What Makes Macbeth's Tragic Flaw

Macbeth’s unrestrained ambition to gain power turned him into someone completely different from who he was originally. When the play begins and Macbeth is introduced, he is labeled as brave, honorable, moral, and kind. He is such a well-versed person that his wife fears his nature is too kind for the harsh world, speaking of him with words of, “Yet I do fear thy nature; It is too full o’th’ milk of human kindness…” (1.5.16-17). He makes his first appearance to the audience just after arriving from battle, and his behavior on the field is described by, “For brave Macbeth—well he deserves that name—…” (1.2.16). Macbeth is a man that many admire, even King Duncan himself, who shortly thereafter names Macbeth Thane of Cawdor. Following his new label, Macbeth, with the help of three witches’ prophesies suggesting he will become king, notices the power that comes with such a title. Kenneth Deighton describes Macbeth’s behavior with, “When he is informed that Duncan had made him Thane of Cawdor, he at once gives way to the temptation suggested by the words of the witches, and allows his ambitious thoughts to

Every human being has a weakness and that weakness is pride. ‘Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted (Matthew 23:12, The Bible)’. Pride is a natural flaw that most people do not realize. Some can control it, while others let their pride blind them from logic and truth. Naturally, Macbeth has this attribute and he demonstrates it throughout the play. Shakespeare purposely introduces Macbeth as a proud character. The witches’ prophecies give him his confidence. And as his confidence grows, so does his pride until it eventually consumes his power-crazed mind.

This turns as his ambition for power make him ruthless. His life turns into a game of deception that he does not get out of till his death. With prophecies of power from witches and the idea to obtain that power with murder from his dominating wife, Macbeth becomes treacherous. As he deals with the internal battle of his id, ego, and superego, he becomes paranoid and unable to control his actions. This all leads to his own downfall: hallucinations from his subconscious, the death of everyone around him, and the destruction of Scotland. He is a tragic hero because we can empathize with him being influenced by his wife. His downfall is his own fault--he received what he

The tragedy Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare, follows the rise and fall of a loyal Scottish warrior. Macbeth is portrayed as a man of multiple sides, presenting three main traits – bravery, ambition, and self-doubt – throughout the play. The character is an example of how ambition and guilt can have terrible effects on an individual lacking in strength of character. Although some people may perceive Macbeth as malicious, his weak character shows that he is incapable of conquering guilt and self-doubt. The prime themes of the play are: ambition, loyalty and betrayal, good and evil, appearance versus reality, supernatural and fate. Shakespeare presents these themes through the actions of Macbeth and their results: the corrupting effects

Initially, Macbeth is viewed as a brave and loyal soldier, with Duncan praising him by expressing that “More is thy due than more than all can pay” (1.4.21). At this point, he has not been influenced by the three witches. Yet, by Duncan implying his importance, Macbeth gains a sense of self-worth and this arouses power within. His clear desire to be titled Thane of Cawdor while then having a growing temptation to commit regicide clearly demonstrate the early stages of his corruption and forms a basis for utilizing illegitimate power.

William Shakespeare’s Macbeth is a tragedy in which the main characters are obsessed by the desire for power. Macbeth’s aspiration for power blinds him to the ethical implications of his dreadful acts. The more that Shakespeare’s Macbeth represses his murderous feelings, the more he is haunted by them. By analyzing his hallucinations it is possible to trace his deteriorating mental state and the trajectory of his ultimate fall. Throughout the play Macbeth is never satisfied with himself. He feels the need to keep committing crime in order to keep what he wants most: his kingship. The harder Macbeth tries to change his fate the more he tends to run into his fate. His ambition and struggle for power was Macbeth’s tragic flaw in the play.

The three apparitions which appear to Macbeth are, "Macbeth! Macbeth! Macbeth! Beware Macduff, Beware the Thane of Fife. / Be bloody, bold, and resolute; laugh to scorn the power of man; for none of woman born shall harm Macbeth. / Be lion-mettled, proud, and take no care who chafes, who frets, or where conspirers are. Macbeth shall never vanquished be until Great Birnam wood to high Dunsinane hill shall come against him." Macbeth translates these prophecies as a meaning that he will reign as king until the day he dies of natural causes and will no longer have to fear Macduff for he can do no harm to him. Although he is assured by the equivocate predictions, his uncertainty gets the better of him. This can be seen in his actions; he kills Macduff 's family but leaves the man himself alive, he enters into battles screaming that no man of woman born shall ever harm him, not knowing that Macduff was born of Caesarian section, and eventually his foolish actions lead to his death at the hands of Macduff.

A character’s tragic downfall is often influenced by other characters, but this is not the case in Shakespeare’s tragedy Macbeth. Macbeth conforms to the conditions of a tragic hero because in the beginning of the play, Macbeth is an honourable and trustworthy nobleman to King Duncan and all of Scotland. However, throughout the play, Macbeth commits evil deeds such betrayal, treason, and murder solely because of his ambitions to remain in power. Macbeth murders others upon hearing the witches’ prophecies and even proceeds to return to them to remain in power. Macbeth is influenced and manipulated by his wife Lady Macbeth and The Witches, but he is ultimately responsible for his own tragic downfall. Macbeth’s tragic downfall is caused by his ‘vaulting ambition’ to become king. Thus, Macbeth has no one but his ruthless, cruel, and greedy self to blame for his own tragic downfall.

There is no question that Macbeth is a character of many flaws, despite having overcome such great obstacles in his remarkable rise to power. The status of king is one that Macbeth had neither deserved nor utilized as he should have, to lead his people towards prosperity. Instead, Macbeth coveted and later used the power of the throne out of selfishness, under the delusion that it was a position that he was destined to achieve by any means necessary. Through the path from captain to king, Macbeth demonstrates greatness through the realization of his capabilities in murder, deceit, and determination. Yet, Macbeth’s continuous lust for power and his reliance on others such as Lady Macbeth finally unveil the flaws in his character that doom him to his death.

    Macbeth's tragic flaw in character was the paradoxical pairing of his ambition with his passivity.  Throughout the play we see many examples of Macbeth's conflict between his ambition to attain the crown and his passive attitude towards the actions that are required to obtain it.  Macbeth's ambition is first

His infidelity breaks the trust between him and Duncan because of his immense betrayal to not only the King, but to the country of Scotland. He quickly becomes a man whom Duncan could no longer rely upon, for this reason, Duncan awards the title to a noble and courageous soldier, Macbeth. Dramatic irony is presented in this line because as Duncan is addressing the unfaithfulness of the old thane, it is followed by the entry of Macbeth to the scene, a man who later misuses his power to betray the King. To Duncan, Macbeth, the Thane of Glamis, is appeared to be virtuous and courageous because of his heroic performance in the battle for defeating the opponent, Macdonwald. The King demonstrates his satisfaction towards Macbeth through a conversation with Banquo. He describes Macbeth as “full so valiant, And in his commendations [King Duncan is] fed; It is a banquet to [him]… It is a peerless kinsman.” (1.4.56-60). In this speech, King Duncan truly admires Macbeth’s valiancy and describes him as a man without equal. He congratulates Macbeth for his courage on the battlefield and as followed by the witches’ prophecies of Macbeth, “...All hail, Macbeth, hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor…” (1.3.50), he replaces and becomes the new Thane of Cawdor. This speech reveals the gullible nature of Duncan who once trusted the old thane and anew, believes the new thane will be loyal to the country. By all means, Duncan is clueless of

In conclusion, Macbeth's fatal flaw is ambition, which prevents him from reigning over Scotland for a long time. Macbeth's ambition causes him to act rashly and eventually drown himself in blood caused by his ambition. Reading the play through the lens of Macbeth's ambition shows that ambition drives the plot and is key to the

However, this makes him very overconfident, Macbeth hears the report of all the troops moving towards Dunsinane and Macbeth decides to stay, stating “Fear not, Macbeth. No man that’s born of woman/Shall e’er have power upon thee” (Shakespeare 5.3.7-8). If not of this overconfidence, Macbeth could have escaped and not been slain at Dunsinane. Once again, during his battle with Macduff, he is overconfident that Macduff is born of woman, and since he is not, but instead born of caesarean section, Macbeth is slain because he is still confident of victory and believes that Macduff is still not strong enough to kill him and fights back. One of the prophecies the witches give Macbeth is that he could not be killed until Birnam wood starts to move to Dunsinane.

Macbeth! Beware Macduff! Beware the Thane of Fife. Dismiss me: enough.” These lines made Macbeth feel that the next victim of his tyranny was to be Macduff, but since Macduff was out of the country, Macbeth made the foolish decision to kill Macduff’s family.

During the play, Macbeth's strengths were ambition, courage, and honour. Prior to the murders Macbeth utilised his strengths well and this earned him a new title: "Thane of Cawdor". "For brave