Saturday, March 24, 2012

Where do we see supernatural forces having an impact in "Macbeth"?

The impact of the supernatural forces in "Macbeth" are the motivations for the actions of the main characters throughout the play. At the beginning of the play, Macbeth and Banquo encounter the three witches who predict three things.

1. Macbeth, who is currently Thane of Glamis will be Thane of Cawdor.

2. Macbeth will also be king of Scotland

3. Banquo will not be king himself, but will be the father of kings.

When Macbeth returns to Duncan, he is quickly named Thane of Cawdor. Then he and his wife plot to make second prophecy come true by killing Duncan, the king. Then, he kills Banquo to prevent him from being "the father of kings". The play continues to show the sad consequences of Macbeth's actions.

Then, In order to secure a wicked ending for Macbeth, the witches return and again predict three things.

1. Macbeth should be wary of Macduff.

2. Macbeth will not be killed by " no one given birth to by a woman".((V,i,90)

3. Nothing will happen to Macbeth unless " Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane Hill/ Shall come against him. ( V,i, 104-105)

This supernatural prediction gives Macbeth the mistaken belief that he has nothing to fear, except from Macduff, whose family Macbeth kills. Then Macduff flees to England and Macbeth believes he is safe. However, as is often the case with witches in Elizabethan times, their words have double meaning.In the end, Macbeth's false sense of security because of the witches supernatural predictions eventually lead to his downfall

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