Discussing the role of the witches in Macbeth

Also when the witches speak, the speak in a chant-like rhyme- "Fair is foul, and foul is fair, hover through the fog and filthy air."

The witches use rhyming couplets such as "Fair" which rhymes with "Air."

Also throughout the play opposites such as Light and Dark and Good and Evil, are used to show contradicting forces.

In Act 1 Scene 2 Macbeth fought bravely against the strong force of the Norwegian troops. When Duncan of Macbeth's bravery he confers on him the brave title "Thane of Cawdor" after the previous Thane of Cawdor was recently found a traitor.

Before this news reaches Macbeth, he meets the witches in Act 1 Scene 3.

In this scene, the witches are portrayed as "Instruments of darkness." In weather such as thunder, the witches are plotting to torment a sea captain who's wife insulted them.

Banquo described the witches as unearthly, ugly and wild as they have beards.

The witches make three predictions for Macbeth. They hail him as the Thane of Glamis, Thane of Cawdor and King hereafter.

They also prophecies that Banquo's descendants will be kings but he himself will not.

The witches also make more predictions for banquo such as "Lesser than Macbeth, and greater" and "Not so happy, yet much happier" meaning he will be not so happy because he will have an early death, but he will be happier as he doesnt have to suffer wit the guilt of killing so many people.

When Banquo hears of the prophecies, he thinks that they are ridiclous and he doesn't believe or trust them as they came from witches and may be a trick leading to evil.

Banquo notices that Macbeth is fearful because he is thinking about what he would have to do to become king. The Witches then vanish.

Ross and Lennox appear bearing the news that Macbeth is the Thane of Cawdor, which furfils the second of the three prophecies made by the evil witches for Macbeth.

Macbeth is badly affected by the witches prophecies, and is shown by the extreme action he takes in killing his good friend Banquo and the King Duncan.

By killing the King he has done something which is sacrilegious because a king is God's representative in human form on earth.

Macbeth hopes that he will not have to kill anyone to become king, and that nature will take it's course.

In Act 4 Scene 1 Macbeth revisits the witches to find out what his future is going to turn out like. This time the witches were in a desolate place, with thunderous weather. When Macbeth meets them, his firsts words are "I conjure you" this language makes him sound like "one of them" and is a sign of evil and how it is taking over Macbeth.

Macbeth is given three apparitations each with a prophecy-

) None of woman born shall harm Macbeth

2) Beware Macduff beware thane of Fife

3) Macbeth will not be defeated until Birnam Wood comes to Dunsinane.

The three prophecies appear in the form of apparitions which look very evil like a bloody child.

The predictions made by the witches have double meanings which the witches use to their advantage. They make Macbeth believe that he is invincible and that it is impossible for a wood to move. This causes him to have Macduffs family killed.

In this meeting, the witches appear much more stereotypical with a cauldron and are blasphemous because the contents are associated with evil and parts of a Christian child are used in the cauldron.

Another technique used by Shakespeare to make the witches seem evil was in the language "double, double toil and trouble" which had alliteration with the vowels, aswell as with the consinants "the of the words sound similar.) Also "Fire burn and cauldron bubble" has onomatopoeia - bubble sounds how it is said. In the scene rhyming couplets and repetition such as Trouble and Bubble are used by the witches.

The witches tricked Macbeth into making their prophecies come true by misleading him with half-truths (equivocation,) he was their project to wreak havoc in Scotland because the could not do it on their own. According to Celtic myth witches had limited power because they could not control destiny, and the witches decided to take advantage of Macbeth's ambition to become king, who they knew would act upon their predictions to become king.

However it was their predictions, and Macbeth's ambition which led to Macbeth killing Macduffs family, and Macduff killing Macbeth in bitter revenge.

The downfall of Macbeth is down to himslef, Lady Macbeth and the Witches.

The witches had Macbeth under their control as he believed what they said and acted upon it. He had "fallen into the sere of the yellow leaf" because they began the whole thing and tempted Macbeth with predictions of him becoming king which had even more of an effect when he was made Thane of Cawdor. This targeted Macbeth's weakness- his ambition then misleading him with half truths.

Macbeth was responsible because in the end it was his own choice, and he didn't have to act on what the Witches or anyone else had said.

Lady Macbeth was also responsible because she was power hungry. This was because as she was Macbeth's wife, she would become the Kings wife if he went that far.

In early parts of the play, she is in control and is practical as she plans Duncans murder and also knows about Macbeth's weakness which is his ambition.

Lady Macbeth also taunts him for lack of manliness.

In Act 1 Scene 7 Lady Macbeth also claims that they will not fail, but ironicallyshe is not as strong as she first apears and shows her first signs of weakness when she says she would hav killed Duncan herself if she did not look like her father.

Lady Macbeth is also ruthless as shown in the scene where she recieves a letter from Macbeth.

Overall I think that without the witches Macbeth would not have gone to the lengths he did, and would not have acted in the smae way.

With the witches, they strengthened Macbeth's evil nature and the importance of loyalty and order in the kingdom.

Chris Cowley