How The Three Witches Influence Macbeth

Napoleon Hill, an American author, said "Think twice before you speak, because your words and influence will plant the seed of either success or failure in the mind of another".  Whispering into someone's ear to get them to do what you want is possibly more impactful than the person's own actions. This becomes clear in The Tragedy of Macbeth, a play by William Shakespeare. This play depicts the downward spiral of a man named Macbeth, who murders his way onto the throne in Scotland. However, it is not just Macbeth himself who causes his actions, but there are many outside forces that have a great influence on what he does. It is clear that of all of the forces that cause the impending disaster, that the most influential is that of the three witches, who give Macbeth a prophecy of his kingship.

There are many reasons that the three witches could easily be considered the most influential force upon Macbeth, but one of the more obvious reasons is that none of the events in the play would have happened had it not been for the prophecy that the witches gave Macbeth.

This is at the very beginning of the play. In fact, it is one of the very first major events. When Macbeth discovers that the prophecy is true soon after he is told it, he thinks to himself "If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me" (II.ii.144). Macbeth is basically saying to himself, "if I am to be king, then so be it". He is completely okay with himself being king, no matter what happens. It becomes even more clear that the prophecy from the witches is very important and influential when Lady Macbeth discovers the prophecy. When she learns that her husband is prophesied to be the king, she states "Glamis thou art, and Cawdor, and shalt be what thou art promised"(I.v.12). She is basically saying that because he was promised to be king, he shall be so. It was the prophecy that really gave Lady Macbeth the idea and motivation to propel her

agenda.
Another highly influential thing that the witches did was give Macbeth an incredibly strong sense of false confidence, which would lead to his eventual downfall. One of the more evident examples of this was when the witches told Macbeth that "none of woman born shall harm Macbeth" (IV.i.80). This causes Macbeth to feel almost immortal, as it only makes sense that there is nobody that was not born of a woman, so he can be harmed by no one. Another thing that Macbeth is told by the witches is "Macbeth shall never vanquished be until Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane Hill shall come against him" (IV.i.92). It only makes sense that Macbeth can never be defeated, as it is impossible for something as huge and immovable as an entire forest to "come against him". However, towards the climax of the play, before the great battle, Macbeth says "Bring me no more reports. Let them fly all. Till Birnam Wood remove to Dunsinane I cannot taint with fear" (V.iii.1). He truly believes that he cannot be defeated, which causes him to make many rash decisions, such as allowing himself to be ill-prepared. However, both prophecies seem to be circumvented somehow, and Macbeth finds himself unable to escape with his life.
Despite all of this evidence, some might argue that Lady Macbeth was the most influential of all the forces acting upon Macbeth. After all, when Macbeth started to get cold feet about murdering Duncan, it was Lady Macbeth who said "We fail? Bet screw your courage to the sticking place and we'll not fail" (I.vii.59). It was her that was whispering into the ear of Macbeth to continue in his quest for power, and it was her that kept him going. However, it was the witches that were whispering into the ear of Lady Macbeth that gave her such courage. Because that she knows the prophecy, she knows that they will not fail. In fact, because she knows the prophecy, she says things like "fill me from the crown to the toe top-full of direst cruelty" (I.v.39). She does not want any feeling to get in the way and she also wants courage to do what she needs to, which is to motivate Macbeth.
In conclusion, it was the witches which caused a majority of the unfortunate events in the play. They planted the idea in Macbeth's head in the first place, and they also gave him overwhelming false confidence, both of which led to his eventual downfall. Sometimes, it is much better to have "soft power" by planting ideas in the minds of others and whispering into their ears to accomplish what you desire.