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The Tragic Hero Of Macbeth By William Shakespeare

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The story of Macbeth by William Shakespeare is a widely read story that is centered around the theme of the characteristics of a tragic hero. The story of Macbeth is one of heartache that tells the story of a man whose ambition drives him beyond the brink of sanity and to an eventual downfall. People have debated and discussed whether or not Macbeth is a tragic hero, however, it is clear throughout the story that Macbeth qualifies to take upon him the title. One of the characteristics that a tragic hero must have is a standing of high social rank, and the reputation of being a good person. This is a very important quality because the audience needs to be able to see the downfall of the character. In this case, the character is …show more content…

He is a worthwhile person because up to this point, even his wife knows that he may not possess the attributes of a killer, due to his kindness. In Act 1, scene 3, line 107 Ross says, “He bade me, from him, call thee thane of Cawdor: In which addition, hail, most worthy thane, For it is thine.” This is another good quote that depicts Macbeth’s character. Ross is yet another person who respects Macbeth and even calls him “Most worthy”. This quote shows that Macbeth has more than one person who sees him as noble and important. But Being worthwhile and of high social rank is not the only requirement to be classified as a tragic hero. A tragic hero must also have a tragic flaw; which Macbeth certainly does. His flaw is his ambition. In Act 1, scene 7, line 25 Macbeth says very clearly that his reason for killing Duncan is his ambition. It states, “I have no spur To prick the sides of my intent, but only Vaulting ambition.” His motivation is ambition. And it is easy to see that his ambition is very strong, but when he achieves his goal through ambition, it is never enough for him. It becomes less about accomplishing a task, and more about finding tasks to satisfy his ambition. Following that quote, he says, “which o’erleaps itself And falls on th’ other.” This is saying that by using ambition as motivation, people get ahead of themselves before they know what they have done, they are falling toward demise. Macbeth predicted exactly

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