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Witches as a supernatural element in macbeth
Witches as a supernatural element in macbeth
Relationship between macbeth and witches
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“Fair is foul, and foul is fair” (Shakespeare,1:1:12). In other words, this paradox is saying things that may appear to be good in reality are actually evil and things that appear to be evil in reality are actually good. Most of the time things are not what they give the impression to be. Ghosts, witches, and witchcraft were a big interest during the seventeenth century. People in Shakespeare 's time feared the idea of witches, witchcraft, and other supernatural powers.In addition to this, they associated witchcraft and ghosts with the devil. King James I, the ruler of England at the time Shakespeare wrote The Tragedy of Macbeth, wrote Demonology, which consisted of King James 's beliefs about witchcraft and other supernatural powers. Several …show more content…
A. W. Crawford suggests "Macbeth 's ambition, as we shall see later, not only to gain the crown for himself, but for his descendants"(Part I, 347). Macbeth wanted to be king desperately. He took desperate measures to get there by murdering and deceiving others. A.W. Crawford observes that "The second and third apparitions, as later seen, offered Macbeth deceitful advice and exhortation, and by mocking and riddling prophecy induced in him a false sense of security that put him off his guard"(Part I, 347). Macbeth falls for the witches ' plan to deceive his mind and make it appear that the prophesies are in his favor. Although the apparitions seem like they are prophesying a bright, successful future they are actually warning Macbeth of his fatal end. Things that appear to be good are actually evil. In A.W. Crawford 's article, The Apparitions in Macbeth, we observe that The first three apparitions had very greatly disturbed Macbeth, but had also given him immediate consolation in the security to his own life seemingly promised him by the second and third. Not content, however, to be assured, as he thought, of his own safety, he was in great anxiety about the succession to the throne(Part II,
In fear of losing this power to his friend Banquo or his son Fleance, whom of which the witches said would be king after Macbeth and would yield a long line of kings, Macbeth had them murdered in the woods while they were out horseback riding. This proves that he truly believes in what the witches have to say about him and his future, which leads him to back to seek out more of the witches half truths to see what else would come of his future. The next set of prophecies that the witches had to offer were shown in a set of three apparitions. The first said “Macbeth! Macbeth! Macbeth! Beware Macduff. Beware the thane of Fife,” the second apperition then spoke “none of woman born can harm Macbeth,” the third aperition then said “Macbeth shall never vanquish’d be until Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane Hill Shall come against him”(Shakespeare,168-170). Some say it was the witches fault for Macbeth’s actions next, but in reality it was Macbeth’s and Macbeth’s alone. Due to these three prophecies Macbeth’s level of arrogance went up along with his hunger for power as well, his level of common sense was decreasing faster and faster. Macbeth’s lack of common sense caused him to make rash decisions without thinking them through. Such as when he says “From this moment the very firstlings of my
Everyone knows that evil can be devastating, especially to someone who foolishly embraces it. Most people would wonder why anyone would embrace evil. The answer is simple though; sometimes, evil does not appear as what it really is. Often, it actually appears enchanting, showing you the alluring side while hiding the darker side.
In Macbeth the Witches are shown as being evil, conniving, and cruel. "Here I have a pilot’s thumb, wreck’d, as homeward he did come." The Witches play a major role in convincing Macbeth to kill Duncan. They give Macbeth and Bonquo three prophecies: "all hail Macbeth hail to thee, thane of Cawdor" "all hail, Macbeth that shalt be king hereafter" "thou shalt get kings, though be none." Bonquo doesn’t take these prophecies seriously, but Macbeth shows some ambition for power. "If chance will have me king, why, chance will crown me." Macbeth becomes more dependent to the Witches. In Act 4 scene 1 Macbeth returns to the weird sisters, demanding what the future would bring. The Witches gave him three prophecies: "Macbeth! Macbeth! Macbeth! Beware Macduff, beware the thane of Fife." "none of woman born shall harm Macbeth" "Macbeth shall never vanquish’d be until Great Birnam wood to high Dunsinane hill."
