The Fall of Macbeth in William Shakespeare's Play Essay

The witches manipulate Macbeth into becoming a murdering, power-hungry evil being, by telling him, “someday you’ll be king.” “I'll drain him dry as hay. Sleep shall neither night nor day Hang upon his penthouse lid. He shall live a man forbid. Weary sev'n nights, nine times nine, Shall he dwindle, peak, and pine.” (I,i) The witches use the two other prophecies to get in the mind of Macbeth. They say that Macbeth will be Thane of Cawdor, and Banquo will be the father of future generations of kings. Though his bark cannot be lost, Yet it shall be tempest-tossed.They give Macbeth a false sense of security with the visions they perceive. These influential women are the ones that instill the idea of murdering the king. Macbeth lets greed get the best of him. The witches sway Macbeth into killing Duncan for the throne. “Fair is foul, and foul is fair.” (I,i) The Witches intend to turn Macbeth from his good ways, into something evil. As the only character that understands their cruelty, the witches want Macbeth dead. The witches give Macbeth the temptation to kill the king by telling him their prophecies. In the end,

Macbeth’s insanity is resulted from the true supernatural things he encounters in the play. The three witches are supernatural characters that play an important role in Macbeth’s spiral to becoming insane. Right off the bat the readers or audience feel the creepiness and uneasiness that radiates off of the witches. The witches famous line “Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn and cauldron bubble” (cite), gives everyone a look at how dark this play is. Macbeth’s first time meeting the witches paved a way for his insanity. The three witches inform Macbeth that he will be Thane of Glamis and then one day become king. This causes Macbeth to over think things, and have contradicting thoughts on whether he believes in such prophecies, or if they are trying to trick him. Macbeth’s second visit from the witches included visions of different people. After the witches add ingredients to the cauldron, the visons start appearing. The first one was an armed head telling him to beware of Macduff. The second, was a bloody child that said he could not be hurt by anyone who was born of a woman. The third one is a child holding a tree and wearing a crown. This vision meant that Macbeth would not be defeated until Birnam Wood moved to Dunsinane. All of these visions allude to the fact that Macbeth is becoming insane. Slowly but surely as supernatural events occur he has trouble deciphering what is real and what is not. A

The three witches or “weird sisters”, are only one of the contributions to Macbeth's destruction and downfall. The prophecies that the witches make are merely temptations for Macbeth. The weird sisters never tell Macbeth what to do with these suggestions, leaving him curious and in disbelief about what the witches have to say. The witches make predictions about the future of Macbeths kingship: "All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor” (I.III.50). Macbeth becoming Thane of Cawdor increases his thirst for ambition and eventually drives him into demise. They also tell Macbeth that no man born of woman can kill him, making Macbeth believe that he is invincible. "The power of man, for none of woman born shall harm Macbeth" (lV.I.81-83). Macbeth and Lady Macbeth take the prophecies too rigorous and try to put them into action immediately. The prophecies predicted by the witches do result in the end, however not exactly how either of them imagined.

to leave in Act 1 Scene 5, and Macbeth to arrive, Lady Macbeth does a

Macbeth over the course of the play a key technique is utilised to portray deceptive appearance through the use of foreshadowing. Shakespeare in many of his tragedies includes supernatural elements, but Macbeth stands out for its darker tone. The three witches introduced in the first act as the three weird sisters, tell of prophecies. From the beginning they tell the audience “Fair is foul, and foul is fair’, portraying appearances are not always as they seem. Macbeth kills the king of Scotland and in the following scene showcases foreshadowing when, Macbeth hears a voice in his head, 'Sleep no more!’. (2.2.35) This foreshadows both Macbeth's insomnia and his wife's eventual slip into insanity. The Elizabethan audience would likely take the opening scene with the foreshadowing witches very seriously, as during that time the majority of people believed in witches. Whereas a modern day audience may feel these scenes are less

They poison his mind with these prophecies, making him greedy and bringing out the evil qualities in his soul. When the first of the prophecies is proven true, Macbeth then considers the idea of murdering Duncan for the first time. This is his first step on the journey to his downfall, as the Three Witches had planned. The Three Witches plan has succeeded, they had brought out the greed in Macbeth, allowing him to make the most important decision - to kill King Duncan. Macbeth's malevolence and deceptiveness are sown further when he becomes so obsessed with the witches prophecies to his own friend Banquo, that he decides to hire men to kill him and his son Fleance. After Macbeth went through the murder of Duncan and Banquo, he slowly lost his sanity, it is at this point that the witches were easily able to control his mind. They have succeeded in bringing out the Evil qualities in Macbeth and are ready to finish their game and make sure Macbeth continues to spiral downward. With Hecates' lead, the witches plan to bring Macbeth to his death by making him overconfident, they do this by presenting him with three apparitions. The first appears as an armed head that speaks,

