When we discuss the tragic hero in the plays of William Shakespeare, one of the best examples where it can be seen is in Macbeth. Macbeth himself is the tragic hero meeting all the requirements to be considered as such. He most certainly begins the play with a high position among all of Scotland due to his importance and bravery in the battle for his country. This ultimately places him in the position of being a powerful thane and ultimately a great king, now that his actions would have a much more significant impact on Scotland. Macbeth certainly had the potential to be a great leader as a thane and king. His potential would be stopped by the ambitious drive to become king which created in him a passion to remain the King of Scotland. Tempted by the evil of the three witches, Macbeth undoubtedly seals his fate and leads to his downfall by believing the witch's prophecy that he will become king. To further prove that Shakespeare was portraying the character of Macbeth as a tragic hero, it can be seen that Macbeth makes the tragic decision to kill Duncan completely out of free will. Towards the end of the play, Macbeth realizes and acknowledges the incredible amount of terror he has caused. Considering all these factors, it is clear that William Shakespeare was describing in his own way that the character of Macbeth perfectly reflects the traits of a tragic hero. To be considered a tragic hero, a character must begin by occupying an important place within the beginning of the play and this is exactly the type of character created by Shakespeare. Macbeth is cousin to the King of Scotland and holds the highest rank among the nobles, becoming the Thane of Cawdor and Glamis. Macbeth I...... middle of paper...... woe, Macbeth! Hello, Thane of Cawdor! / Hail everyone, Macbeth, who will now be king! (1.3 49-50). This encounter with the witches is the cause of the progression of bad events throughout the play. Macbeth still had a chance to do what was right after hearing the witches' prophecies. It wasn't entirely the witch's fault that the tragedy had occurred. This is because the three strange sisters never come directly to tell Macbeth what to do, they only tempt him. Macbeth was responsible for his own actions throughout the play and there were certainly more factors involved than those of the witch. The three witches are solely responsible for introducing these ideas and causing Macbeth to think too far into them, but they cannot be held fully responsible for his decisions throughout the play because Macbeth was never forced to do so. whatever the witch said..