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Macbeth Tragic Hero Essay

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Macbeth: Why He is a Tragic Hero
Exactly what is a tragic hero? A tragic hero, according to Aristotle, is a literary character who makes a judgement error that leads them to his/her own destruction. They have been further described as an imperfect someone who has noble status who caused their own downfall. They are also known to gather sympathy from the audiences and readers. In the story of Macbeth, the protagonist is seen to have all the characteristics of a tragic hero. Unlike Lady Macbeth, Macbeth is a prime example of a tragic hero, not only because he is the main character of a tragedy, but because he was at first a noble and great character, who soon turned out to be average, his downfall was caused by his own flaws (mainly due to his excessive pride), and he gathered some sympathy from the audience.
Firstly, a characteristic of a tragic hero is someone of high status, who is not perfect so that …show more content…

Macbeth fits these particular characteristics; his downfall was caused by his pride and ambition for power. Macbeth’s downfall, to some, may have not been caused by his own flaws, but Macbeth’s trust in the witches and Lady Macbeth leads him to his death. Because of his flaw, Macbeth has caused the death of Banquo, his trusted friend, and Macduff’s family’s deaths. Lady Macbeth, on the other hand, does not seem to have a flaw that lead her to her demise. “I cannot taint with fear. What’s the boy Malcolm?/Was he not born of woman? The spirits that know/All mortal consequences have pronounced me thus:/“Fear not,/Macbeth. No man that’s born of woman/Shall e'er have power upon thee.” Then fly, false thanes,” (Macbeth, Act 5, Scene 3, Lines 3-9). This line shows one of Macbeth’s pride and how his false notion on the interpretation of the prophecy lead him to his downfall which is where we can sympathize with

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