Self Determinism In Macbeth

Macbeth is the unquestionably the main character in the book Macbeth by William Shakespeare, however we can question whether or not Macbeth’s free will is legitimate, and I say he is tied by fate and/or chance throughout the play. This essay will expose how outside forces influence and destroy the nature of self-determinism in Macbeth by looking at how the words the witches say relate to the words Macbeth speaks verbally, the witches’ predictions and the fulfilling of the witches’ prophecies.

Elements before the first encounter between Macbeth and the witches show that the mind that Macbeth has, is not his. Before even seeing Macbeth, the witches mutter his words before we see him saying them, the two words said by both parties are “foul”

These three significant apparitions “beware Macduff” and “none of woman born shall harm Macbeth” and “Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane hill shall come against him”. The apparitions are not the important things in this specific argument, it is Macbeth’s responses to these apparitions that are vital factors. Macbeth’s response to the first apparition shows how he clearly believes he is a slave to their words by saying that is fear was “harped” and he also thanks them for having “good caution” which shows that he is relying on their predictions instead of his own instinct and believes that he is doing the right thing to survive, he believes that doing as the witches say will lead to his survival. The second apparition Macbeth responds by saying, “what I need fear thee?” and saying that he will “take a bond with fate” and saying that this person “shalt not live”. This shows how the witches are using Macbeth’s ego to make him feel strong, even though they are only setting him up for doom. Macbeth shows the same attitude while processing the third apparition, because he chooses to do what the witches have told do, they told him to be “lion-hearted”, and Macbeth listens to their demands and makes his mind-set match the mind-set that the witches want Macbeth to have. These predictions

I think that William Shakespeare is showing us that Macbeth has been tied to a prophecy and it is now time for them all to be fulfilled. In the beginning, we are told about Macbeth become “king hereafter”, we know that he does become king when he murders king Duncan and says that the “deed is done”. This shows how Macbeth’s mind became a well of damage when he begins hallucinating and saying, “Is this a dagger which I see before me”. I believe that these thoughts are what lead him to kill Duncan, and they act as images that the witches would supernaturally place into Macbeth’s mind. Macbeth did help us test whether or not we could truly trust the witches’ predictions sending out murderers to murder Banquo and his son Fleance, the witches show that they will not release their grip on Macbeth when one of the murderers says “Fleance, is ‘scaped.”This event lets us know that Macbeth cannot impact any outside factors because the witches have already determined the future, by ensuring that Fleance is still an available heir. The final prophecy is the one that is leading to the time and place of Macduff, before being murdered by Macduff, Macbeth confesses that he let the witches manipulate him by saying, “accursed be that tongue that tells me so”. We now know that Macbeth realizes that he has no free will until the time of his death. The prophecies answer all the questions about Macbeth’s free will, he will only be free, when