Macbeth: A Tragic Hero A tragic hero, according to Aristotle, is a man neither villainous nor exceptionally virtuous who moves from happiness to misery through frailty or some error in judgement. In the play Macbeth written by William Shakespeare, the protagonist Macbeth, is a tragic hero. Macbeth was a man neither villainous nor exceptionally virtuous, a man easily influenced, and a man who was plagued by his past decisions. Macbeth is neither villainous nor exceptionally virtuous. Macbeth has killed many people. However Macbeth did not kill with pleasure. Early in the play Macbeth was shocked