The Tragedy of Ambition in MacbethShakespeare's Tragedy of Ambition, Macbeth, shares common themes with many other real-life stories and events. Many scandals, both historical and current, can be linked to greed, ambition and abuse of power. Typically, key figures are motivated by ambition and are inevitably destroyed by it. This is also the case in Macbeth, where ambition leads to the downfall of the once great character, Macbeth. William Shakespeare's tragedy Macbeth is a play about a man's ambition to become king. From the first part of the witches' prophecy, "All hail Macbeth! Lord of Glamis" (Ii52-53)! was already a fact, and the second part was accomplished almost as soon as the witches spoke it, "All hail Macbeth! Thane of Cawdor" (Ii54-55), Macbeth begins to think of the part, "All hal, Macbeth, may you be King, / henceforth” (Ii56-57)! it could also come true because "the supernatural solicitation cannot be sick, it cannot be good" (Ii151-152). Encouraged by his wife, Lady Macbeth, Macbeth kills King Duncan while he is a guest in Macbeth's castle. As a result, Macbeth becomes king of Scotland. According to his critical essay on Macbeth, "Shakespeare and the Perils of Ambition", Robert N. Watson's comments state that ambition becomes the enemy of all life, especially that of the ambitious man himself, in this play (Watson 31). Shakespeare showcases a man's lifelong aspiration that appears to be fulfilled, but at the cost of his mental and emotional well-being. Macbeth's desire to gain wealth and status completely overwhelms him, reducing him to something less than human. Macbeth becomes increasingly ambitious as his wife egged him on and the witches tease him with more prophecies... middle of paper... and urge them to win. Sometimes this is discovered and athletes are stripped of their honors; other times the drug is found in the athlete's body. In both cases, as in the case of Macbeth, blind ambition can lead to a fall or even death. Works cited and consulted: Dominic, C. Catherine. Shakespeare's characters for students. Detroit - New York - Toronto - London: Gale Research, 1997. Garber, Marjorie. "Macbeth: the male Medusa." Shakespeare's Last Tragedies, ed. Susan L. Wofford. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc. 1996, 74-103. Scott, W. Mark, ed. Shakespeare for students. Detroit - Washington, DC: Gale Research, 1992. Staunton, Howard, ed. The Illustrated Shakespeare Globe. New York: Gramercy Books, 1979.Watson, Robert N. Shakespeare and the Perils of Ambition. Cambidge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1984