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The Three Witches In Macbeth By William Shakespeare

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How would the shakespeare drama Macbeth change if the three witches had never been included in the story? It would be completely different, in fact there would be no story! Although the three witches only appear in the play 4 times and their lines are limited they have a dominant and commanding presence. The 4 times they appear throughout the story end up impacting multiple aspects of the play: characters, themes, and plot. From their initial appearance the three witches can be contrasted with catalysts as they work to evolve Macbeth and other characters. Macbeth at the beginning of the play is seen as a meek soldier with small ambitions. Quickly from the interaction Macbeth has with the witches he is transformed into a neurotic power seeking …show more content…

Early on in the play readers are introduced to Macbeth as being a character of high stature. As the witches prophecies entail, Macbeth is rising in the political ranks, starting with Thane of Glamis and working his way up to King! Macbeth is obviously a very honourable and (INSERT WORD ) character. A tragic hero though does not stay very honourable and respectable for long. Readers see throughout the play that with the influence of the witches prophecies Macbeth’s blind ambition leads him down a path of destruction. Following with the idea of a tragic hero though, Macbeth 's biggest flaw is his ambition as well as (((impressionability))). He is so impressionable by the prophecies the three witches provide him with as well as Lady Macbeth 's persuasive words. His ambition blinds him from seeing that the prophecies of becoming king, and not being killed by a man born of woman are leading him to his own death! The Witches also told Macbeth to be bold and brave which lead him to be a little too (((Insert word))) so he does little to protect himself and the castle. The most revealing part of Macbeth being a tragic hero is when the prophecy "The power of man, for none of woman born / Shall harm Macbeth" (4.1.96-97) ends up being construed. Macduff marched upon Macbeth and ends up beheading him because although Macduff had technically been born from a woman, at birth he had been ripped from his mothers womb. This sort of death leads Macbeth into solidifying himself as a tragic hero. It also shows how vulnerable Macbeth was to the witches super natural abilities in affecting his

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Greed for power has always been evil and even made a saint turn into a demon. As the quote goes “All power tends to corrupt and an absolute power corrupts absolutely” (unquote), which is true not only in the fictitious stories but also in real life and Shakespeare, th9e greatest writer ever known, has always been in habit of making fictitious character come alive and Macbeth is no exception to the rule. The character of Macbeth has two sides, one which is wholesome while other been dubious. He symbolized great ambition but went overboard and in the process not only became corrupt but also became a killer. Macbeth reflects great strength but within he has his own weakness and thus good over took evil resulting in its downfall and finally his own death.

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Many people believe it is the witches that drive the plot, however this is not true. The witches do play a part in driving the plot but MacBeth is the main character who carries out the actions. The witches gave MacBeth the ambition by saying "All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!" (I.iii.53). However it is ultimately MacBeth that decides to act on the ambition granted to him.

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When we are first presented with the character of Macbeth he is pictured as a noble and loyal warrior. However, once his future is presented to him by the witches saying that he, Macbeth, is to become the next great King of Scotland, he begins to lose focus and makes the wrong decisions. Macbeth begins to only make choices that will benefit only himself and to gain power. Becoming almost unrecognizable to the person he once was. After confronting his wife, Lady Macbeth, he isn't the only one with a lust for power.

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Macbeth’s mental condition begins to dwindle as time goes on, starting with the murder of Duncan. At first, Macbeth is seen as a soldier that everyone aspires to be, strong, brave, and compassionate about his duties to the king. In act one scene two, Captain says, “...For brave Macbeth-well he deserves that name-...” This shows that he is a likeable person who has only the objective of serving his king. After meeting with the witches and hearing his prophecy, Macbeth starts to think about what it would be like to be king of Scotland.

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At the beginning of William Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’ the protagonist Macbeth is described as ‘brave’, ‘noble’ and ‘honourable’, however Lady Macbeth’s and Macbeths desire for power consumes them. Macbeth’s ambition overrides his conscience and transformed his greatest strength into his greatest weakness. Macbeth’s inability to resist temptations that led him to be greedy for power, Macbeth’s easily manipulative nature which allowed his mind to be swayed, Macbeth having no self control and his excessive pride was what allowed him to renew his previously honourable and celebrated title into one of an evil ‘tyrant’. Macbeth is led by the prophecies of the witches after they foretell he will become the Thane of Cawdor. Not only the witches, but also his wife easily manipulate Macbeth as she attacks his manhood in order to provoke him to act on his desires.

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Influence of Witchcraft In Shakespeare’s day witches were not merely a novelty character brought out as a joke around Halloween. It was widely believed that witches were real and that they possessed powers that were considered to be of the devil. This belief in witchcraft eventually led to a widespread panic that was followed by the persecution of witches. Due to this belief in witchcraft at the time Macbeth was written and performed; the tone was already set. