Macbeth Today
Aristotle defined a tragic hero as "A man doesn't become a hero until he can see
the root of his own downfall."
An Aristotelian tragic hero must possess specific characteristics:
Hamartia – a tragic flaw that causes the downfall of a hero.
Hubris – excessive pride and disrespect for the natural order of things.
Peripeteia – The reversal of fate that the hero experiences.
Anagnorisis – a moment in time when the hero makes an important discovery in the story.
Nemesis – a punishment that the protagonist cannot avoid, usually occurring as a result of his hubris.
Catharsis – feelings of pity and fear felt by the audience, for the inevitable downfall of the protagonist.
Macbeth is a perfect example of the tragic hero as he has all of these traits. This is part of what
makes Shakespeare relevant and still relatable. Around 2004 up until now, there has a been resurgence
of the tragic hero. Popular television shows such as Dexter (2006-2013), Nurse Jackie (2009-2015),
Weeds (2005-2012), Rescue Me (2004-2011), Breaking Bad (2008-2013) and Shameless (2011-)
started taking up our screens and have influenced how we want to feel about these characters. People with a sympathetic backstory or situation that lead them to act reprehensibly that leads to their demise. That because people can relate to them makes their actions seem justified no matter if its petty theft or murder. Now we are not as special as we wish we were. The theme of the tragic hero or anti-hero goes back into a time when we thought it was culturally acceptable to wear togas to every event. Macbeth is what his time trained him to be. A boy with a sword who was told he needed to kill and be honorable in order to be a man. When his honor or manhood was questioned he did what he had to in order to keep it which ultimately was his downfall.
makes Shakespeare relevant and still relatable. Around 2004 up until now, there has a been resurgence
of the tragic hero. Popular television shows such as Dexter (2006-2013), Nurse Jackie (2009-2015),
Weeds (2005-2012), Rescue Me (2004-2011), Breaking Bad (2008-2013) and Shameless (2011-)
started taking up our screens and have influenced how we want to feel about these characters. People with a sympathetic backstory or situation that lead them to act reprehensibly that leads to their demise. That because people can relate to them makes their actions seem justified no matter if its petty theft or murder. Now we are not as special as we wish we were. The theme of the tragic hero or anti-hero goes back into a time when we thought it was culturally acceptable to wear togas to every event. Macbeth is what his time trained him to be. A boy with a sword who was told he needed to kill and be honorable in order to be a man. When his honor or manhood was questioned he did what he had to in order to keep it which ultimately was his downfall.
Lady Macbeth jumped off the page as an image of Lori Grimes of The Walking Dead series.
Lady Macbeth convinces her husband to murder the King for power. Just as Lori convinces Rick that he needs to kill his best friend, Shane, in order to keep control of the group and to stay in power. Lady Macbeth to me was not a sympathetic character until we found out deep in her psyche that what she had done was eating her alive. That what she had her hand in consumed her until she killed herself because she could not live with herself. Lori is known as one of the most hated characters of The Walking Dead. This was that way up her death people had thought of her. No one cared about her situation because there were more sympathetic people to care for other than a mother who never watched her son. Because the writers wrote a beautiful ending to a horrible character Lori's sins were forgiven for the most part. Sacrificing herself for her newborn daughter and having a gutwrenching parting with her son absolved her from all of her misgivings.
The three witches of Macbeth also know as the "Weird Sisters" made me think of social media. Mystic creatures that are not really friend or foe coming together to spread fact or fiction we do not know. Okay sorry for the rhyming. In the play, the witches are strange creatures that really play into the Halloween theme of ugly witches. This plays into the fact that ugly people are to be believed less and are more malintent then the more attractive more trustworthy counterparts. The witches all remind me of the daily things I view when I'm on social media. When taking a quiz on facebook I am looking for my answer, not the wrong answer they tell me I am and I am not looking for my question to be answered. When I'm on Instagram I am viewing all theses picture of people at Coachella posing three feet away from the portapotties and some victim of sunstroke. When I am on Snapchat I'm viewing all these people who seem to have a never-ending fund of money and the need to go out to eat every night with loads of friends and then run around the city having the time of their lives posting every 10 minutes. It gets to the point where I call up my friends and go out and hang out so I feel fulfilled. Even if that means I have to do something I have no interest in doing. Because like the witches with social media It does not matter if it is true or not. If it is being said then that is what matters.
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