Macbeth As A Tragedy
One of the most prominent themes in the story of Macbeth is ambition. Once the main character gets a taste of power, he does almost anything in order to keep his seat of the throne. This is representative of human nature, in a way where people are always very paranoid and greedy. Although at first, he wanted to leave things to chance, or fate, he soon convinced himself that this isn’t the best way (Shakespeare, 1.4.4). He grew impatient and also hateful. Instead of allowing things to fall into place, Macbeth wanted to take things into his own hands, of course, after being prodded by lady Macbeth. After hearing about his future, he became restless and greedy. He had a thirst for power that he did not have before. Knowing the future and having this need for power was the thing that brought him down. It can be said that many people are like this, especially in the corporate world. It seems as if human nature is to get on top and stay on top. There was no loyalty, true friendship or anything else when power was at stake.
The genre of the play is definitely tragedy, it is a very dramatic play. It portrays a very serious and somber theme. Macbeth is very dark and dreary, the darkness of the play invokes a negative vibe. It lets the audience know that something bad is about to happen. This is what gives away the tragedy, because death is always part of dark plays – the part about the dead children is just part of why this story is dark and tragic. Many tragedies are because of conflict. With Macbeth, one of the conflicts was seen within the hero himself. He showed a weakness to an overpowering force within himself which compelled him to kill his way to the top. One of the biggest reasons why this is a tragedy is because it ends in death and offers no promise of continuity.
References
Shakespear, William (1992). Mowat, B. & Werstine, P. eds. “Macbeth”. New York: Washington
Press.
