The Tragedy of Macbeth is one of Shakespeare’s most popular plays, conveying the story a Scottish thane Macbeth, who murders numerous people with his wife with the goal of seizing the throne of the Scottish monarchy. It is a tragic tale of uncontrollable greed, never-ending ambition and a ravenous desire for increasing power. The psychological worsening of the protagonists is the very core of the play, Shakespeare showing what is bound to happen when individuals live merely to fulfil own needs, even if they are accomplished on the expense of others. “So foul and fair a day I have not seen.”1 These are the first words from the mind of Macbeth, who initially appears as one of the most valiant and capable soldiers among the characters we meet. Although this is his first line in the play, we’ve already been introduced to him in the very first act and scene. He is associated with three witches who state that they will be meeting him on the heath. It is only a brief mention and not a very descriptive one, but still it is remembered clearly as the first impression of him. The second impression is thoroughly more positive than the first: “O valiant cousin, worthy gentleman!” “For brave Macbeth – well he deserves that name” Before he even appears in the play, we have a notion of him being a warrior hero, whose victories on the battlefield have won him great honour from King Duncan. Both bravery and loyalty to the king are traits to be expected from the finest soldiers. Not only is he an excellent warrior, but a bloodthirsty one as well. Upon meeting his enemies he offers no chance for redemption; he simply slices them open from stomach to jaw and decapitates them, giving them an unreasonably horrid death. There is a drastic change of character for Macbeth, and his battlefield valour fades when his true self emerges. The witches’ tricks show how Macbeth’s bravery is strongly combined with an intense ambition. These ambitions are made clear through his frustration regarding Duncan’s intention to pass the kingdom to his son, Malcolm. At this point the prophecies have led him to wicked thoughts, particularly after he is made thane of Cawdor, just as the witches predicts. It is at this point we recognise that even though he is a brave and powerful man, he is not a virtuous one. From a loyal and admirable soldier he changes into one of Shakespeare’s most i