Written in 1606, William Shakespeare’s Macbeth has been a true example of tragedy for readers to enjoy, even centuries from its birth. The play begins with a scene that introduces the three witches, who are a vital piece of the puzzle that is Macbeth. Mischievous and magical as they are, the witches predict that Macbeth, a highly praised war hero, will become king. Among many other issues, Macbeth’s biggest hurdle with proving the prediction to be true, is King Duncan. In order to acquire the crown, King Duncan could no longer be in the picture. The reader follows Macbeth on his downward descent into madness, and along the journey, encounters several important characters and aspects, such as the witches, and their terribly evil intentions,
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Early Christians held the belief that pagan magic was the human-enticing work of the Devil himself, and as a result of this, those who were accused and convicted of participating in such deplorable acts were convicted accordingly. In the play, the witches are labelled as the evil force that is ever-present in the lives of the main characters. As characters, they provide supernatural elements that are important to the play as a whole. One of the supernatural abilities that the witches possess is predicting the future. In the First Act, the witches are giving the reader a blatant view of the ending by saying/chanting the phrase "When the hurlyburly's done/ When the battle's lost and won"(1.1, 3-4). This is an obvious prediction of the chaos ending in Scotland, and of the battle coming to a close. Not only is this an ominous prediction, but it is also a display of how powerful The Witches can be. Witches were portrayed as mysterious women who lived to cause trouble. This is evident in the play, specifically when one of the witches replied with "Killing swine." (1.3,2) upon being asked where she previously was. She was simply out in Scotland, causing trouble and displaying The Witches malicious behavior perfectly. …show more content…
The witches’ magical abilities establish the very basis of the play, had they not predicted what they did, the play would not exist (or it would be quite boring!). In reference to the supernatural aspects of pathetic fallacy, it provides captivating themes for the reader to enjoy and gives a broader sense of Macbeth’s ill intentions in a metaphorical sense. It allows for one to think critically, and piece clues together to possibly determine the outcome of the play before reading it. As a whole, the supernatural elements of Macbeth add something to the piece that charms the reader and keeps things
Early Christians held the belief that pagan magic was the human-enticing work of the Devil himself, and as a result of this, those who were accused and convicted of participating in such deplorable acts were convicted accordingly. In the play, the witches are labelled as the evil force that is ever-present in the lives of the main characters. As characters, they provide supernatural elements that are important to the play as a whole. One of the supernatural abilities that the witches possess is predicting the future. In the First Act, the witches are giving the reader a blatant view of the ending by saying/chanting the phrase "When the hurlyburly's done/ When the battle's lost and won"(1.1, 3-4). This is an obvious prediction of the chaos ending in Scotland, and of the battle coming to a close. Not only is this an ominous prediction, but it is also a display of how powerful The Witches can be. Witches were portrayed as mysterious women who lived to cause trouble. This is evident in the play, specifically when one of the witches replied with "Killing swine." (1.3,2) upon being asked where she previously was. She was simply out in Scotland, causing trouble and displaying The Witches malicious behavior perfectly. …show more content…
The witches’ magical abilities establish the very basis of the play, had they not predicted what they did, the play would not exist (or it would be quite boring!). In reference to the supernatural aspects of pathetic fallacy, it provides captivating themes for the reader to enjoy and gives a broader sense of Macbeth’s ill intentions in a metaphorical sense. It allows for one to think critically, and piece clues together to possibly determine the outcome of the play before reading it. As a whole, the supernatural elements of Macbeth add something to the piece that charms the reader and keeps things