What Was Macbeth's Downfall
Misfortune, Madness, Magic, and Macbeth William Shakespeare’s Macbeth is undoubtedly a tragedy given the circumstances presented in the play. More specifically, Macbeth’s tragic downfall is presented through his high position in society, his similar persona to that of an aristotelian tragic hero, but also the circumstances that separate him from the typical hero. Though Macbeth is not the average typical hero, his story is nonetheless a tragedy. Macbeth is ultimately a tragedy due to the series of events that took place in order for Macbeth’s downfall to occur. The tragedy of Macbeth is apparent in the high status and fall from grace, as seen through Macbeth’s character. Shakespeare’s Macbeth is a tragedy, given Macbeth’s status in society. At the start of the play, Macbeth is
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seen at a high place in the Elizabethan order of society. Macbeth was a noble and therefore kinsman to King Duncan. He was the Thane of Glamis before he was promoted to the Thane of Cawdor. Both were considered very high standings. On top of all that, he was a great soldier. On the battlefield and off, Macbeth was presented as someone who was destined for greatness, if not someone who had already achieved it.
He was so good he almost seemed too good. Even the king admired Macbeth, saying, “O valiant cousin! Worthy gentleman!” (I ii 24) and “My worthy Cawdor!,“ (I iv 48) agreeing with how amazing Macbeth is. Many believed there was a lot more that Macbeth could have achieved, had he not fallen from grace. Macbeth was a great person, and the person he later became was not the same wholesome character. Macbeth was once a great person and this made the story of his downfall even more tragic. Macbeth was a typical tragic hero, according to the Aristotelian model of a tragic hero. The typical tragic hero grows up in hardship, or struggles greatly, yet still manages to become the great person they are. The audience does not see Macbeth growing up, but the audience can see his tragic past, through the death of his young son. In a similar way, in his tough rise to greatness, his journey to becoming king, Macbeth still gets to where he is through tragedy -- death. As a barbaric, yet valiant soldier, or ruthless noble willing to do anything and everything to become king, there is undoubtedly death involved with both, thus fulfilling the tragic hero
archetype. Additionally, this typical tragic hero’s “upbringing” of some sorts can be seen through the manipulation of the witches. One of the first lines in the play marks the audience’s introduction to the idea of the witches using their magic to cause chaos. When the line “Fair is foul, and foul is fair“(I i 12) is chanted by the witches, and Macbeth is introduced to the play saying, “So foul and fair a day I have not seen,” (I iii 39) the readers know Macbeth and the witches are connected in some way. They bring upon this tragedy, and the readers are able to see how the witches have forcedly changed course of the story through Macbeth. The next characteristic of a tragic hero is the rise in ranking. Macbeth achieves this by forcing his way up the Elizabethan order to society though murder. Macbeth is seen plotting the death and/or executing the plan, and the audience sees Macbeth as the death toll rises. King Duncan, Banquo, and Macduff’s family are all victims at the hand of Macbeth, not to mention the death of the countless others who were witnesses, who sadly ended up being collateral damage in the process. Fleance, Donalbain and Malcolm are the only people who did not get killed as they were between Macbeth and the throne. Macbeth did make his way up the ladder and did achieve his goal of becoming a king this way, but at what cost? This over-vaulting ambition eventually led to his downfall. Finally, the typical Aristotelian hero has their downfall at the end of the story. The audience sees this through Macbeth as his entire kingdom falls into chaos, and Macbeth himself descends into madness. Macbeth no longer trusts anyone, yet still believes in the witches and their prophecies. This is a recipe for disaster. The witches trick him into believing he is invincible through the line “Be bloody, bold and resolute. Laugh to scorn the power of man, for none of woman born shall harm Macbeth” (IV i 81-83). This gives Macbeth too much power and confidence, resulting in a rebellion between Malcolm and his army, against Macbeth and Scotland. Macbeth has no respect from his subjects and his supporters are fighting in his name out of fear. This is how chaos is ultimately achieved. Macbeth himself is descending into madness as the universe worked to restore order. Through this occurrence, Macbeth ultimately met his ending, as the typical Aristotelian tragic hero would. As much as Macbeth was an aristotelian tragic hero, he also possessed qualities making him unlike one. The typical Aristotelian hero has certain aspects shared with Macbeth’s character. Though both follow similar traits, they also differ greatly. Regardless, this story is still a tragedy. The witches’ role sets Macbeth apart from Aristotle’s idea of a tragic hero. Macbeth was truly a great person who could be considered a hero, but was charmed by the witches who used him to create chaos. This spell initially cast at the beginning of the play acted as a catalyst to the chaos the audience saw unfold through the course of the play. The witches sparked Macbeth’s ambition and the evil lurking within him, causing him to be more easily coaxed into doing things that otherwise would have been sacrilegious. The typical hero would save their people, rather than killing their people and bringing others into chaos and strife. In this way, Macbeth acted more as an antagonist rather than a protagonist. Despite these facts, Macbeth was not entirely acting on his own accord, at this point in time. Macbeth cannot be held guilty of all his actions as these ideas of murder were not his own. His conscience made a final attempt to coax him away from the evil. This is seen when Macbeth says:
