Macbeth
Uploaded by Admin on Oct 25, 1999
A struggle is present in every tragedy, as a person tries to overcome their flaws and fit the mold of their ideal. In the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare, we discover that Macbeth is a tragic hero. Macbeth is very ambitious, courageous, and a moral coward: all these things lead to his tragic death at the end of the play.
At the beginning of the play, Shakespeare defines Macbeth as a hero very clearly. From the courage in defense of Scotland is significant in the opening scene. However, he is very ambitious to be king. At the beginning of the play, he was loyal to the king. While he did imagine of murder his mind rejects it and said, "Why, if fate will have me king, why, chance may crown me," - Act I, Sc 3, p.44-45.
Yet increasingly his ambition defeated his good nature. When Duncan named Malcolm the Prince of Cumberland, Macbeth decided on the murder of Duncan. When Duncan arrived at Inverness, Macbeth controlled his ambition for the time being and did not kill Duncan. The failing of his decision was soon reflected by Lady Macbeth who called him a coward. From then on, after the murder of Duncan, Macbeth entered into a life of evil.
Since he overcame his good nature, he no longer needed to be with his friend Banquo. He wanted to protect his ambition, by killing the king, and now he killed Banquo, due to the prediction of what the witches said about Banquo's son becoming the king. Macbeth wanted to ensure that he would reach his ambition without problems. "Hear it not, Duncan, for it is a knell that summons thee to heaven, or to hell." -Act 2, Scene 1, p.73.
Macbeth, who now no longer needed any encouragement from Lady Macbeth, started to leave her in ignorance of his plans. Near the end of the play, Lady Macbeth sleepwalked and had a dream about the killing of Duncan and Banquo. She died because of all this pressure and her guilt about the murder. Soul of Macbeth have been destroyed since Macbeth love Lady Macbeth very much, as shown in Act I, Sc. 5, p.58, "My Dearest Love."
The power of nemesis is shown clearly at the end of the play when Macduff came back to murder Macbeth. Macbeth would never have guessed that Macduff would come back for revenge for the killing in Macduff's household. This...