Macbeth Tragic Hero Essay

Before Macbeth meets with Macduff, he thinks of ways to handle Macduff so he would no longer be a problem. Macduff was considered to be a problem because he left the kingdom in order to assist an opposing force. Macbeth states “Then live, Macduff: what need I fear of thee? But yet I’ll make assurance double sure, and take a bond of fate.” (Act IV scn i, ln 82-84) He wants to make sure Macduff will not be a problem; he wants to keep Macduff out of his way. In this scene Macbeth is attempting to discover ways to inforce his superiority through the phrase “The castle of Macduff I will surprise; seize upon Fife; give to th’ edge o’ th’ sword his wife, his babies, and all unfortunate souls.” (Act IV scn i, ln 150-152) He hired men to kill Macduff’s family, so he will be depressed and will grieve; he wants to keep Macduff out of the way of him still being King. The main reason he did this, however, was to exert his leadership over Macduff and send a message. This paragraph explains how Macbeth was disloyal to Macduff and how he did anything to keep Macduff out of his way, but things did not turn out as he

While Macduff is in England, Macbeth learns of the abandonment of Macduff's family and resolves to have them murdered. When Macduff learns of the murder of his family, he is motivated by Malcolm to get revenge. It is this that pushes Macduff to the edge and forces him to go after Macbeth himself. The power of Malcolm's taunting that he must take it like a man and his own love for his family makes him hate Macbeth to the fullest extent, and eventually he succeeds in killing him.

By killing Macduff’s family, Macbeth has sealed his own fate because this ensures that Macduff will retaliate, which will eventually lead to Macbeth’s downfall. Enraged by Macduff’s fleeing to England, Macbeth decides to kill “[Macduff’s] wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls/ That trace him in his line” (IV, i, 172-174). By killing Macduff’s family, Macbeth seals his own fate, because this ensures that Macduff will retaliate and ultimately cause his downfall — and his death. Macbeth’s murder of innocent people, such as Macbeth’s family, shows how he unleashed terror in Scotland by killing anyone he suspected a traitor. Both Macbeth’s ambitions and his desire for safety as king drive Macbeth to kill Macduff’s family quickly, as shown when he says he’ll do “[this] deed before this purpose cool” (IV, i, 175). Fearing that allowing Macduff’s family live would threaten his security, Macbeth decided to murder Macduff’s family before he loses his drive to kill. The murder of Macduff’s family showed that Macbeth had become

150-54). Macbeth plans to kill Macduff’s entire family and those closest to him in response to his flight out of Scotland. As Macbeth did with Banquo, he will then proceed with his violent actions because he is met with resistance. Macduff is oblivious to what he has done to his family, as he believes what he is doing is valiant and righteous. Macduff’s resistance is not interpreted positively by his own family.

In the Shakespearean play Macbeth, there were many instances where Macbeth showed that he was a tragic hero. The meaning of tragic hero is a literary character who makes a judgment error that inevitably leads to his or her own destruction. Macbeth had some of the characteristics of a tragic hero, which included having a tragic flaw, realizing that he made an irreversible mistake, falling from great heights or from high esteem, and facing and accepting death with honor. The first quality of being a tragic hero is having a tragic flaw.

He becomes obsessed with the idea of becoming king, that the blood on his hands, symbolizing guilt, haunts him day in and day out. "Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood the multitudinous seas incarnadine, making the green one red," (2.2.59-62) is a quote from Macbeth himself that proves his remorse right after the deed; Macbeth is already possessed by ambitious madness. He then proceeds to act on his lust for power and authority, taking out those who he believed were threats to his time on the throne, even if it meant murdering those who he once called friend. Such as with the murder of Banquo, Macbeth feared the prophecies of Banquo’s sons taking the throne, and with no heir for himself, Macbeth sent a group of lowly murderers to deal with his dear “friend.” His character, now controlled by bloodlust, is hated by all of Scotland; He allowed his madness to obliterate the country into chaos and famine. With this hatred and lack of respect towards the tyrant king, Macduff flees to England to raise an army with Malcom in order to overthrow Macbeth. Hearing of Macduff’s sudden disappearance and the understanding of Macduff’s suspicion towards him, Macbeth sends mercenaries to exterminate his wife, children, and entire kingdom. “Hang out our banners on the outward walls. The cry is still ‘They come!’ Our castle’s strength will laugh a siege to scorn. Here let them lie till famine and the ague eat them up.”(5.5.1-4) Throughout these new killings, Macbeth leaves his wife in the dark. He no longer views her as an equal, but as a naïve and innocent child. His change in affection towards his “lover” is an indicator that he is no longer the honorable, respected, and kind man the audience and characters once knew. He is now uncaring towards his wife, unfazed by her mental illness and instead, consumed by his avarice. Right before the battle of Macbeth and his paid mercenaries versus Malcolm

