Archetypes In Macbeth

Javier Saucedo English 8C Per #6 27 May 2024 Mr. Mitchell Heroes led by evil lead to tragedy

The Tragedy of Macbeth is a play written by William Shakespeare during the Elizabethan England in 1606, it follows the common plot format found in most plays (Exposition-Conflict-Rising Action- Climax-Falling Action-Resolution), but what made it stand out was the fact that it contained a different twist in characters than any other play found in those times. It introduced a character whose archetype was the one of a Tragic Hero. A Tragic Hero (this concept was first introduced and described in ancient Greece) is a noble figure, who experiences a downfall caused by a tragic flaw made by him/herself. In this case, Macbeth, who is the main character,

Yet he finds three witches that will change his perception of things for the rest of his days and predict a set of outcomes which ultimately lead and result in the tragedy of Macbeth. These witches were the first depictions of the concept of the stereotypical witch we know today. The story begins with Macbeth, who was widely known, recognized and praised for being Thane of Glamis, returns glorious from a battle against an usurper, the Thane of Cawdor, who led the Norwegian forces against the King of Scotland. On his way back to the King, he encounters a ruined structure, in which strange noises can be heard, then he goes inside and investigates. He finds some witches and they start saying “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis” “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor!” “All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!” He was skeptical at first and even found it funny, he laughed and then he left. A little later, Ross and Angus arrive to tell him that he was given the title of Thane of Cawdor by

Macbeth, paranoid as always, paid another visit to the witches in order to find out more about his future and possible threats against him, in which the answer was that must be aware and careful about a moving forest, and beware Macduff, they also add that “none of women born shall harm Macbeth.” Which he infers that everyone on earth is women born, so he must fear no one. But what he didn’t realize was that whenever someone is born by cesarean birth, it would not be considered women born, and he has a vision of someone being born this way, yet he does not pay attention to this detail and thinks he is invincible. This contributes to hastens his downfall because Macduff was born by cesarean birth and means that he would ultimately kill Macbeth. Which indeed happens, Macduff leads an army to storm Macbeth’s castle, everyone but Macbeth flees and has a final duel against him. Macbeth, confident that no one could harm him, rushes and attacks everyone with swift and accurate strikes, killing most of those who stand against him, until he meets with Macduff, enraged by the fact that he killed his family, yet he remains