How does Shakespeare Create Sympathy for Macbeth?

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How does Shakespeare Create Sympathy

for Macbeth?

In Shakespeare's Macbeth, he uses four main techniques to create a feeling of sympathy for Macbeth. These come in the forms of; the witches, Lady Macbeth, Banquo (Macbeth's friend) and Macbeth himself. The play is set in Scotland and starts with a dramatic stormy scene featuring the witches.

To create sympathy Shakespeare creates the three witches who set Macbeth upon his murderous path. They appear in the first scene, which is long enough to awaken curiosity but not to satisfy it. The practice of witchcraft was seen to subvert the established order of religion and society, and hence was not tolerated. They create a dream for Macbeth, being Thane of Glamis, then Thane of Cawdor and later the King. As Macbeth is already Thane of Glamis, he does not believe the witches straight away. However, he is then made Thane of Cawdor by the King as a reward for the braveness he showed during the battle at the beginning of the play. When he is given the title of Thane of Cawdor, he begins to believe the earlier predictions made by the witches, and starts to believe that maybe