Macbeth is one of Shakespear’s most well known plays. The exciting tale of a lust for power and overbearing ambition captivated audiences. The main character, Macbeth, was a tragic hero according to the four main components of the aristotilean tragic hero. An Anristotilean tragic hero is one who is of noble beginnings, but ultimately makes an false judgement that leads to their. The hero of the tragedy much have a fatal flaw that leads them to their downfall (Hamatia), they must have a turning point in which roles are reversed (peripetia), a change in his actions based on self-awareness ( anagnorisis) and finally it triggers emotions such as pity and fear from the audience ( catharsis). As he rises in power until his utmost demise, the protagonist, Macbeth, in Shakespear’s Macbeth accurately portrays three out of these four main characteristsics.

In Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, the protagonist of the story is a typical ‘tragic hero’. He has the obvious traits of a hero, and from the start of the play the audience is told of his great bravery and loyalty in battle. However, as the story progresses, Macbeth slowly descends into his own demise. He rises to absolute power as king of Scotland, and then loses everything he has. The reasons for Macbeth’s downfall can ultimately be attributed to the witches’ prophecy, to Lady Macbeth’s influence and to Macbeth’s own personal attributes, such as greed, ambition and lust for power.

Macbeth’s ambition gets in the way of his conscience which leads to his eventual downfall. Macbeth at the beginning of the play seems a very loyal and honourable person. Macbeth’s complete infatuation in the security of his throne means that he enacts revenge against Macduff for fleeing to England and orders the deaths of Macduff’s lineage. Macbeth orders the death of Macduff’s family in Act 4 Scene 1 when he says “His wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls, that trace him in his line." Macbeth shows in the play to become ever more mentally unstable even to a point insane.

Through out history major heroic figures have soured in the public’s eye. Either their action, personality, or their values are the cause of their downfall. In William Shakespeare’s Macbeth the tragic hero Macbeth is the major figure that sits high on a pedestal, but over time the stress of his tragic flaw cracks the support and sends him falling in the eyes of his supporters. Macbeth clearly shows how he is a tragic hero through his actions, personality, and his values.

Shakespeare’s Macbeth is a classically dark play that explores man’s capability for murder. It is commonly seen as a tale of how evil can corrupt the best of us, but Macbeth’s character can also be an interpretation of what it means to be human- uneasily characterized and complicated. Macbeth has traits of both a hero and a villain, but he cannot be simply classified as either role.

Macbeth is angry and is now not even going to think before he acts and kill Macduff’s family. Macduff going to England to help Malcolm upsets Macbeth as he had Macduff’s family murdered because of it. Macduff fleeing to England as well as the reaction from Macbeth enhances the tragedy in the inevitable battle between these two characters which all ties back to the suspicion and knowledge of Macduff. Macduff’s progressional suspicion of Macbeth and his ability to overcome appearance vs.

In many respects Macbeth, of Shakespeare’s play Macbeth is the least admirable tragic hero of literature. Typical tragic heroes have at least a few admirable character traits. One may, or may not like the hero, but there is something in their characters or their situation on which one can hang some sympathy, even if there is not enough for us to rationalize away their actions. But Macbeth is a mass murderer, who does away with friends, colleagues, women and children, often for no apparent reason other than his own desires. Why should Macbeth be considered a tragic hero?

A tragic hero is someone that commits one acts that eventually destroys them. The murder of King Duncan was Macbeth’s one mistake, he regretted it as soon as Duncan's heart bested for the last time. Not only did he regret that, he also had to kill the King’s guards that were sleeping in his room because they would have flaked and possibly gotten Macbeth caught. Which would have been huge Robbie and then Macbeth would have been hung or something along those lines and Lady Macbeth along side

In the Shakespearean play of Macbeth, Macbeth can be considered a tragic hero or a villain depending on the extent. But, to what extent is he is a tragic hero or a villain? From act to act, the reader can see Macbeth’s character develop and the changes in the way other perceive him. In the way Shakespeare writes, he makes Macbeth’s character progressive, meaning that through the play his redeeming qualities appear to diminish. Macbeth, although his actions are strengthened by Lady Macbeth and the witches, his own intentions ultimately lead to his defeat and can lead him to be characterized as either a villain or a tragic hero. Macbeth has several redeeming qualities, or potentially heroic qualities, that can classify him as a tragic hero, but he also has some qualities that could characterize his as a villain.