Shakespeare uses dramatic techniques such as the sound of thunder to symbolise the dark and sinister tone of the play, however the thunder also gives the witches an impression of power- the power to influence even the strongest of minds e.g. Macbeth. In the first scene the three witches say: “Fair is foul and foul is fair”, the language used in this quote suggests that the witches have plotted something that will turn the minds of people into thinking good is bad and bad is good, Macbeth’s in particular. This statement made by the witches also gives the audience the impression that it is in fact the witches who are in control because they sound as if they are saying what is in the mind of Macbeth, suggesting that Macbeth’s mind has been filled with evil ambitions.
Another character that greatly influences the murder of Duncan is Lady Macbeth who simply “adds fuel to the fire” as far as Macbeth’s selfish desires are concerned. This is shown as Lady Macbeth constantly tries to coax her husband into committing the murder which drives on the evil ambitions that were perhaps already in his mind due to the witches’ prophecy. One could say that because Lady Macbeth makes her husband take his ambitions (which are created by the witches) one step further and make him kill Duncan she is the most important reason for the murder.
Upon hearing of the prophecy she immediately tries to persuade Macbeth to kill Duncan however when Macbeth is reluctant she starts to mock him by calling him a coward and says she is ashamed to have a husband like him. After Macbeth eventually agrees, his wife seems to seize control of the situation. This is shown when she says to Macbeth: “you shall put this night’s great business into my dispatch”. The language used here by Shakespeare is indicative of the fact that it is Lady Macbeth who is the one in control; the first two words “you shall” make the sentence sound imposing and commanding as if Macbeth must obey his wife and carry out the dastardly deed his wife calls “great business”. The following scene is clearly a demonstration of how deceitful Lady Macbeth can be. It seemed that despite only moments before Lady Macbeth had been plotting to kill Duncan, she is able to greet him as a gracious hostess. This is once again an example of “fair is foul” she is being fair to Duncan while her inner thoughts are foul. The character of Lady Macbeth is greatly manipulated by Shakespeare who really gives her the impression of the “Evil Mastermind” by showing her determination to carry out such a heinous act and ability to control her husband. In Act 1 Scene 6 rather than her husband she goes to welcome Duncan in case he can not keep his cool which highlights the fact that she is the one planning everything out and that her husband despite being the “great” Thane of Cawdor has to stand aside.
Shakespeare shows Macbeth as a man who is not in control of himself and he does this by firstly using soliloquy in Act 1 Scene 7 where Macbeth says: “If it were done when ‘tis done, then ‘twere well it were done quickly”. This quote suggests that Macbeth wants to get the deed over and done with as he wants to escape from the dilemma in which the three witches and his wife have put him. The fact that it is a soliloquy suggests that he is talking to himself when he is alone and that he can’t take his mind off the task his wife has told him to do. Act 1 Scene 7 shows Macbeth’s battle with his conscience which highlights the dilemma he is in and the fact that he can’t decide what to do which eventually leads him to a decision that is affected by his will to escape quickly from his predicament. This is shown when Macbeth says: “Strong both against the deed; then as is host, who should against his murderer shut the door”. The phrase “then as is host” suggests that he is contemplating both options; either kill Duncan to get the glory or be loyal to him and be a good host. The escapism that is present in Macbeth’s mind starts clouding his judgement and leads to the murder of Duncan. The soliloquy gives the audience an insight into Macbeth’s mind and allows them to witness the battle between his conscience and the temptation of killing Duncan. This also lets the audience know that despite Lady Macbeth being in control most of the time, Macbeth is still trying to decide what the right thing to do is. However, the soliloquy shows that he eventually gives into the temptation, possibly due to the escapism which stems from the battle in his mind.
I think that the three witches are partly responsible for the murder of Duncan because of their prophecy which ignited thoughts of power in Macbeth’s mind however his wife can also be seen as the culprit due to the scheme she hatched. In addition to this she also took advantage of her husband’s dilemma and manipulated him into killing Duncan. It is possible that Macbeth’s selfish desires already existed (after all he is proclaimed a great warrior) and that the witches and his wife simply “added fuel to the fire”. It is also likely that fate influenced the murder of Duncan by making Macbeth meet the witches and also by Macbeth becoming the Thane of Cawdor which strengthened his trust in the witches’ prophecy. Shakespeare uses various techniques in order to encourage the audience to consider Macbeth to not be responsible nonetheless he was the one who physically committed the murder which is evidence that he is partly responsible. To sum up, I feel that Macbeth, the three witches and his wife all were partially responsible for the murder with fate arguably playing a small part.
