Tragic Flaws In Macbeth

In the play Macbeth there are numerous occasions where a tragedy occurs, the most common one seen in this play is the tragic flaw. The tragic flaw is a literary device that can be defined as a trait in a character leading to their collapse (Literary Devices Editors). A tragic flaw in a heroic character gives us a tragic hero, which makes a character more relatable, and creates an entertaining play for the audience as seen in Macbeth (Meirow, Eden). Throughout the play the heroic characters Banquo, Macduff and Macbeth all have tragic flaws, which leads them to their downfall. All three of these characters are greatly influenced by many other factors for their downfall, however they are ultimately responsible for their own downfall created by

Firstly, Macduff's profound loyalty towards Scotland had driven him to England to seek out the real truth behind Duncan's murder (Deighton , Kenneth). This act of loyalty towards Macduff's land created hope for Scotland because he didn’t want a ruthless leader on the throne. This added support to Malcolm's claim of the Scottish throne. Though this may seem great but creates one of the biggest regrets Macduff may have as Macbeth slaughtered his whole family for fleeing to England. Secondly, Macduff's loyalty towards Duncan's lineage doesn't allow him to go to Macbeth's coronation in Scone as Macbeth is a traitor to Scotlands throne in Macduff's eyes. This clearly creates suspicion in Macbeth making it harder for Macduff to retaliate against him with Malcolm as he can't get near Macbeth without be killed for treason. Also this is another possible motivation for Macbeth to slaughter Macduff's family. Finally Macduff gives the rightful heir Malcolm the throne that he deserves as Macduff's loyalty still lies with Scotland and Duncans lineage. Although it seems that Macduff may have given the throne to a coward because Malcolm was one of the first to flee with his brother as soon as he got the faintest scent of fear from his father's death. Showing that Macduff's greatest downfall is that he put a coward on the throne of Scotland.

These tragic flaws and tragedies include Banquo's willingness to be a bystander which gets him killed, Macduff's out of this world loyalty that compromises his family and the tyrant Macbeth's vaulting ambition that gets him murdered. Overall the lesson to be learned from this examination is that an excess in ambition only creates desperation which leads to negativity within oneself and other surrounding them as seen in the play