Is this a dagger which 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-oppressed brain? (II i 33-40)
Macbeth’s conscience makes him see the true consequences of the act he was about to commit, as a precursor to the real reaction to the murder. Additionally, Macbeth can be seen wanting to become the worst of the worst when he could not be the best of the best. This is seen in the lines “...For mine own good, all causes shall give way. I am in blood stepped in so far that, should I wade no more, returning were as tedious as go o’er” (III iv 141-144). The typical tragic hero seems to rise to their status with grace and humility, with a fatal flaw that ends up fixing a current issue in their society. Conversely, Macbeth was cocky, believing he was invincible, and murdered others instead of being the great man he previously was. Additionally, Macbeth’s fatal flaw was ambition and greed -- Macbeth even admitted it when he said “...I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition which o’erleaps itself and falls on th’other” (I vii 25-28). This solved no previous issues and brought upon the death of Macbeth. Finally, the tragic hero achieves greatness that they deserve through their goodness, but has their fortune and reward ripped from, though they did not necessarily deserve the misfortune, thus making it a tragedy. Macbeth on the other hand got what he deserved. Though he was not acting entirely on his own accord, the witches only were guilty of coaxing Macbeth and not fully controlling his actions. Around the middle of the play, Macbeth is seen murdering, still with purpose, but also of his own free will. Macbeth’s death was brought upon with retributive justice, served through Macduff, whose family Macbeth killed. Macbeth did deserve his death in the end as it corrected the problems in society he himself created, not something that was pre-existing. Being evil, and pushing his way to a higher ranking which was not merited, came at a high price for Macbeth. To conclude, the misfortune Macbeth encountered throughout the play brought upon his tragic end. Though Macbeth was first portrayed to be an obviously fictitious character due to how great he was, in a turn for the worst, Macbeth ultimately became exactly the opposite. One may argue that Macbeth was a tragic hero due to his similar characteristics to that of the Aristotelian tragic hero archetype. One may also argue that Macbeth was just a tyrannical sovereign who encountered supernatural involvement leading to his eventual death. Regardless of the stance one argues, there is no doubt William Shakespeare’s Macbeth is a tragedy.
seen at a high place in the Elizabethan order of society. Macbeth was a noble and therefore kinsman to King Duncan. He was the Thane of Glamis before he was promoted to the Thane of Cawdor. Both were considered very high standings. On top of all that, he was a great soldier. On the battlefield and off, Macbeth was presented as someone who was destined for greatness, if not someone who had already achieved it.
He was so good he almost seemed too good. Even the king admired Macbeth, saying, “O valiant cousin! Worthy gentleman!” (I ii 24) and “My worthy Cawdor!,“ (I iv 48) agreeing with how amazing Macbeth is. Many believed there was a lot more that Macbeth could have achieved, had he not fallen from grace. Macbeth was a great person, and the person he later became was not the same wholesome character. Macbeth was once a great person and this made the story of his downfall even more tragic. Macbeth was a typical tragic hero, according to the Aristotelian model of a tragic hero. The typical tragic hero grows up in hardship, or struggles greatly, yet still manages to become the great person they are. The audience does not see Macbeth growing up, but the audience can see his tragic past, through the death of his young son. In a similar way, in his tough rise to greatness, his journey to becoming king, Macbeth still gets to where he is through tragedy -- death. As a barbaric, yet valiant soldier, or ruthless noble willing to do anything and everything to become king, there is undoubtedly death involved with both, thus fulfilling the tragic hero
