Considered one of the darkest and most influential tragedies, William Shakespeare's Macbeth tells the story of the effects of war and the lust for power. Macbeth himself is led to believe that he deserves and is destined to become King of Scotland, and allows his thoughts and actions to be corrupted due to his ambition. While Macbeth loses himself in his conspiracies to kill his king and his friends, Macduff's character shows true strength and honor throughout the play. Although both Macduff and Macbeth lose family, friends, and suffer from the state of war their country finds itself in, Macduff overcomes the selfishness that Macbeth succumbs to and is ultimately able to restore peace to his country. In William Shakespeare's Macbeth, Macduff shows how intentions truly define a person through his constant display of intelligence, valor, and loyalty to his country. The tragic events that happen to Macbeth begin with the murder of the beloved king of Scotland, Duncan. When Macduff discovers his king dead in his bed he expresses true pain and sadness, shocked that anyone would have the courage to kill such an innocent man. When Macbeth, trying to avoid blame for the murder he committed, said that he killed the king's guards out of grief, Macduff was the only one of the nobles to perceive that Macbeth's actions did not entirely make sense and asked: "Why do you have SO?” (2.3.109). Macduff initially seems to believe that the king's sons are responsible for this heinous act, but he is reluctant to trust Macbeth completely. Instead of attending the royal feast to honor Macbeth as the new king of Scotland, he returns home to Fife where he can stay away from the site of his king's death (2.4.36). Macduff's absence is also reminiscent of... the paper king..., he is guided only by his desire for the throne. Macduff, on the other hand, is saddened to see his country suffer and knows that killing Macbeth, the unjust king, is the right thing to do. Macduff is consistently skeptical, intelligent, courageous, and loyal throughout the entire play, demonstrating that staying true to oneself and doing things for the right reasons truly defines who a person is. Works Cited Boyce, Charles. "Macduff, Lord of Fife." Bloom's literature. File, Inc. Web Facts. December 13, 2013 .Sadowski, Piotr. "Macbeth." Bloom's literature. File, Inc. Web Facts. December 13, 2013 .Shakespeare, William. Macbeth. New York: Signet Classics, 1998. Print.