Lorreighn Del Rosario ENG3Ub Mrs. Atchison October 29, 2024 The Serpent Underneath: Hail, the Tragic Hero Goldie Hawn once said, “You often meet your fate on the road you take to avoid it”. This saying rings true in William Shakespeare’s, Macbeth, as the influence of fate and the supernatural led the brave and loyal Macbeth towards his tragic downfall as he is under their influence to achieve complete power and complete his role as the tragic hero. The supernatural in William Shakespeare’s, Macbeth, serves as a powerful catalyst for Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s actions and highlights the roles of guilt, ambition and madness throughout the play. This is demonstrated by the supernatural serving as a driving force behind a character's spiral into madness, motivating their ambitious deeds, and symbolizing their guilty conscience. The …show more content…
This is shown when the ghost of Banquo appears to Macbeth during a celebratory dinner. Due to his guilt for the plans he made, a supernatural element appears to him. When he sees it he says, “Avaunt and quit my sight! Let the earth hide thee! / Thy bones are marrowless, thy blood is cold; / thou hast no speculation in those eyes / which thou dost glare with” (3.4.93-96). This reveals Macbeth hallucinating the ghost of Banquo appearing to him, which symbolizes his guilt and karma. Furthermore, the use of the ghost of Banquo is related to the supernatural, as it intertwines with Macbeth’s psychological state and guilty conscience as he knowingly chose to murder him. Following the theme of a character’s mental state, Lady Macbeth was once portrayed as a strong female character, who was bold and shameless. However, near the end of the play, she let her guilt consume her which transformed her into a weak and vulnerable character. Because of this, she begins to sleepwalk and say and do things she should