Macbeth is a Tragic Hero"Shakespeare's tragic hero is a man of noble birth who loses a position of honor and respect due to a flaw in his character . He freely chooses a course of action which ultimately causes him suffering and brings him to a fatal end. Macbeth, once a nobleman, follows the advice of the witches, finds himself king, abuses his power and then gets himself killed. four stages until he reaches the end of his life; his original state, his tragic flaw, his fall and finally his suffering These four stages help to justify Shakespeare's tragic hero. noble but fragile and cowardly At the beginning of Macbeth, we find that Macbeth is an anti-hero, without courage or strength of mind One of them cannot make his own decisions without the help of his wife, Lady. Macbeth. However, Macbeth is likeable and people respect him for who he is. Although a soldier on the outside, on the inside we find Macbeth a bit of a coward. When Macbeth meets the witches, we find him very frightened and unable to speak, while Banquo pleads for their answers. Macbeth takes the witches' advice as an invitation to kill Duncan in order to retain the position of king. Macbeth is too afraid to do so until his wife, Lady Macbeth, who plays a more masculine role than Macbeth himself, persuades him to kill Duncan. "We fail? But test your courage and we will not fail..." (1.7.69-71). This is the turning point, the place where Macbeth makes a wrong turn toward darkness, a turn he cannot turn back from. After killing Duncan without being caught, he became... middle of paper ...... y and honor), only to commit sinful acts that catapult him into darkness. This darkness leads to his ultimate demise. Works cited and consulted: Campbell, Lily B. “Macbeth as Tragic Hero”. Readings on Macbeth. Ed. Clarice Swisher. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, Inc., 1999. 126-35. Gates, David. “Shakespeare: Dead White Man of the Year.” Newsweek December 30, 1996: 82+. Kinney, Arthur F. ed. William Shakespeare: the tragedies. Boston: Hall and Company, 1985. Shakespeare, William. The tragedy of Macbeth. Elements of literature. Sixth ed. Austin: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1997. Wadsworth, Frank W. “Shakespeare, William.” World Book Online, American edition. Online edition. Online. Netzero. March 26, 2002. “William Shakespeare.” BBC homepage. Online. Available . March 26. 2002.