archetype. Additionally, this typical tragic hero’s “upbringing” of some sorts can be seen through the manipulation of the witches. One of the first lines in the play marks the audience’s introduction to the idea of the witches using their magic to cause chaos. When the line “Fair is foul, and foul is fair“(I i 12) is chanted by the witches, and Macbeth is introduced to the play saying, “So foul and fair a day I have not seen,” (I iii 39) the readers know Macbeth and the witches are connected in some way. They bring upon this tragedy, and the readers are able to see how the witches have forcedly changed course of the story through Macbeth. The next characteristic of a tragic hero is the rise in ranking. Macbeth achieves this by forcing his way up the Elizabethan order to society though murder. Macbeth is seen plotting the death and/or executing the plan, and the audience sees Macbeth as the death toll rises. King Duncan, Banquo, and Macduff’s family are all victims at the hand of Macbeth, not to mention the death of the countless others who were witnesses, who sadly ended up being collateral damage in the process. Fleance, Donalbain and Malcolm are the only people who did not get killed as they were between Macbeth and the throne. Macbeth did make his way up the ladder and did achieve his goal of becoming a king this way, but at what cost? This over-vaulting ambition eventually led to his downfall. Finally, the typical Aristotelian hero has their downfall at the end of the story. The audience sees this through Macbeth as his entire kingdom falls into chaos, and Macbeth himself descends into madness. Macbeth no longer trusts anyone, yet still believes in the witches and their prophecies. This is a recipe for disaster. The witches trick him into believing he is invincible through the line “Be bloody, bold and resolute. Laugh to scorn the power of man, for none of woman born shall harm Macbeth” (IV i 81-83). This gives Macbeth too much power and confidence, resulting in a rebellion between Malcolm and his army, against Macbeth and Scotland. Macbeth has no respect from his subjects and his supporters are fighting in his name out of fear. This is how chaos is ultimately achieved. Macbeth himself is descending into madness as the universe worked to restore order. Through this occurrence, Macbeth ultimately met his ending, as the typical Aristotelian tragic hero would. As much as Macbeth was an aristotelian tragic hero, he also possessed qualities making him unlike one. The typical Aristotelian hero has certain aspects shared with Macbeth’s character. Though both follow similar traits, they also differ greatly. Regardless, this story is still a tragedy. The witches’ role sets Macbeth apart from Aristotle’s idea of a tragic hero. Macbeth was truly a great person who could be considered a hero, but was charmed by the witches who used him to create chaos. This spell initially cast at the beginning of the play acted as a catalyst to the chaos the audience saw unfold through the course of the play. The witches sparked Macbeth’s ambition and the evil lurking within him, causing him to be more easily coaxed into doing things that otherwise would have been sacrilegious. The typical hero would save their people, rather than killing their people and bringing others into chaos and strife. In this way, Macbeth acted more as an antagonist rather than a protagonist. Despite these facts, Macbeth was not entirely acting on his own accord, at this point in time. Macbeth cannot be held guilty of all his actions as these ideas of murder were not his own. His conscience made a final attempt to coax him away from the evil. This is seen when Macbeth says:
Is this a dagger which 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-oppressed brain? (II i 33-40)
Macbeth’s conscience makes him see the true consequences of the act he was about to commit, as a precursor to the real reaction to the murder. Additionally, Macbeth can be seen wanting to become the worst of the worst when he could not be the best of the best. This is seen in the lines “...For mine own good, all causes shall give way. I am in blood stepped in so far that, should I wade no more, returning were as tedious as go o’er” (III iv 141-144). The typical tragic hero seems to rise to their status with grace and humility, with a fatal flaw that ends up fixing a current issue in their society. Conversely, Macbeth was cocky, believing he was invincible, and murdered others instead of being the great man he previously was. Additionally, Macbeth’s fatal flaw was ambition and greed -- Macbeth even admitted it when he said “...I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition which o’erleaps itself and falls on th’other” (I vii 25-28). This solved no previous issues and brought upon the death of Macbeth. Finally, the tragic hero achieves greatness that they deserve through their goodness, but has their fortune and reward ripped from, though they did not necessarily deserve the misfortune, thus making it a tragedy. Macbeth on the other hand got what he deserved. Though he was not acting entirely on his own accord, the witches only were guilty of coaxing Macbeth and not fully controlling his actions. Around the middle of the play, Macbeth is seen murdering, still with purpose, but also of his own free will. Macbeth’s death was brought upon with retributive justice, served through Macduff, whose family Macbeth killed. Macbeth did deserve his death in the end as it corrected the problems in society he himself created, not something that was pre-existing. Being evil, and pushing his way to a higher ranking which was not merited, came at a high price for Macbeth. To conclude, the misfortune Macbeth encountered throughout the play brought upon his tragic end. Though Macbeth was first portrayed to be an obviously fictitious character due to how great he was, in a turn for the worst, Macbeth ultimately became exactly the opposite. One may argue that Macbeth was a tragic hero due to his similar characteristics to that of the Aristotelian tragic hero archetype. One may also argue that Macbeth was just a tyrannical sovereign who encountered supernatural involvement leading to his eventual death. Regardless of the stance one argues, there is no doubt William Shakespeare’s Macbeth is a tragedy.