Ambition or Burnout?
We all know Macbeth as a story of unchecked ambition. Macbeth sees a path to power and becomes blinded by the vision of himself as king, while Lady Macbeth sees her husband’s potential for the throne as an avenue to access her own agency. The play endures as a case study on the consequences of violence and greed, but if we look closely, we might notice another psychological phenomenon under the surface: burnout.
The term “burnout” was coined in the 1970s by American psychologist Herbert Freudenberger, and was primarily used to describe the exhaustion and emotional detachment experienced by overwhelmed healthcare workers. Today we use the term to encompass a whole range of physical and mental health symptoms associated with spreading yourself too thin at school or work. For teachers and students in the modern American classroom, this phenomenon is all too familiar, leading to anxiety, depression, relationship issues, emotional withdrawal, and physical illness.
Teaching Macbeth provides an opportunity to tease out these issues in the classroom. Macbeth’s journey is not only a violent powergrab, but also a cautionary tale about the cost of pushing too hard without rest or reflection. Reading the play through this lens can inspire important classroom discussions about the cost of burnout, and how we can avoid it.
Macbeth’s Spiral
When Macbeth is confronted by the possibility of becoming king through his encounter with the witches’ prophecy, he is startled, but not immediately overcome with ambition. In Act 1 Scene 3, he resolves that what is meant to be will be, saying,
“If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me,
Without my stir.“
However, as the play progresses, Macbeth becomes increasingly consumed by his desire for success. In fact, his very definition of success seems to evolve as pressure from his inner critic and Lady Macbeth force him to reconsider what he wants out of life. He overcommits, taking on risky and exhausting responsibilities to satisfy both external and internal demands. All the while, his intuition is telling him that he is doing too much. In Act 1, Scene 7, he voices his cognitive dissonance, foreseeing a crash ahead of him as he continues to speed towards his goals:
“I have no spur
To prick the sides of my intent, but only
Vaulting ambition, which o'erleaps itself
And falls on the other…”
After his “vaulting ambition” drives him to commit murder, Macbeth begins to display symptoms of mental and emotional exhaustion. In Act 2, Scene 2, he senses that his guilt will immediately manifest as insomnia, saying,
“Macbeth shall sleep no more.”
Despite having committed an act that should secure his place on the throne, his drive remains unsatisfied, propelling him towards paranoia and insecurity by Act 3, Scene 1:
“To be thus is nothing,
But to be safely thus.”
In Act 3, Scene 2, he is plagued by constant anxiety, saying,
“Better be with the dead,
Whom we, to gain our peace, have sent to peace,
Than, on the torture of the mind, to lie
In restless ecstasy.”
Macbeth’s rapidly declining mental health makes it impossible to use reason, and we see his decision-making skills deteriorate to a place of manic desperation—ultimately leading to tragedy.
In the Classroom
Macbeth’s descent into madness can of course be examined through the traditional lens of boundless ambition and all-consuming guilt, but reading it as a burnout story
invites students to make connections to experiences they are likely very familiar with. The story can help students differentiate between healthy and unhealthy ambition by exploring real-life parallels between Macbeth’s mental state and the consequences of unchecked academic overload, perfectionism, and pressure from parents and teachers. myShakespeare account holders can use our Notebook feature to highlight and tag “burnout warning signs” in the text, or track the factors that lead to Macbeth’s downfall while making suggestions for how things could have gone differently. When taught through this lens, Macbeth is an opportunity for social and emotional learning, helping students to redefine their understanding of ambition with boundaries and balance.
Making Connections: Discussion Questions for Further Analysis
- What’s the difference between ambition and overwork?
- Can you think of a time when you (or someone you know) set a goal but ended up feeling drained instead of accomplished?
- If you could give advice to Macbeth early in the play, what would you tell him?
- What are some ways you can protect your mental health while still achieving your goals?
- What moments in the play show Macbeth losing energy, focus, or perspective?
- How might someone recognize that they are approaching burnout before it happens?
