Discuss Shakespeares presentation of the witches in Macbeth.

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‘Discuss Shakespeare’s presentation of the witches in ‘Macbeth’.

“Withered women with beards, secret, black, and midnight hags, filthy hags and juggling fiends…” But why did Shakespeare present the witches in such an unflattering way?

Shakespeare was born in Stratford upon Avon, he married Anne Hathaway and had children, went to London and found work acting and writing plays and at the end of his life he returned to Stratford.  His mother was Mary Arden, born of Robert Arden; a wealthy yeoman farmer.  Shakespeare wrote the play, “Macbeth” based loosely on eleventh-century Scotland.  He wrote this play to please and entertain the King and he made it relevant to their lives by bringing ‘realism’ with the characters of the witches.  He selected, altered and added to the story to achieve the greatest dramatic outcome.  He invented Lady Macbeth’s sleepwalking and suicide, Banquo’s ghost (and therefore the banquet scene), and most of the cauldron scenes.  He also changed the perception of Duncan from an ineffectual king into an old and revered ruler, and omitted Macbeths ten years of good rule.

The play was first performed in the sixteenth century, during this time, witches were terrifying characters.  People believed witches could speak with the devil, kill or maim people, fly, become invisible and could control the weather.  Thousands of women were tortured and executed because they were accused of witchcraft.  This is why it is so significant that the production of Macbeth opens with thunder and lightening, and the entering of three witches; the audience at the time would have been petrified of them.

The witches are portrayed in the play as gruesome, unpleasant and evil characters.  Factors contributing to this are the deeply descriptive imagery they use; ”liver of blaspheming Jew”, “fillet of a fenny snake”, while casting spells, which is so vivid that we can imagine before us this cauldron of animal remnants.  Not only is the language used by the witches ugly, but also they are also ugly, being described as “filthy”, “withered”, “wild and bearded”, which is never a good look… Although the director’s interpretation of the appearance of the witches alters from play to play, mostly they are associated with ugliness.  The witches also show complete disregard for any social difference between woman and man; which would have been apparent at the time Shakespeare wrote the play.  Although socially we have overcome the difference between sexes and now witches are not generally feared, the grotesque language and ugliness of the witches allows them to remain feared and prominent characters today, even more so for those who still believe in the existence of witches.

The play goes forth: Macbeth and Banquo, victorious Lords serving Duncan, King of Scotland, meet three witches who prophesy that Macbeth “shalt be King hereafter”. Lady Macbeth helps persuade her husband to murder Duncan while he is a guest at their castle. Malcolm, son and heir to Duncan, flees to England. Macbeth, now King, has Banquo murdered, whose ghost subsequently appears to him at a banquet. When the witches warn Macbeth to “beware Macduff”, a nobleman who has gone to England, he has Macduff's wife and children murdered. Macduff and Malcolm raise an army against Macbeth. Lady Macbeth dies, possibly through suicide. Macbeth is killed by Macduff and Malcolm is crowned King of Scotland.

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The witches introduce the story which quickly establishes the mood and themes; such as good verses evil, of the play.  It creates tension and drama at an early stage of the production, scaring the audience and capturing their attention.  The fact the witches’ mention Macbeths name, “There to meet Macbeth”, links him with evil immediately, even before we have come across the character.  The stage directions in Act One Scene One show an “open space”; which allows the audience’s imagination to run wild, while it remains a timeless and universal setting, and thunder and lightening.  The thunder and lightening ...

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