The three main causes of tragedy as identified by Aristotle, a Greek philosopher, are all contained within ‘Macbeth’. The first of these causes is revenge, which is shown by MacDuff as he sets out on a quest to avenge the murder of his kinsman Duncan. Secondly, a fall from greatness or De Casibus is clearly shown by Lady Macbeth, who at the start of the play is possibly the strongest character but throughout the course of the play degenerates into madness resulting in her suicide. Finally and most importantly of all ambition is clearly shown as the driving force behind the murders of Duncan and Banquo. By exploring revenge, De Casibus and ambition Shakespeare transforms ‘Macbeth’ from a historical play into a tragedy.
The tragedies of William Shakespeare often include a tragic hero. A tragic hero is one who brings about his own ruin and the ruin of those he loves. The tragic hero is not necessarily evil; he is simply human and has human flaws. Often there is a fatal flaw which leads to his downfall. In the play ‘Macbeth’ the tragic hero is the central protagonist, he is tempted by the chance to take the throne and will do anything to get it. He is prepared to allow his actions to be influenced by superstitious beliefs. The three witches told Macbeth that he would become King and he believed that because it was a supernatural prophecy, it would come true no matter what he did “If chance will have me king, why chance may crown me Without my stir” Act 1, Scene 3, Line 141. He has a consuming ambition to be King and this prevents him from exercising reason and good judgement. In some circumstances, ambition can be seen as a strength of character. However in Macbeth the combination of his love for Lady Macbeth and ambition allows him to be influenced by her, contributing to his downfall. He held considerable and increasing power in Scotland. He sees himself as invincible and he does not believe that anything can bring him down. It is this belief that leads him even to murdering Duncan and to his eventual downfall.
At the beginning of the play Lady Macbeth is a very strong character who greatly influences the thoughts and actions of Macbeth “We fail? But screw your courage to the sticking place and we’ll not fail.” Act 1, Scene 7, Lines 59-61. Lady Macbeth is very manipulating and knows exactly how to get her husband to carry out her ambitious plans. Without Lady Macbeth it is unlikely Macbeth would have ever given the murders a second thought let alone carried them out, but she makes it appear that it is an inevitable course of action and the crown of Scotland is rightfully his.
Shakespeare uses imagery in ‘Macbeth’ to develop atmosphere, mood, and characters. The images are clearly thought out and make a certain impression on the mind of the audience. Often, the images foreshadow something in the future. For example, the image of the bloody knife before Macbeth in the second passage foreshadows the brutal cold-hearted murder that immediately follows “Is this a dagger I see before me, The handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee. I have thee not, and yet I see thee still. Art thou not, fatal vision, sensible To feeling as to sight, or art thou but A dagger of the mind, a false creation, Proceeding from the heat-opprèssed brain?” Act 2, Scene 1, Lines 33-39.
Blood is a recurring theme in this play to denote guilt. Lady Macbeth frets in her sleep of not being able to wash the blood off of her hands since she feels so guilty about the murder. The image of the bleak sky continues through the play displaying the lack of order and peace within the kingdom.
Symbolism is also used within ‘Macbeth’. The most often used is that of blood symbolizing guilt. Blood is stained on Macbeth’s imaginary knife before the murder. Both Lady Macbeth and Macbeth suffer from visions of blood after the murder, especially Lady Macbeth who is driven insane by it. “Out, damned spot! Out, I say! One: two:
why, then ‘tis time to do’t. Hell is murky. Fie, my lord,
Fie! A soldier, and afeard? What need we fear who
Knows it, when none can call our power accompt?
Yet who would have thought the old man to have had so much blood in him?” Act 5, Scene 1, Lines 34-39.
The blood is seen as their guilt and they cannot get rid of it until the crime is punished by their own deaths. Another symbol used in the play is the raven symbolizing ill omen. The raven is often referred to as a storm crow since it tells of an upcoming storm. It served the same purpose in the play being seen before tense parts. Another symbol in the play is sleep. Sleep represents innocence, because when one is asleep one is very vulnerable to attack and one can also not commit any crimes when asleep and those who cannot have sleep are so because they have lost their innocence and are overcome with guilt and paranoia.
In conclusion I believe that Macbeth fits the role of renaissance tragic hero. I think this because he is responsible for his own downfall and this downfall comes about because of a tragic flaw. Macbeth’s tragic flaw was his vaulting ambition to become king.
