms of a Word (noun, Verb, Etc.) Are Now Displayed on One Page." //Merriam-Webster//. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 16 Nov. 2012. .