Tragic Flaws in Macbeth
...reat deal of importance in courage and glory. Macbeth’s ambitions are revealed when he says, “Why hath it given me earnest of success… (Act 1, Scene 3, Line 132)”. This quote shows Macbeth’s thirst for reaching a higher position. Macbeth’s ambition for glory is what turns him into a killing machine; all he needed was support from the witches to give him a purpose for his desires. After Macbeth killed Duncan he became completely irrational and couldn't even enjoy his assumed authority before it began to fall apart. Macbeth is not genuinely evil to the core, he just falls victim to an overtaking human quality: an unquenchable appetite for power. In some ways Macbeth also can be seen as insecure. Lady Macbeth becomes annoyed at her husband when he shows reluctance in his plot to kill Duncan. Truthfully, he is contemplating the need and purpose for his actions. His wife does not approve this, thus she annoys him by questioning his manhood. He finally submits to her gripes and follows her orders. Macbeth having to follow the guidance of his wife shows a deep sense of insecurity in his character. Macbeth is eventually killed by Macduff at the end of the play because of the hole that his ambitions buried him in by turning countless people against him. Each and every one of Macbeth’s murders makes him deserve to be killed; thus, he was asking for his death throughout the entire play and most definitely earned it. The main character flaw for Lady Macbeth which appears most often near the end of the play was her guilt. Early on it may seem that Lady Macbeth’s flaw also might be her ambition. It appears that Lady Macbeth would kill Duncan and think nothing of it to become queen. But by the sleepwalking scene, Lady Macbeth has changed. Her conscience has finally gotten the better of her and she is suffering from guilt. An example of her guilt is present when she says, “Out, damned spot! Out I say (Act 5, Scene 1, Line 38)!” Apparently, Lady Macbeth is hallucinating because of her guilt from the past murder. She eventually can't stand it and then leads to her suicide. Her flaw, her weakness, brings her down. Lady Macbeth’s fate could have only been prevented if the murder of Duncan was avoided. Her death is the fault of nothing other than her weakness that she finally succumbs to at the end of the play. Banquo, the only major character with a seemingly virtuous faith, has only one important flaw, his indecisiveness. When Banquo encounters the witches with Macbeth he thinks nothing of the prophesies and assumes that Macbeth feels the same way. This allows Macbeth to easily get away ...