...two apparitions make Macbeth feel like his title as king is safe. He thinks this because Macbeth takes all of what the apparitions say literally and straightforward. Macbeth feels that it is impossible for Birnam wood to move towards the castle, this is ironic because the audience knows that the bark and branches from trees from Birnam wood have been used to camouflage the number of soldiers heading towards Macbeth’s castle. Macbeth does not think of it in this point of view, therefore making him feel very safe and confident about the war. The apparitions told warned Macbeth that Macduff is a threat to his title as king, and Macbeth took action by hiring murderers to kill Macduff’s whole family. Macbeth lies to the murderers and makes them believe that Macduff has been unfaithful to them just so that the murderers would go through with his plan.
Macbeth is willing to twist destiny and change the prophecy to protect his ambition, asking about his downfall to try and prevent it. The three witches’ prophecies strengthen Macbeth’s ambition; the first prophecy makes Macbeth realize his ambitions, and the second prophecy displays his willpower to protect that ambition. Being over-ambitious brought about the demises of not only Macbeth, but his family as well as the many people he killed in order to bring about his rise to power. This theme was demonstrated through several motifs, including hallucinations, blood, and prophecies.
William Shakespeare wrote the play Macbeth in approximately 1606. The play is a tragedy and this can be often identified before we have even read the play. The title “Macbeth” alone suggests the genre of the play is a tragedy as it is the name of a character. Life in Shakespeare’s time was very religious and the play was written in order to please King James I who was on the throne at this point. The idea of the theme of religion and witchcraft fitting into the play was also to please King James I as he was interested in witchcraft. The majority of people living in Shakespeare’s time were Christians and they believed that if you lived a good life, you would go to Heaven and if you were bad in life, you would go to Hell. At the time of the play, King James I was on the throne and this is significant as he makes Banquo a good character as he is the King’s Ancestor. This influenced Shakespeare’s writing because he had to write a play to please the King so Shakespeare included witchcraft as King James I was interested in witchcraft. The text of the play is based on “Chronicles: History of England, Scotland and Ireland” published by Raphael Holinshed in 1577. In Chronicles, Banquo is an accomplice to Macbeth in the murder of the King rather than a loyal subject of the King who is seen as an enemy by Macbeth. Shakespeare could have changed Banquo’s character in order to please King James I. The witches fit into the theme of Macbeth as the play is very religious and involves witchcraft and the powers of evil.
Throughout the text, evidence that Macbeth is well-intentioned is far outweighed by contrasting evidence that Macbeth is ill-intentioned. Perhaps the sole example of Macbeth being well-intentioned is when he states, "I chance will have me King, why, chance may crown me, without my stir." From perhaps only a brief moment in the text, Macbeth is displaying some good intent by stating that he hopes that without him having to force the prophecies to come true they will indeed eventuate. In blatant contrast however are clear examples of Macbeth's ill-intentions motivated by his fatal flaw, vaulting ambition. Macbeth surely reveals his true intent when he states, "Stars hide your fires! Let not light see my black and deep desires" and further convinces that he is ill-intentioned. Another definite example of Macbeth's inner struggle to deal with his ill-intentions that he must ...
When Macbeth is first introduced to the audience, he is seen as a tough, trustworthy hero. He wins the battle and gains King Duncan’s honor and respect. This all lasts until his encounter with the witches. The witches terrorized and cursed people purely for their personal enjoyment. They came across Macbeth and could not pass this opportunity. Unfortunately Macbeth fell victim to the witches’ ruthless, evil plans. The witches begin to recite prophecies which immediately strike confusion and curiosity in Macbeth’s weak mind. The first prophecy stated, “All hail Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis!” which was said by the first witch. Macbeth already was the Thane of Glamis. The second prophecy stated, “All hail Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor!” This prophecy in fact, came true after his defeat over the King of Scotland. This of course caused Macbeth the want more. The third prophecy stated, “All hail Macbeth that shall be King here after!” Macbeth new that the only way this prophecy would come true is if he murdered King Duncan. At this time, Macbeth was kind hearted and would not even think twice about murdering the man who trusts him. His weak mind caused him to fall victim to harsh words and tales of the future. The lovely Lady Macbeth is not at all who people perceive her to be. She is ruthless, impatient and power thirsty. She man...
