Analysis of Breaking Bad in Macbeth

William Shakespeare’s play Macbeth and the TV show Breaking Bad might seem totally different at first. But if you look closer, you’ll see they actually have a lot in common. Both dive deep into the human mind, showing how people can spiral into darkness because of their unchecked ambition. This essay will look at the similarities between Macbeth and Breaking Bad, focusing on themes like ambition, power, and moral decay.

Ambition

A big theme in both Macbeth and Breaking Bad is how dangerous unchecked ambition can be. In Macbeth, the main character's drive to be king makes him do terrible things. In Breaking Bad, Walter White's wish to provide for his family leads him into a life of crime. Both characters start with good intentions—Macbeth wanting to be king, and Walter wanting to take care of his family—but their ambition takes over and ruins them.

Conor Friedersdorf wrote in The Atlantic that Walter White shows how ambition can destroy a person. He says, “Walter White is a cautionary tale about the corrupting influence of unchecked ambition.” Friedersdorf explains that Walter's original goal of helping his family turns into a craving for power, which ends badly for him and everyone around him.

Power

Another thing Macbeth and Breaking Bad have in common is how they show the corrupting nature of power. In Macbeth, the story revolves around gaining and keeping power, with characters doing whatever it takes to stay in control. Breaking Bad also looks at how tempting power is and how far people will go to get it. Walter White’s change from a gentle chemistry teacher to a brutal drug lord shows how power can seduce you and make you compromise your morals.

Emily Nussbaum wrote in The New Yorker that Breaking Bad is “a morality play about the pursuit of power, a Shakespearean tragedy set in the world of meth labs and strip malls.” She points out the similarities between Walter White and Macbeth, both driven by their hunger for power and facing the fallout from their actions.

Moral Decay

Both Macbeth and Breaking Bad explore moral decay, showing how the characters’ ethics crumble as they get swallowed by ambition. In Macbeth, the main character's journey into darkness is marked by his growing readiness to commit horrible acts to stay in power. Similarly, Walter White's shift from a good guy to a morally flawed antihero shows how his actions eat away at his character.

Sam Wollaston wrote in The Guardian that Walter White’s moral decay is clear, saying, “He's not a good man doing bad things for the right reasons; he's a bad man doing bad things for the wrong reasons, and that's much more interesting and complex.” Wollaston’s take highlights the complex view of morality in Breaking Bad, comparing it to Macbeth’s moral downfall as he gets consumed by ambition.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Macbeth and Breaking Bad both look at ambition, power, and moral decay in interesting ways. Both stories dig into the human psyche and show what happens when ambition goes unchecked. They show how power can destroy and how moral lines get blurred. Through their complex characters and engaging plots, Macbeth and Breaking Bad provide timeless lessons about ambition and the dangers of giving in to it.

The tragic stories of Macbeth and Walter White serve as warnings about the risks of unchecked ambition and the moral sacrifices that come with chasing power. By comparing these two works, we can better understand the universal themes they tackle and why their stories still matter today.