There are several ways people regard Macbeth. Some people see Macbeth as an innocent person lead astray by a personality flaw, others believe that he was wicked at heart and used the witches' prophecies as an excuse for killing his friends and their families. And then there also are the few who aren't certain of their opinion, and those who think the answer is a mixture of the two.
             The traditional definition of a tragedy needs the tragic hero to be a person who holds an important position in the story and who has a tragic flaw which will eventually lead up to the character's downfall. In the play, Macbeth's flaw is his ambition. And this changes Macbeth from being a noble thane to becoming someone who's responsible for the fall of Scotland. 'Macbeth' is a tragic play, making Macbeth a tragic hero. This means that Macbeth might have originally been a good person, but was led to tyranny by his personality flaw.
             Macbeth was definitely a good person at the beginning of the play, there is evidence to support this. At the beginning of the play, Macbeth pleases the king by slaughtering the enemy in the battle. Duncan is so pleased by how Macbeth saved the day that he awards Macbeth with the title of Thane of Cawdor. ("What he hath lost, noble Macbeth hath won", Duncan in I, ii) To further express his gratitude towards Macbeth, Duncan decides to visit the Macbeths in a royal visit, a rare occurrence.
             I also think Macbeth was a good person at the start of the play because of who his friends are. His circle of acquaintances consists of Banquo, Ross ("whence cams't thou, worthy thane?", Duncan in I,ii) and the other Thanes, all considered noble people who hold the kings approval. And for someone to have the king's approval must mean that they did something extraordinary and are on good terms with the royal family.
             Again, we know that Macbeth was a good person becaus...