macbeth as a tragic hero

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A Shakespearean tragic hero starts out as a noble person; a great exceptional being who stands out. A tragic hero has a tragic flaw of an exaggerated trait that leads to their downfall and eventually to death. William Shakespeare often made his main characters tragic heroes in his plays. In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the role of the tragic hero is given to the main character: Macbeth. This is because he starts off as a loyal and well liked man in the beginning, but has a tragic flaw of ambition which ultimately leads to his downfall. Macbeth started off a great and noble man of Scotland and was honoured by the king and his people. He was thought of as a great man and brave among the soldiers. “…for brave Macbeth- well he is worthy of that name…” (I, ii, 26) The king thought so highly of Macbeth that when he killed the traitor Macdonwald, Duncan crowned Macbeth with the title of thane of Cawdor. “And for an earnest and great honour, He bade me, for him, call the thane of Cawdor: In which addition hail, most worthy thane! For it is thine!”(I, iii, 109-12) As every tragic hero does, Macbeth also has a tragic flaw: ambition. Macbeth can be considered a Shakespearean tragic hero because he possesses the tragic flaw of ambition. He is thought of to be a very ambitious man by himself and other characters, like his wife, Lady Macbeth. “Thou wouldst be great:/Art not without ambition, but/ Without ...

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