Occult and Supernatural Elements in "Macbeth"

In the play Macbeth by WIlliam Shakespeare, the supernatural is an ever present force, seen in the witches, the ghost of banquo, and maybe some other places. The way Shakespeare portrays the supernatural, and especially the witches, add a great deal s to the play, and also contribute in key ways to the themes, structure, tone. Mood, and literary devices in ways that are designed to affect the audience of the play. The most important contribution in my opinion, was that they made the play scary, and created a feeling of uncertainty or unease, which felt like an important aspect of the play.

His next targets are Banquo and Fleance. Macbeth hires murderers to kill them both. The murderers successfully kill Banquo but Fleance escapes. Macbeth becomes king and hosts a banquet. The guilt comes back. Macbeth acknowledges. “When now I think you can behold such sights, and keep the natural ruby of your cheeks, when mine is blanch’d with fear” (3.4.45). Macbeth thinks everyone at the table can see Banquo’s ghost when really he is the only one who sees it. Everyone is confused and concerned because Macbeth is going crazy and practically yelling at an empty chair. Macbeth almost spills the truth that he was the one who arranged Banquo’s death. Also, Lady Macbeth claims that, “I pray you, speak not; he grows worse and worse; Question enrages him; at once, good night: stand not upon the order of your going, but go at once” (3.4.45). Lady Macbeth tries to cover the up the outburst by telling their quests that Macbeth is not well. She knows that the guilt is taking over him because he initially did not want to kill

This time due to a cowardly action committed out of selfish fear. It is no surprise to me that Banquo’s ghost haunts Macbeth at this table since Macbeth called for two murders to kill him and his son. Banquo’s ghost appearing shows that Macbeth felt guilt and that he was not the completely heartless monster that he appeared to become. When Banquo's bloody ghost sits at the table with the lords, Macbeth tries to believe that he did not kill banquo. “ Thou canst not say I did it. Never shake Thy gory locks at me.” (III,iv,53-54). Macbeth’s episode with Banquo’s ghost reveals how the quest for power had driven his mind into pure insanity. This powerful hallucination driven from the little heart left in Macbeth proved to all the lords that Macbeth’s mind was gone, and that he was not fit to

For one, it is without a doubt that, at this stage of the play, Macbeth is delusional and is no longer mentally fit enough to think rationally. This is clearly shown when he begins to see Banquo’s ghost at the banquet, who is part of his imagination. His madness is clear when he rages at the ghost, commanding,

When Macbeth see 's Banquo 's ghost sitting in his seat, I think that he did not have a strong enough reaction for someone who just saw a ghost of their former comrade sitting in their dining room seat. Macbeth also

Unable to sleep, Macbeth is unable to function properly, and starts to see the ghost of Banquo, who he had just had murdered by assassins.

When Shakespeare wrote his play, Macbeth in 1606 a large majority of people were interested in witchcraft. This is why Shakespeare made the witches and the witches’ prophecies play a major part in the storyline of the play. In the time of Macbeth witches were not thought to be supernatural beings themselves, but supposedly gained their powers by selling their souls to Satan. There can be little doubt that most of Shakespeare’s audience would have believed in witches, and for the purpose of the play, at least, Shakespeare also accepted their reality.

Similarly, in Act Three, Scene Four, the audience notices more evidence that Macbeth follows the standard gender role of males. Macbeth hosts a banquet full of important people. Moments before, Macbeth sends murderers to kill Banquo and his son. One of the murderers returns to tell Macbeth the news of Banquo’s death. Due to Macbeth’s guilty conscience, he envisions the ghost of Banquo. This starts to drive him insane before his

The ghosts that are presented in the play also cause a great deal of conflict. When macbeth sees the dagger in front of him in his soliloquy in act 2 scene 5 before he kills king Duncan, this is supernatural because he is seeing something that isn’t there. This causes conflict because this dagger ends up being the murder weapon that is used to kill Duncan. After they find king Duncan assassinated they are conflicted on why and who did it. They also have to find a new king to take a spot. After banquo’s is killed, macbeth has a dinner party and at the party he sees Banquo’s ghost sitting in his chair. Macbeth is frightened and is fighting with the ghost, this is supernatural due to it being a ghost and it caused a conflict between the two of them. In Mr. Polanski’s film, Macbeth he sees fleance put on his crown while macbeth is in bed. This does not occur in the play but it is also supernatural since macbeth is seeing something happen that is not

The play, Macbeth, is established around the central idea that once you have completely abandoned your mind, morals, and being you lose everything you have. It is clear that the acts committed by the conflicted and mislead Macbeth, have the potential to shatter him as a mortal, such is the overall theme of Macbeth. But, when contemplating the presence of the unnatural forces in the play it is difficult to truly decipher what is meant by their intentions. The intervention of the supernatural evidently helps to assemble the play’s key theme of self demise, yet it can be viewed that supernatural manipulation can alter one’s fate such as that of Macbeth and his later death.“To know my deed ‘twere best not know myself” states Macbeth (act 2

The bell invites me. Hear it not, Duncan, for it is a knell that summons thee to heaven or hell."(2.1.62-64). The murder of King Duncan was the start of the murderous cruel loophole Macbeth fell into. Macbeth thinks Banquo and his son is a threat as the prophecies were Banquo to be a father to a king, Macbeth hired men to kill Banquo and his son but Banquo's son was able to flee. Macbeth sees Banquo's ghost at the dinner table, and the guilt starts to haunt him as explained in the quote "Avaunt, and quit my sight! Let the earth hide thee.Thy bones are marrowless, thy blood is cold. Thou hast no speculation in those eyes which thou dost glare with!(3.4.93-96). The witches give Macbeth one last prophecy which is to watch out for

In Shakespeare's play The Tragedy of Macbeth, Shakespeare uses an underlying motif of the supernatural to control the characters and add a new dimension to the play.

How Low Can You Go ? You would think that everyone keeps their morals no matter what is put on the table. In the play "Macbeth", the main character Macbeth makes some unbelievable choices and pays the price for "happiness". and ends up not being very successful with his choices.

First off, Macbeth’s ambition leads him to fall into paranoia. It drives him mad, and makes him hallucinate. Macbeth kills so many men seamlessly but after the murder of Banquo he begins to go crazy. “Macbeth does murder sleep…Macbeth shall sleep no more.”(II.II). When he sleeps he sees Banquo and he cannot deal with the guilt. He even began to have visions of Banquo’s ghost “If thou canst nod, speak too. /if charnel-houses and our graves must send/those that we bury back, our monuments/shall be the maws of kites.”(III.IV) Not only does he ask the murderers twice if Banquo is dead but he also becomes paranoid because Fleance got away. In Act 3 scene 4, Macbeth as king holds a feast with all his friends. During this feast he begins to hallucinate, he sees Banquo’s ghost. Lady

The supernatural in Macbeth is an integral part of the structure of the plot. It provides a catalyst for action, an insight to characters and enhances the impact of many key scenes. The supernatural appears in many varied forms; the ghost of Banquo, floating dagger, witches and prophetic apparitions. The witches were a symbol of evil, they were meant to give the play a haunting and an eerie atmosphere, they give the impression of supernatural because they can foretell the future and everything they say sounds like they are chanting a magic spell “Round about the cauldron go...charmed pot”– Act 4 scene 1. Another magical element is the floating dagger