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In the eponymous tragedy, Macbeth, Shakespeare presents kingship as a sacred duty, rooted in justice, legitimacy and divine authority. By contrasting Duncan and Malcolm's rightful reign with Macbeth's tyrannical usurpation of the throne, Shakespeare wants to warn a contemporary Jacobean audience about the consequences of violating natural kingship, in the hopes to appease his patron - James 1.

In the exposition of the play, Shakespeare has depicted King Duncan as the paragon of a divinely sanctioned ruler, using his moral purity and integrity to reflect the true values of a king whose authority was bestowed by God. After committing the "most sacrilegious murder", Macbeth states "his virtues will plead like angels". Immediately, the celestial imagery of angels elevates Duncan to a quasi-divine status, suggesting that his kingship transcends earthly authority. Structurally, Macbeth says this in his soliloquy, which suggests how he values Duncan highly, even after taking his life. Moreover, this allusion to the image of the murder of 'virtues' could be a metaphor that forebodes to Macbeth's corrupt kingship later on in the play. Furthermore, a Christian Jacobean audience will be familiar with the concept of angelic entities and what they represent. 'Angels' are heavenly intermediaries who sit below God in the Great Chain of Being, but also above humanity. This further reinforces the sanctity of Duncan's role on earth as he was directly endorsed by God to be king.
Although Duncan has the idealised image of a virtuous king; it could be interpreted that he has one flaw: misplaced trust. In Act 1 Scene 4, Duncan says "I will continue to plant thee" to Macbeth. The verb 'plant' evokes connotations of cultivation and prosperity, highlighting how Duncan's role only flourished the nation of Scotland. However, perhaps Shakespeare wants to subtly hint that Duncan's trust in Macbeth's loyalty was his vulnerability. Duncan is unaware that the kinsman he wants to 'plant' and endorse will inevitably take his life. Perhaps, Shakespeare wants to convey that a king must be prepared for betrayal from even the people who are meant to be subservient to him. By doing this, Shakespeare may have been aiming to discuss the fragility of kingship, due to the fact that betrayal and misplaced trust can easily destroy monarchical stability.

Later on in the play, when Macbeth violently usurps the throne, we are invited to see how unnatural kingship is ultimately unfulfilling and futile. Macbeth states that "Upon my head they placed a fruitless crown and a barren sceptre in my gripe." Immediately, the lexis of "they" is indicative of detachment: Macbeth is deviating himself from his own actions and is acting as if an external entity blatantly forced him to commit regicide. Additionally, Shakespeare has deployed the semantic field of infertility in "fruitless” and “barren." This image could be an allusion to the deep-satiated fear the Macbeths have due to their lack of primogeniture. In Jacobean society, having a male successor was crucially important as it meant the continuation of dynasty and political stability. The absence of male heirs highlights the transience of Macbeth's rule as his legacy can not be continued. Shakespeare wants to reinforce that the violation of societal constructs such as the Divine Right of Kings will be futile as nothing can prosper from the inversion of societal doctrine.
Furthermore, the futility of Macbeth's tyrannical reign is further encapsulated in Act 5 as he develops a nihilistic outlook on life. He exclaims, "Tomorrow, Tomorrow, Tomorrow." The semantic field of time "tomorrow" is meant to arouse implications of new beginnings and hope; however, Macbeth inverts this idea as he resents his future as he has come to the realisation that his rule was unfulfilling. He also describes life as a 'walking shadow', which insinuates how Macbeth only sees the darkness and monotony of life; he at this point, he views life as a temporary performance before death. Even Lady Macbeth is depicted as a ‘fiendish queen' after she passes, and Macbeth is illustrated as a dead butcher. The previous image of the Macbeths being 'noble' has been diminished as after all their bloodlust, they are resented by many and chastised for their sins.

In addition, Shakespeare conveys the cataclysmic consequences tyrannical authority has on a nation. This is evident as Macduff emphatically exclaims, "Bleed, bleed poor country". The line functions as a slight paradox. Actually, it sounds as if Macduff is commanding the nation to stop bleeding, however, he is powerless to stop and completely reverse the damage caused by the Macbeths. At this stage of the play, the recurring motif of blood has transformed from individual guilt to widespread devastation to all. This macabre personification of the "poor" nation bleeding highlights the extent to which Scotland has been plagued by tyrants and will need a violent purge to reclaim rightful order.