Macbeth's Flaws

1162 Words5 Pages
Macbeth Essay Macbeth, a powerful tragedy written by William Shakespeare, expresses how a man’s downfall in life can be due to either his belief in fate, or the tragic flaws in his character. Many readers and audiences ponder whether it was fate, an evil outside force, or his flaw in character that ultimately lead to his tragic flaw. Macbeth’s trust in his fate can be noticed after the battle in the beginning of the play, when he tells his good friend Banquo that fate will hold and control his future promotions: “If chance will have me king, why chance may crown me without my stir (Act 1 , Scene 3, 156-158).” However, likewise, many readers and audiences believe that this tragic hero’s blind ambition, lust for power and inability to think…show more content…
At first, Banquo was devastated to hear that he will never be king, however, when the witches’ prophecies mentioned "Thou shalt get kings, though thou be none," Macbeth becomes fearful of his power over the crown (Act 1, Scene 3, 69-70), This prophecy leads him to think of Banquo as his worst enemy than his best friend, and is the sole reason why he brutally murders this innocent man. This scene in literature is a great example of the acts of betrayal against friends and how greed for power can not only affect your enemies, but also, your close friends. In addition, Macbeth's greed for power becomes extravagant when he decides to murder Macduff’s innocent family. Macbeth becomes suspicious when Macduff is not present for Macbeth’s crowning. As a result of Macduff’s actions, he ultimately decides to punish him by taking away the lives of Macduff’s wife and children. This murder proves that Macbeth is starting to lose his faith in the witches’ prophecies and fears the future loss of his crown. In conclusion, at this point, Macbeth has lost all his moralistic values and is willing to kill anyone else that disturbs his bloodline and

More about Macbeth's Flaws

Open Document