"The supernatural is the force responsible for many of theevents of Macbeth." How far do you agree with this statement?

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“The supernatural is the force responsible for many of the events of Macbeth.” How far do you agree with this statement?

Throughout the play Macbeth goes through many changes, but the question is ‘what is responsible for these changes?’ Responsible means to have control over something or someone – something definitely has control over Macbeth, whether he himself has this control or the supernatural or even Lady Macbeth does I will be discussing in this essay. I will also decide what I think is responsible for the actions that Macbeth takes in the play.

The supernatural may not be completely responsible for Macbeth’s actions but they almost certainly play an important part in the development of Macbeth’s character. Because the supernatural was a force that was believed in by everyone at that time Macbeth is willing to deem what they say: -

Macbeth: Into the air; and what seem’d corporal melted

        As breath into the wind. Would they have stayed.

Banquo: Were such things here as we do speak about?

Or have we eaten on the insane root

That takes the reason prisoner?

This extract is taken from after the witches’ first appearance in the play. Banquo is interested as to what they are, whereas Macbeth is intrigued about what they said. This could be the turning point for Macbeth’s development, the witch’s predict that he will become King so maybe Macbeth thinks that he should help things along and that by killing the present King it wouldn’t be disrupting the great chain of being because he would have become King anyway.

In the first scene when the witch’s first appear they immediately overturn ideas of good into bad with an incantation, “Fair is foul and foul is fair.” This could be responsible for Macbeth turning from a kind-hearted, considerate man into an insensitive, callous man. But this could be because of how Macbeth interprets their predictions, the witch’s never actually told Macbeth to go and kill the king, they just said “All hail Macbeth, that shalt be King hereafter!” The witch’s said no more about him becoming king or how he would become king. Banquo realises that they are a temptation and does not believe them, however they told Macbeth what he wanted to hear so they ratified his thoughts. But Macbeth never admits to acting on the basis of what they told him, “…damned all those that trust them…” Macbeth says this quite near to the end, after he has killed Duncan, Banquo and just before he has Macduff’s family killed. Him having Macduff’s family killed is also because of the witches, “Macbeth, Macbeth, Macbeth, beware Macduff.” This was the witch’s first apparition in their second appearance in the play (they appear three times in total because three is a magical number and it sets the supernatural atmosphere that is the theme of ‘Macbeth.) Soon after, Macbeth decides to have Macduff’s family killed as a reprisal. I think that the witch’s manage to have Macbeth put ‘under their spell’ after the first prediction comes true “He bade me, from him, call thee Thane of Cawdor.” This gives Macbeth proof that the witch’s know his future and what lies in store for him.

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The dagger can be interpreted in two ways; either as a hallucination or a real dagger the witch’s made in an incantation to tempt Macbeth further. Firstly I will talk about the dagger as a hallucination. Macbeth is a tragic hero and every tragic has a fatal flaw; Macbeth’s fatal flaw is ambition. Throughout the play he lets his ambition get the better of him and this ambition could be what drives him into hallucinating about the dagger because at this early point in the play Macbeth is still unsure of whether he should be killing the king or ...

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