,1 ENG 3U104 December 3, 2013 Macbeth Essay: Macbeth By William Shakespeare Shakespeare’s Three Witches, or Weird Sisters, are very important characters within his timeless tale of Macbeth. The Witches answer to the “fates of mythology” (Dover Wilson) by showing people prophecies and apparitions. These Witches are more important within the play than people understand. They have a calamitous affect on the protagonist within Macbeth, and all the characters associated with him. After a protracted discussion of the topic of who is to blame for the demise of Macbeth, the blame has come to rest upon the Three Witches.
Once King Duncan was killed Macbeth killed the guards because he was scared. There was no one to blame now for the death of King Duncan. He comes out the room with the dagger in his hand horrified by the crime that he had just committed. Lady Macbeth takes the dagger back and stabs King Duncan even more and leaves it laying beside him. Lord Macduff, thane of fife discovers the body of Duncan and alarms the village.
Lady Macbeths plots against killing king Duncan which is God’s appointed monarch, so by murdering him she is going against God which makes her more fiend like. Lady Macbeth shows outstanding displays of will-power, quick thinking and resourcefulness until after the banquet scene were Macbeth sees Banquo’s ghost. She saves Macbeth on occasions where he has been in a helpless state, losing all ability to act
Discuss the role of the witches in Macbeth! I think Shakespeare used the witches in the play because, he was writing for an audience that believed in the formidable powers of witchcraft. Disturbances in the heavens were considered to indicate upheaval and strife and the presence of evil. I think Shakespeare used the witches also to create a sinister atmosphere in the play. The witches appear during thunder and lightning in Act 1 Scene 1.
Macbeth indicates the location of the king's room, and Macduff discovers the body. When the murder is revealed, Macbeth swiftly kills the prime witnesses, the sleepy guards of the king's bedchamber, and Lady Macbeth faints. The assembled lords of Scotland, including Macbeth, swear to avenge the murder. With suspicion heavy in the air, the king's two sons flee the country: Donalbain to Ireland and Malcolm to raise an army in
A hero, a soldier, a noble man - we are first introduced to Macbeth at the start of the play and it becomes apparent that he is these three things. As the play advances he begins to shine through as revenge seeking, devious and an evil murderer? But why; what makes Macbeth change character and to perform lifes most gruesome act, murder? Of course Macbeth himself had reasons and influences that allowed him to become this way, including his wife Lady Macbeth, the witches prophecies, his need for power and of course his 'fatal flaw'. Lady Macbeth - cold hearted, power, witch-like - is the most reasonable for turning Macbeth into an evil murderer.
“(1.3.47-49) These three lines are extremely crucial to the play because it gives Macbeth his beginning thoughts toward receiving the throne. Shakespeare made the witches deceive Macbeth and Banquo who begin to believe they are invincible and have much to look forward to. This proves misogyny in Shakespeare because it ultimately put the witches to blame for all the horrible events in the play. Shakespeare also portrays his misogyny through Macbeth as he belittles the witches by saying, “How now, you secret, black and midnight hags.” (4.1.47) In Shakespeare’s era, chivalry and respect toward women was big. By having a character in his play say this to three so called women, seems
These lines are preceded by a soliloquy of her scolding the other witches for not including her in the downfall of Macbeth. Lady Macbeth says to her husband “But screw your courage to the sticking- place/And we’ll not fail” (1.7.66) by this she means if he can pull himself together and think with her cunning he will be able to murder the King. The Witches tell Macbeth prophecies in an attempt to very publically destroy him. Lady Macbeth lets these prophecies take root too deeply inside of her ultimately leading to her convincing her husband to command the murders of the innocent and also causing her to take her own life. Lady Macbeths bold ambition is used against her because in the era of Macbeth women’s
He is then encouraged by his wife, Lady Macbeth, that in order to become king he must kill the king; so, Macbeth in the act of greed and selfishness, goes into a pursuit of power and murders the king. In Act 2 scenes 1, Macbeth begins setting out to kill the king. He shows an increasing desire to kill him. Before he does how ever, him and Banquo; another soldier of the king; have a conversation. “I dreamt last night of the three weird sisters- to you they have shown some truth.” Banquo says to Macbeth that the witches’ prediction about Macbeth becoming Thane of Cawdor came true.
William Shakespeare's eponymously titled play Macbeth is one of the most celebrated writings in history and is still being performed and studied today. The play reflects the established socio-cultural beliefs of power and the effects of an illegitimate rule during the Jacobean period. Written in the seventeenth century when belief in a divine-ordained hierarchy prevailed, it was thought that if monarchical power was accessed via illegitimate means, destruction of the mind and state would result. Through the character of Macbeth, Shakespeare positions his readers to believe that power can attract even the most noble of men. In the opening of the play, a loyal Macbeth is approached by three witches who entice him with their claim that “[he] shalt be king thereafter.” (1-3-50).