Ambition Destroys In Breaking Bad And William Shakespeare's Macbeth

Ambition Destroys: The Flip Side

A recurring theme in both William Shakespeare’s Macbeth and Vince Gilligan’s Breaking Bad is that of ambition. The representation of the concept of ambition these two works has several similarities, especially when it comes to the pursuit of power, riches, and greatness. Ambition in both of these works, it is argued herein, is represented either as evil or a pathway to evil. Power, riches, and greatness have not been achieved or pursued in the right manner. The ambition is also argued herein to be blinding, leading to actions with adverse consequences for both the ambitious individuals and those close to them.

In Macbeth, the word ambition has been mentioned multiple times, and an examination of the context in which the word is mentioned mostly reveals a hunger for power and greatness. Consider the following quote: ‘I have no spur / To prick the sides of my intent, but only / Vaulting ambition, which o’erleaps itself / And falls on th’ other’ (Shakespeare, 1.7). These words are spoken by Macbeth when he starts to doubt his intention and plan to murder Duncan. The death of Duncan puts Macbeth in a position of higher power than he currently is, and indeed the intention to kill Duncan to precisely achieve this objective. Macbeth is ambitious to become king, and his ambition is seemingly fired up by the prophecies of witches, including the prophesies stating that Macbeth would become the king. Apparently, Macbeth would love to become king, and how he pursues this position is not merely ambition, but an evil and blinding desire for power. Ambition is equivalent to greed.

Gilligan’s Breaking Bad also reveals that ambition is equivalent to greed. In comparison to Macbeth, the main character in Breaking Bad is a more contemporary figure pursuing riches and power, but through evil means. According to Echart and Carcia (2013), the main character embodies the pervasions from the ideal of success deeply rooted in the myth of the ‘American Dream’ where people believe great people are self-made through ambition and hard work. Walter White initially lacks ambition as he opts to lead a ‘decent’ life. He has a son, Walt Junior, idolises ‘Uncle Hank’, Walt’s brother. In the eyes of Walt Junior, Hank is everything that lacks in Walt, including danger, excitement, and self-assertion (Sandel, 2018). Diagnosed with a stage 3 terminal lung cancer, Walter is transformed from the humble and decent man into an overlord of the meth word. The contemporary media quick to judge such a path taken as the American Ambition (Bogart, 2013) – people want to get rich quickly and by using whatever means.

Ambition in both works is represented as the mother of all evil. In Macbeth, Shakespeare shows how Macbeth’s ambitions lead him to do various evil acts to achieve something seemingly too far from his reach. As a nobleman, his chances to ascend to power are limited, yet he still yearns for that status. It is not just Macbeth who is seen as having evil inclinations in their ambitious acts – Lady Macbeth too is shown as believing in the philosophy that t achieve great things would require one to put aside their morality and display ruthless behaviour. She says that ‘Thou wouldst be great Art not without ambition, but without the illness should attend it’ (1.5). Herein, Lady Macbeth wonders if her husband has what it takes to pursue his ambitions – she acknowledges that her husband is capable of the wildest ambitious dreams. These dreams, Lady Macbeth believes, would require one to transform from good to evil.

The transformation from good to evil is manifested in Breaking Bad, where Walter White transforms from earning decent incomes to making huge profits from drugs where guns and cunningness are the order of the day. Violence is the means by which a humble underpaid man like alter becomes the boss of the underworld. In expressing the level of violence involved in the Film, Bogart (2013) states that ‘the bones of those who’ve encroached on Heisenberg’s territory have hissed away in acid; not a strand of hair or even a fingernail is left on them’ (para. 6). Apparently, Walter also believes that to achieve supremacy in the drug underworld, morality has to be put aside and allow even the evilest acts to help achieve the objective. Walter is not simply about the riches obtained from the drugs, he is also after the power that allows him to rule supreme.

[image: ]The ambition is also represented as blind dreams and pursuit whose consequences are adverse for a lot of people. In Macbeth, both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth do not live a life they would have hoped after becoming king and queen. Macbeth is full of guilt and paranoia that ultimately leads him into a frantic and boastful madness – Lady Macbeth cannot take any more. The ambition was mutual among the two, and the two really could not see the possibility of consequences. To feel safe, the death toll and bloodshed has to continue, and the ambition ultimately becomes the fall of the couple. They both do not enjoy their achievement as would have been hoped.

Similarly, in Breaking Bad, the killings and bloodshed have to go on in order for Walter to assert himself as the supreme overlord in the meth underworld. Even when his cancer slows down and his life is not in immediate danger, Walter finds further reasons to continue with the lucrative trade. The price he has to pay is enormous – his activities take away his emotions, he is distanced from those he loves, and he becomes some sort of a dark figure with the illest of motives and actions. He has to continually lie, something that proves to be highly unsustainable. He too failed to imagine that his new position and personality would come with a package of adversities that will make his life not easier, but harder than he would have hoped for.

In conclusion, it can be seen that Shakespeare’s Macbeth and Gillian’s Breaking Bad represent ambition negatively as a concept that leads to evil. Ambition is tied to power and/or riches. To achieve these objectives, ambition has required the individuals to set their morals aside and adopt an evil approach. The desires and greed characterising the ambition are represented as blinding forces that make people take actions oblivious of the adverse consequences later in life. The end result of the pursuit of the wild ambitions has been an unhappy ending as people find themselves in a situation they would not have hoped for. In a nutshell, ambition is seen as something harmful for the wellbeing of both the individuals and society.

References

1. Bogart, L. (2013, Aug 5). Anything Less Than Extraordinary: Breaking Bad and American Ambition. Retrieved from The Nervous Breakdown: http://thenervousbreakdown.com/lbogart/2013/08/anything-less-than-extraordinary-breaking-bad-and-american-ambition/
2. Echart, P., & Carcia, A. (2013). Crime and Punishment: Greed, Pride, and Guilt in ‘Breaking Bad’. In A. Simon-López, & H. Yeandle, A Critical Approach to the Apocalypse (pp. 205-217). Oxford: Inter-Disciplinary Press. Retrieved from https://www.academia.edu/3601041/Crime_and_Punishment_Greed_Pride_and_Guilt_in_Breaking_Bad_DRAFT_2013_
3. Sandel, A. (2018). Breaking Bad: Walter White as Nietzschean Hero. American Affairs. Retrieved from https://americanaffairsjournal.org/2018/08/breaking-bad-walter-white-as-nietzschean-hero/