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. Within the play Macbeth, the Witches have done numerous things to cause the demise of Macbeth; influenced him through prophecies and apparitions, spurred his killing spree and manipulated him. From the outset, the Witches show Macbeth prophecies which lead to his downfall. These prophecies are the root of Macbeth’s misfortunes and evil doings, push Macbeth and Lady Macbeth to act upon their evil thoughts, and alter Macbeth from a loyal soldier to a traitor. First and foremost, the Witches were the root of Macbeth’s misfortunes and evil doings.
This is right before Macbeth will kill Duncan. On his way to murder King Duncan, Macbeth sees the vision of the bloody dagger leading the way. Significance: It is clear that Macbeth is insane. Macbeth has been convinced into the action not by his own reasoning, but by his personal insecurities, played upon by his wife, the witches, and his own ambition. By the time Macbeth’s mind conjures up a dagger for him, he can see the murder as a conclusion, not a question for his consideration.
Here, she blatantly reveals that she intends to murder Duncan, saying he won't live to see another day. She then warns Macbeth that his face "is a book where men may read strange matters." Meaning that he has a blatant look of guilt on his face, which others may notice. Knowing Macbeth is having some doubts, Lady Macbeth tells him to leave the arrangements to her when she says: "put this night's great business into my dispatch," Here, Lady Macbeth is taking on the burden of arranging a plan,
Shakespeare’s objective is to show how the guilt Is driving her insane. Shakespeare also does this with the semantic field of death; “death and blood” are used through her sleep-walk. This implies that her guilt of killing Duncan is driving her insane this technique is used by Shakespeare to portray Lady Macbeth’s broken state of mind which makes her restless. In Act 2 Scene 2, the witches say "Sleep no more! Macbeth does murder sleep,” this is exactly what has happened to Lady Macbeth as she is unable to sleep.
In the play Macbeth, the main theme is the corruption of power through unchecked ambition. Macbeth is a faithful soldier and a good man, until three witches tell him of his future. Upon telling his wife the grand news, she devises a scheme where Macbeth kills the king in order to make his future the present. Macbeth is wary at first, and often talks of his guilt and soul before the murder, but, in order to please his wife, and feed his desire to become king, he murders the poor king in his sleep. He then blames two guards for the deed and becomes king of Scotland.
.The witches represent Macbeth’s evil ambitions and make him want to know more about the future disregarding any consequences. Macbeth was deeply influenced by the witches because they were the ones guiding him to murdering Duncan. As well as the murder of Duncan, the murder of Banquo creates guilt in Macbeth which causes him to have a supernatural occurrence. The ghost of Banquo appears during the banquet where Macbeth is going to be seated. The ghost is only visible to Macbeth.
The other interpretation is that something supernatural and scary is at work, that the dagger is a sign from the witches Macbeth spoke to. This part of his soliloquy uses a rhetorical question, as if he is questioning his own sanity, especially when he realises that it is his own blade, ‘such an instrument I was to use’, covered in ‘gouts of blood’. This shows the reader that Macbeth is already seeing the horror of Duncan’s murder and it creates tension for the reader. It then moves onto the dagger and how it ‘marshall’st’ Macbeth towards Duncan’s chamber, suggesting that the witches are beckoning him to kill the king. This in turn makes the reader feel apprehensive and afraid of the supernatural beings corrupting Macbeth, as it gives a feeling that they are always watching, and also highlights the mystical powers they seem to have.
Macbeth State of Mind after Killing Duncan Immediately upon returning after he has committed the crime, it is obvious that he is highly disturbed by the crime that he has committed. He tells Lady Macbeth that he cannot pronounce the word “amen.” This implies that he is now unholy. In addition, this begins the insomnia that drives him to madness. He says that he heard someone say “Glamis hath murdered sleep, and therefore Cawdor/ shall sleep no more. Macbeth shall sleep no more” (II.2.55-57).
Macbeth truly debuts the play with auspiciousness, which in a sense, makes his downfall so much more tragic. Macbeth's ambition takes control of his noble qualities however, and creates a destructive path for both himself and Scotland as a whole. The seeds of his ambition are planted even before the Witches's first prophecy. While the Witches are predicting Macbeth's future it is evident that the notion of Duncan's murder has already crossed his mind: MACBETH: [Aside.] This supernatural soliciting Cannot be ill, cannot be good.
Macbeth The Role of the Supernatural The contribution of the supernatural is essential to the advancement of the play. In the opening scene, the witches introduce the theme of darkness and evil and propel the plot into murder and madness. They influence a soldier to commit regicide in order to become king, and then lead him to his own downfall. The supernatural was also used to demonstrate the progression of mental instability in the main characters throughout the play. This is shown through Macbeth’s hallucinations, Lady Macbeth’s interaction with spirits, and their interactions with the witches and their prophecies.