Shakespeare is one of the most influential and important writers to the English language, and a common theme in all of his stories is the Tragic Hero. Shakespeare's Macbeth is no exception to this rule. This play follows Macbeth's rise to power from a Thane to King in Scotland in the eleventh century. Although Macbeth is portrayed as a sadistic murderer, he displays the Shakespearean qualities of a tragic hero as demonstrated by his greed, his ease of influence and the presence of the supernatural
Greed is one of the seven deadly sins and it was once stated that greed is it's own punishment because the desire for material gain can never be satisfied and Macbeth falls victim to this. Macbeth was the Thane of Glamis at the beginning of the play and once the Thane of
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Macbeth encounters three witches in the forest at the beginning of the play. They tell Macbeth that he will one day be king. It is this in which incites the influence from Lady Macbeth and what drives Macbeth’s greed. Macbeth does not know what the witches are. When they first meet he exclaims “Speak if you can: what are you?” (I.iii.49). This solidifies the witches as supernatural and not a common occurrence in the realm of the play. This again is a trait of a Tragic Hero making Macbeth a prime example. The witches do not only tell Macbeth of the ideas, they also influence him in his decision. Macbeth returns to the witches to see if his fortune has changed but when he arrives the witches create apparitions, one of which tells Macbeth “None of woman born shall harm Macbeth” (IV.i.86-87). From this Macbeth gathers that no one shall be able to hurt him, but he overlooks the possibility of a C-section. This gives Macbeth a false sense of immortality that leads to his death because Macduff was born via C-section. The witches are not only a supernatural presence but also an influential force that lead to macbeth's