Starting with this speech, explain how far you think Shakespeare presents Macbeth as an evil man (Act V, Scene V).

Macbeth at this point in the play is presented as a man who has become evil; someone who is no longer a heroic character. When he hears a woman's cry, he says, "I have almost forgot the taste of fear". Shakespeare uses the adverb, "almost", to show Macbeth has ordered so many murders of his enemies that he has 'almost' forgotten he has any feelings left inside him. However, the adverb does also suggest that somewhere, deep down, there is the "noble" hero Macbeth that we met at the start of the play who is capable of feelings. The metaphor that Macbeth uses, "taste of fear", reminds us of a time when Macbeth was very sensitive to his feelings. On killing the king, he uses the interrogative, why "every noise appals me?" thus showing he once felt guilt as a result of his evil actions. But, now, he finds it difficult to have any feelings as if he has become so desensitised from having a conscience and any feelings at all. During the era this play was written, Jacobean, men were not really expected to fear things. At the very least, they were not expected to express emotions in the same way that we might expect or encourage today. However, what arguably makes Macbeth's portrayal as evil is his unnatural responses where he has become so desensitised and almost completely unaffected by things and events that most people, including the audience, would react to with some level of shock or fear.