Macbeth's Tragic Hero

Shakespeare bases his eponymous protagonist on the Aristotelian concept of the tragic hero and through his realistic characterisation of Macbeth portrays the issue of heroism. Macbeth's status in society as Thane of Glamis and according to King Duncan 'valiant cousin, worthy gentleman', all expressions of praise, positions Macbeth on the brink of possible downfall. Macbeth is a person of higher social

Amongst all of Shakespeare's tragedies, Macbeth is the most inconsistent and fragmented. Like the mental state of the protagonist, the tragic structure of the play is in disarray from the very onset. According to Aristotle, all tragedies must follow a certain set of characteristics, and the most important of these is the presence of a tragic hero. This tragic hero must possess a tragic flaw, or hamartia, which is a good quality taken to such an extreme that it now exhibits immoral behaviour from the hero. He must also draw sympathy of his plight from the audience. Macbeth, although the protagonist, is not a tragic hero because he does not possess this hamartia. This significant absence of a flaw leads to his actions being without

Just as the character spectrum flows from hero to villain, Macbeth also gradually makes his way down the line. In the very beginning of the play (before making his appearance), Macbeth’s fellow Scots and lords praise him for his loyalty and noble deeds. Here, it is made clear that the public initially views him as a heroic figure who is loyal to Scotland; “for brave Macbeth, (well he deserves that name)”(9) Admittedly, Macbeth does unseam a man “from the nave to th’ chops”(9), however this is considered an act of valor in the service of his country and his king. However, Macbeth’s loyalties soon become questionable, as he plots to and then commits the murder of his honored king, Duncan. At this point, the audience

In William shakespeare’s Macbeth,Macbeth is a classic example of a tragic hero in shakesperean work.Macbeth display the major characteristics of a tragic hero throughout the play until his tragic end.The play potrays Macbeth as a lost cause by showing how he fell from being a honest and just man who fought for whats right, to a cruel,superstitious,ambicious dictator.In william shakespreares Macbeth,Macbeth is a tragic hero because he compromises his honor and negates his moral values in order to obtain power which results with lots of tragic events such as character deaths leading to his tragic end.

in all purity. This is mainly due to the fact that he was willing to

At the beginning of this play, Macbeth shows what it means to be a man through his actions of being a great soldier and by his determination for gaining more power anyway that he can. First, as the Thane of Cawdor is being stripped of his title the King tells Ross to “with his former title greet Macbeth.” (1.3.73-76). Since Macbeth was a great soldier the King decides to reward him with the new title of Thane of Cawdor. Then, Macbeth figures out that if the King were to be killed he would be for certain the next one, all he had to do was get rid of King Duncan and his sons.

Throughout reading the play, Macbeth changes a lot from being a man of loyalty and honesty, to a man of whom is power hungry and greedy. This shows how the more power you receive the more power you want; which in many cases, such as this one leads to destruction. Many of the choices that Macbeth made were influenced by the power that he had, and this power began to take over him. This then lead to greed and destruction of not only others, but himself as well.

Finally, the most crucial aspect of a tragic hero is his ability to evoke pity after his tragic downfall. This is afterall what makes the undoing of the hero so tragic, for at the very end he realizes his mistake and finally opens his eyes to the world around him. In regards to Macbeth, this revelation occurs a little too late. Only when Birnam wood moves up Dunsinane Hill does Macbeth realize that he has been manipulated by the three witches. At this point he starts to loose some faith, but he still holds tightly to the belief that “... none of woman born / Shall hurt [him]” (Act IV, Scene i, 80-81), and so rushes off into battle.

In William Shakespeare’s tragedy Macbeth, the main character exhibits the traits of a tragic hero. Beginning in Act I, as we are introduced to Macbeth, until his death in Act V, this characterization is evident. Macbeth is an Aristotelian tragic hero because he rose to high stature, is extremely ambitious, fell from authority, and experienced a moment of self-acceptance and realization.

This event was his encounter with three witches who predicted Macbeth’s future by telling him that he would soon be the Thane of Cawdor and then also king. Afterward, Macbeth was skeptical until he was immediately informed that the would be the new Thane of Cawdor. This is when Macbeth’s ambition began to grow like a weed. Later on, Macbeth informed his wife, Lady Macbeth, about the witches predictions and she urged him to take action to obtain the throne.

He has lost everyone whom he holds dear. Lady Macbeth dies due to illness over the death of King Duncan, he has killed his best friend, Banquo, and to top it off the majority of the thanes hold no respect or love for him. He regrets several of his recent decisions however, when his castle is under siege he pushes those thoughts to the back of his mind as a good commander must. Going into the battle he still believes he is invulnerable due to the witches’ prophecies. Therefore, he has complete confidence that is demolished when Macduff claims the he “was from his mother’s womb untimely ripp’d.” If Macbeth had time to think about the past before he was beheaded, he would have only felt remorse for his

Macbeth, upon returning from battle, encounters three witches. The first witch greets him as Thane of Glamis, a title he currently holds. The second witch greets him as Thane of Cawdor, and the third tells him that he will be king. Macbeth is confused as to how it is possible for him to be Thane of Cawdor and king, knowing that both titles are filled. It is not until Ross tells him that the current Thane of Cawdor is to be executed, that Macbeth considers the validity of the witches' prophecies. He questions his ability to become king, saying " If good, why do I yield to that suggestion whose horrid image doth unfix my hair and make my seated heart knock at my rubs, against the use of nature? Present fears are less than horrible imaginings" (Act 1, scene 3). He is unsure as to whether or not he is capable of killing to become king, to such an extent that the thought of doing anything repulses him.

The witches told these things to Macbeth because they knew that Macbeth was flawed and that his driving ambition would eventually lead to his demise. For this reason, the witches represent evil in this play. After Macbeth and Banquo left the witches, he was told by a messenger that he was the new Thane of Cawdor. The fact that the prophecy of Macbeth becoming the Thane of Cawdor came true, led him to believe that he would also become king. At this time Macbeth is still an innocent man. He states, “If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me without my stir.” (Act 1, Scene 4) This shows that Macbeth was still innocent and pure. In this quote, he was stating that if by chance he was made Thane of Cawdor then fate will probably come through again and make him king. However, when Lady Macbeth heard about her husband becoming the Thane of Cawdor and the prophecy of the witches, she decides to make it her mission to make sure that Macbeth becomes king. She states, “Great Glamis, worthy

The tragic hero has been a major storytelling tool in recent years that makes the audience relate to, respect, and feel sympathy for a character which is undone by the end of the story. But can this title be given to Macbeth, the titular hero of the Shakespeare play by the same name? Yes, absolutely- Shakespeare’s Macbeth follows this plot path in numerous ways. Throughout the play, we are introduced to Macbeth’s belovedness, the crushing of said established belovedness, and his own undoing.

The story of Macbeth has its share of twists and turns including some very strong ideas. However, through all these twists and turns the argument of if Macbeth is a tragic hero is still one of the most iconic arguments of all time. Which brings to the point of this essay, Macbeth is indeed the Tragic hero you don’t want to believe he is. So enough talking let’s dive into the argument of if Macbeth is tragic hero or not.