If you order your cheap custom essays from our custom writing service you will receive a perfectly written assignment on Macbeth. What we need from you is to provide us with your detailed paper instructions for our experienced writers to follow all of your specific writing requirements. Specify your order details, state the exact number of pages required and our custom writing professionals will deliver the best quality Macbeth paper right on time.
Out staff of freelance writers includes over 120 experts proficient in Macbeth, therefore you can rest assured that your assignment will be handled by only top rated specialists. Order your Macbeth paper at affordable prices!
Macbeth Essay Is Macbeth A Tragic Hero Or A Tyrant?
Macbeth, one of Shakespeare's most emotive plays, is set in Scotland during the 11th Century and follows the downfall of a man who is led by temptation to mass murder and cruelty. Macbeth, at different stages in the play, demonstrates many of the characteristics of both an evil tyrant and a tragic hero. However, a tragic hero is defined as a great man who falls because of a fatal flaw and Macbeth bests fits this description. Therefore Macbeth fits the role of a tragic hero and not a tyrant.
In Aristotle's "Poeticus", an ancient Greek drama, the definition of a tragic hero includes several criteria. Firstly, the character must be important and his actions must affect many people. Secondly, the character must be good-natured, well known, respected and brave and of good repute. The third criterion is that the character must have one tragic flaw, which leads to his downfall. Last of all, the tragic hero must redeem himself despite his flaw and eventually create sympathy for the character.
Macbeth is presented at the start of the play as a noble man, one full of all the good qualities a man could desire bravery, strength, loyalty, manliness and health. In Act 1 Scene , Macbeth is talked of as a heroic warrior that "brandished steel which smoked with bloody execution". Many other characters in the play also see Macbeth as a honourable man, with the King acknowledging this with comments such as "O valiant cousin, worthy Gentleman". Indeed, if Macbeth did not display these characteristics, then the title of Thane of Cawdor would not have been bestowed upon him in the first place. Already, Macbeth is appearing to fit the criteria for a tragic hero, as he is of good repute and is respected, brave, and honourable. As well, his actions have so far affected many people, as he has saved Scotland from invasion and played a large part in a battle (another criteria of a tragic hero).
Cheap college papers on Macbeth
The other characteristic of a tragic hero is a flaw in the character. In Macbeth's case, it is his unnaturally large sense of ambition and pride, his imagination and insecurity as a man that contributes to his demise. His unnaturally large amount of ambition is even acknowledged by Macbeth in Act 1 Scene 7. "I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition which o'erleaps itself and falls on th'other..". This refers to Macbeth's motivation to kill Duncan. Macbeth's ambition is the central driving force for almost all of his actions in the play, and it is the witches who play on this ambition.
Macbeth's insecurity as man is another one of his character faults. Macbeth can "prove" his manliness on the battlefield easily, however Lady Macbeth's knowledge of Macbeth's lack in manliness in other areas allows her to easily manipulate Macbeth to kill the king. In Act 1 Scene 7 after Macbeth makes the tentative decision not to kill Duncan, Lady Macbeth questions Macbeth's manhood by stating, "When you durst do it, then you were a man". Lady Macbeth also offers another taunt in Act Scene 4 after Macbeth's 'sight' of Banquo's ghost by asking "Are you a man?" to call for Macbeth's regain in composure. This insecurity in his manhood is played upon by Lady Macbeth and others in such a way that leads Macbeth to commit dreadful deeds.
Macbeth's last character fault is his imagination. This flaw grows in size as the play progresses. At first regarding the witches prophecies, his imagination allows him to contemplate killing the king. Then as his imagination grows more fanciful he begins seeing ghosts. This delusional behaviour is a manifestation of Macbeth's imagination in real life. As a result of all these character flaws, Macbeth is driven on to murder increasingly until he realises that to turn back would be just as hard as to keep going.
Even though now, Macbeth fits some of the criteria as an evil tyrant someone who is merciless, has a lack of compassion for others, is generally disliked, and kills for his own personal gain; it is important to note that Macbeth did not start out as evil. He was once a "worthy gentleman". Even when Macbeth is at the epitome of his evil, he still has a sense of compassion in which he demonstrates when Lady Macbeth kills herself. Here, he broods on life's futility, clearly in a weak show of grief; "out, out brief candle, life's but a walking shadow". Another sign that Macbeth has not turned into an evil tyrant is his willingness to show mercy.
Before Macbeth kills Duncan, Lady Macbeth attacks Macbeth and convinces him to eliminate Duncan. However Macbeth shows reluctance to be disloyal to his king and tells his wife that he "..will proceed no further in this business.." as he has "golden opinions from all sorts of people..". In this case, Macbeth shows mercy and proves that he has a conscience and is not purely evil.
According to Aristotle, a tragic hero must also evoke pity and sympathy from the audience. From the moment that Macbeth decides to live a lie in Act 1 Scene 7 "False face must hide what false heart doth know," the audience knows that he has condemned himself. They know that all the things he thought of in the soliloquy earlier in the same scene (Act 1 Scene 7, L1-8) will come true that the killer is damned for eternity and that the killer will be killed. The audience immediately feels a pang of pity for the once valiant man now so obviously on a trail to self-destruction. From here, Macbeth digs his own pit and his thoughts do come true, with Lady Macbeth committing suicide and rendering Macbeth loveless and the arrival of Macduff and the English army to overthrow Macbeth.
When Macduff does arrive and threatens the "hell hound" that he will be exhibited in captivity if he will not fight, Macbeth chooses death, as he could not bear to be subservient to Malcolm and be exhibited like a caged animal. Macbeth's choice of death over capture gives him back some of his earlier stature and the audience's pity and sympathy for the once great man rises to a climax. This ability to induce pity and sympathy in the audience is the last ingredient of the 'tragic hero formula'. Its presence proves Macbeth is not simply a tyrant.
In conclusion, Shakespeare's character Macbeth is a perfect tragic hero, not a tyrant. Macbeth was once a great man of high distinction whom, because of his fatal flaws of ambition, insecurity and imagination commits the most heinous of sins and unwittingly brings about his own downfall with the effect of creating sympathy and pity from the viewers. Macbeth moves from a loyal heroic warrior, to 'hell hound' to one who regains some of his earlier nobility and dignity before he dies. These factors combine to produce a masterfully crafted tragic hero who is far more then a simple tyrant.
Please note that this sample paper on Macbeth is for your review only. In order to eliminate any of the plagiarism issues, it is highly recommended that you do not use it for you own writing purposes. In case you experience difficulties with writing a well structured and accurately composed paper on Macbeth, we are here to assist you. Your cheap research papers on Macbeth will be written from scratch, so you do not have to worry about its originality.
Order your authentic assignment and you will be amazed at how easy it is to complete a quality custom paper within the shortest time possible!