They told Macbeth his prophesies in order for him to act on them and do something about it. Overall, it was Macbeth who made the wrongful decisions that determined his fate. Macbeth believes in the prophecies that the witches tell him. They predict Macbeth will be Thane of Cawdor and eventually the King, Banquo will be “lesser than Macbeth and greater, not so happy, and yet happier,” and that his descendants will be Kings although he will not be one. No matter how and in what way they influenced him, it was ultimately his doing. Each prophecy came with an apparition that predicted Macbeth’s biggest fears. Later in the play Macbeth reaches out to the witches to have him reveal the truth of each

William Shakespeare’s play Macbeth explores how Macbeth’s demise was a result of a number of different flaws and circumstances. Shakespeare reveals how the supernatural witches influence Macbeth’s tragic demise. The witches gave prophecies to Macbeth that he would become king of Scotland and that he will be “thane of Glamis. Thane of Cawdor” and “king”. These caused Macbeth to do things that lead to his downfall. Even though the witches tricked Macbeth and also they made him think of killing Banquo and his son by telling him that Banquo and his sons will be kings. The prophecies gave Macbeth confidence to murder more people. The witches are immoral and deceiving, they lead to the dishonesty of his Macbeth. Macbeth creates

In the play The Tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare, many characters helped with the murder of King Duncan and Banquo. However, one can see that Lady Macbeth is the leader in the play. There are many times that clearly demonstrate that Lady Macbeth is indeed the main culprit. Macbeth has many moments where he second guesses himself and is afraid to follow up with his plans. He also acts overly nice and compared to Lady Macbeth seems scared.

It seems pretty evident that the Three Witches and their prophecies have a large role in influencing the downfall of Macbeth. When they tell him he is to be the Thane of Cawdor and then king, he is skeptical.

"Yet I do fear thy nature, it is too full o'th milk of human kindness.

Shakespeare’s “Macbeth” has many dark scenes and tones with tragic endings. Macbeth, the main character, is a subject to Shakespeare’s tragic endings, along with Macbeth’s wife, Lady Macbeth. Throughout the play, three witches appear to Macbeth three times and tell him prophecies. These fortunes deceive and confuse Macbeth when he tries to figure them out, eventually leading him to his downfall. Macbeth tells Lady Macbeth about these prophecies as well, and she encourages Macbeth to carry out what the prophecies said which also helps lead Macbeth to his bitter end. Like a moth drawn to a flame, the husband and wife both want to have as much power as possible. These three main characters, the three witches, Macbeth, and Lady Macbeth, are the pivotal characters in the tragedy.

The three witches advance the use of dramatic irony throughout the entire play. First, the witches reveal to Macbeth that he can achieve the role of being king. In Act One, the witches say, “All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be King hereafter!” (1.3.50). Macbeth gullibly believes the prophecy, and from here on, his motives and ambitions change. Though he does eventually take the role as king, it does not result in the life he wished to have. Shortly after Macbeth is enthroned; the witches reveal three apparitions about him that cause him to believe he will remain a powerful king. The first apparition is an armed head that symbolizes that Macbeth should only beware of Macduff. The second shows a bloody child that means nobody born of a woman can ever harm Macbeth. The third is a child holding a tree which depicts that, “Macbeth shall never vanquish'd be until Great Birnam wood to high Dunsinane hill shall come against him” (4.1.87-90). These three apparitions boost the confidence in the king, and he believes he has nothing to fear. The predictions end up being true, but not at all what is expected. A summary, written by David Schlachter, explains how the witches bring suspense into the play. Schlachter says, “This irony would make the audience mistrust the witches in the back of their minds, and therefore, also put a vague fear over the whole play because of the realization of the witches’ relentless sinister determination to disrupt peace and order in Scotland.” The ironic event that takes place through this is what happens towards the end of the play. At the end, Macduff reveals that he is not born of woman; therefore, he can kill

Look very carefully at Act 1, scene 3 (L.30 - 62) and comment on the

The three witches are a dominant source of evil in Macbeth. They are the first characters introduced, emphasizing their significance in the play as well as their aura of darkness. Their first meeting takes place in thunder and lightening, a dark, chaotic, and dangerous environment, which sets the tone and atmosphere for the rest of the play . They also use a multitude of paradoxical and contradictory statements, indicating a sense of deception (1.1.2-10). They say that the battle, referring to the battle between Scotland, led by Banquo and Macbeth, and the armies of Ireland and Norway, will be “ere the set of sun,”(1.1.5). The witches mean that this battle will be finished by the time the sun has set, leaving any following events to occur in darkness. In their second meeting, their evil and power is accentuated when they describe their actions; killing swine and wrecking the ships of sailors (1.3. 2-30). This foreshadow’s the dark consequences of their meeting with Macbeth. Furthermore, the witches act as Macbeth’s stimulus into a descent into evil. The witches take advantage of Macbeth’s covert desire for power, and influence him to fulfill his own prophecy, to quench their own desire for a world of chaos. The line, “ All hail Macbeth that shalt be King