MacBeth - Tragic Hero

The character of Macbeth is a classic example of a Shakespearean 
tragic hero. There are many factors which contribute to the
degeneration of Macbeth of which three will be discussed. The three 
points which contribute greatly to Macbeth's degeneration are the 
prophecy which was told to him by the witches, how Lady Macbeth 
influenced and manipulated Macbeth's judgment, and finally Macbeth's 
long time ambition which drove his desire to be king. Macbeth's 
growing character degenerates from a noble man to violent individual.

 The prophecies which were told by the witches were one of the 
factors which contributed to the degeneration of his character. If it 
had not been for the witches telling him that he was to be Thane of 
Cawdor, Thane of Glamis, and King of Scotland, Macbeth would still be 
his ordinary self. As a result of the prophecies, this aroused 
Macbeth's curiosity of how he could be King of Scotland. As the play 
progresses, Macbeth slowly relies on the witches prophecies. 
Shakespeare uses the witches as a remedy for Macbeth's curiosity which 
corrupts his character.

 The influence of Macbeth's wife, Lady Macbeth also contributed 
to his degeneration of character. Lady Macbeth's character in the 
beginning reveals that she is a lovable person. When Lady Macbeth was 
ready to kill King Duncan herself, it showed that Lady Macbeth could 
not murder King Duncan because he reminded her of her father. This 
proves that Lady Macbeth has a heart deep inside her. Lady Macbeth 
plays an important role in this play because she provided a scheme 
which caused Macbeth to assassinate King Duncan. After Macbeth had 
killed King Duncan, he later regrets on his wrong doing. At the point
of this play the audience can note the change in Macbeth's character. 
Macbeth's first murder was a trying experience for him, however after 
the first murder, killing seemed to be the only solution to maintain 
his reign of the people of Scotland. Therefore, it was Lady Macbeth 
who introduced the concept of murder to Macbeth.

 Macbeth's ambition also influenced his declining character. 
However, Macbeth's ambition had not been strong enough to carry the 
motive to kill King Duncan. Lady Macbeth's influence also comes in to 
play because if not for Lady Macbeth, his ambition would not have been 
intensified enough to drive him to obtain and maintain his title of 
King of Scotland no matter what it took, even if it meant murdering. 
Macbeth's ambition influenced the cause of his new character. This new 
character of Macbeth contained greed, violence, and power hunger. 
Macbeth shows this when he kills King Duncan.

 In conclusion, the prophecies given to him by the witches, Lady 
Macbeth's influence and plan, and his intensified ambition, all
contributed greatly to his degeneration of character which resulted to 
his downfall...death. Therefore Macbeth character displays strong 
signs of a tragic hero, making him the ideal classic example.