The Witches and & nbsp; Evil in Macbeth & nbsp; No discussion of evil in Shakespeare’s play Macbeth would be satisfactory without considering its’ most famous symbol of evil: the coven of witches whose interactions with Macbeth play such a vital role in his thinking about his own life. Banquo and Macbeth recognize them as something supernatural, part of the landscape but not fully human inhabitants of it. They have malicious intentions and prophetic powers. And yet they are not active agents in the sense that they do nothing other than talk and offer visions and potions. The witches have no power to compel.
Macbeth started to worry less about his earthy consequences. He knew that he was out numbered but he was still confident because of the witch’s apparitions. Macbeth was confident because all three of the apparitions seemed impossible to happen and he thought that no one could hurt him. He was too arrogant that he never realized that the apparitions could possibly happen. Macbeth’s over confidence eventually got the best of him. He started to think that he was invincible to all other
Evil of the Witches and Lady Macbeth In Shakespeare ’s play Macbeth, the main character, Macbeth has many motivators and influences, causing him to do evil deeds. Lady Macbeth is the main character. She pressures Macbeth to kill King Duncan. Also, there are the three witches, who give Macbeth prophecies that manipulate him in which disaster strikes at the end of the play.
The witches have a strong effect on Macbeth's character; they highly influence him in his accomplishments and awake his ambitions. They give Macbeth a false sense of security with their apparitions of truths. Instead they prove to be harmful for Macbeth who takes too much comfort and confidence in his interpretation of the truths. They are the ones who plant the actual idea of killing Duncan into Macbeth's mind. But if it were only the witches prophecies, then Macbeth surely would not have murdered the king. 'When you durst to do it, then you were a man,' (Macbeth, Shakespeare Act 1 Scene 7) Lady Macbeth's constant harassment pushed Macbeth and made him commit all this evil. When you reason things out by yourself you tend to now what is right and what is wrong, a conscience. But with the outside influence from the witches he thinks that that is his destiny and he must do everything to fulfill it. One can wonder if Macbeth ever had a chance of doing what was right after he met with the witches. He is overthrown and killed. Through his own ambitions, the ambition of his wife and the witches' prophesies, Macbeth has caused his own destruction and downfall. We can now clearly see that ambition not achieved through our own ability leads to destruction. 'Hail Thane of Glamis and of Cawdor and shalt be King hereafter'. (Act 1 Scene 3) These prophecies from three strangers are taken without question and probably without good judgment. Just the thought that he may be King clouds his thoughts and ambition takes over. The witches can predict the future, they can add temptation, and influence Macbeth, but they cannot control his destiny.
In this play, William Shakespeare uses a brilliant strategy by incorporating hallucinations to give the readers an insight to what is going on in Macbeth’s head. It shows us how Macbeth’s paranoia evolves over time and just how extreme it eventually gets. There are several occasions throughout this play when Macbeth experiences visions and hallucinations. It eventually gets so bad for him that he develops trust issues and goes to great lengths to “deal” with his problems. There is an outstanding difference when comparing Macbeth’s mental state of mind from the beginning of the play to the end.
Evil is everywhere. Some people do not mean to hurt others, and do not mean to be careless about others. Some people can convince others to make the wrong choice or to make a big mistake. Sometimes people do not know what position to take or what decision to make. That is why there are people who can convince others to be something bad such as a murder.
In Shakespeare's time, people completely believed in superstition. Superstitions such as breaking a mirror, opening an umbrella indoors, and crossing a path with a black cat, filled peoples minds with fear and were often thought to have bad luck. The Romans invented the glass mirror and the mirror was thought to have the power to confiscate part of your soul, if the reflected image had any distortions, it believed that the soul was corrupted. The thought of opening an umbrella indoors was also thought to be bad luck as the Egyptians believed opening an umbrella indoors offended the sun god. Black cats were speculated to be witches in animal form. When Macbeth hears the witches prophecies he didn't believe everything they said until he was named Thane of Cawdor, after then he believed he was to be the next king as the witches prophesied. He began making rash decisions once he believed the witches and it affected his life greatly. All these superstitions affected the way people acted.