Ambition In Macbeth

Shakespeare’s tragedy Macbeth casts the titular character as the tragic hero.

The tragic flaws Macbeth exemplifies, ambition, defiance, and pride, all lead to his downfall. Although these characteristics are not evil per se, obsessions and anxieties, as seen in Macbeth, can cause a person to become a tragic hero.

Macbeth’s initial entrance to the tragedy showcases him as an ambitious soldier who fights with no qualms about the odds the soldiers are up against. This ambition continues to grow at an alarming rate after Macbeth learns of his prophecy from a group of witches, and once more later on. He commits a series of murders ranging from former friends, Banquo, King Duncan, and men prophesized to be in his way such as

Macduff’s family. The

The defiance created in Macbeth’s ignorance of conscience is a byproduct of his obsession with ambition. As he is about to kill Duncan and set forth his plan to become

King, he begins to hear his conscience speak to him. He changes in the last moment and chooses to commit regicide. He defies his conscience and morals to take part in an evil act. He continues to defy his knowledge of right from wrong as he battles to ignore the ghost of Banquo, and fights to stop the things revealed to him by the apparitions which will cause him to fail on his journey to power.

Macbeth’s extreme pride in his title and ambition to become powerful is another product of both the aforementioned characteristics. His pride creates the defiance and ambition to destroy all those in his path on his way to power. He spirals into a fit of anxiety throughout the play as he battles those who come to remove him from the throne. The major turning point where readers see Macbeth as a prideful monster comes as he takes the news of Lady Macbeth’s suicide as if it were nothing at all. He cared nothing for anyone as long as they were not a threat to his power, which therefore caused him to further become distant and obsessed with his