Defined by Aristotle, a tragic hero is one who falls from grace into a state of extreme unhappiness. The protagonist Macbeth of William Shakespeare's Macbeth is in all ways the perfect example of a tragic hero. He is a person of importance in society; at first an intrepid nationalist, fighting for his country and ultimately, becoming king. Macbeth had character flaws and made a series of serious errors in judgment, one being the assassination of King Duncan. Incidentally, Macbeth had become increasingly miserable throughout the events of the plot. He had outside forces that contributed to his degeneration; the main one being The Weird Sisters. A Shakespearean tragic hero contains all of the aforementioned qualities including others such as: providing a moral example to the audience, suffering public humiliation, and meeting his doom with courage and dignity which Macbeth did all of. Therefore, Macbeth fits the attributes of a tragic hero.
             Macbeth's increasing importance became a vital reason as to why he became a tragic hero. At the beginning of the play, Macbeth, a Scottish general, is portrayed as an intrepid man whose performance in Scotland's battle is greatly celebrated. The Captain describes Macbeth's performance as "Cannons overcharged with double cracks, so they doubly redoubled strokes upon the foe" (1.2.41-42). With such positive feedback from the battle, King Duncan cannot help but be elated towards Macbeth. Duncan's response to the valiant news was to give Macbeth a title which upgrades him from his then-current position; Thane of Glamis to Thane of Cawdor. "No more that Thane of Cawdor shall deceive our bosom interest. Go, pronounce his present death, and with his former title greet Macbeth" (1.2.73-76); "What he hath lost, noble Macbeth hath won" (1.2.78).
             Macbeth had shown major character flaws, weakness and terribly serious errors in judgment throughout the course of the play. With all the acclaim he received o...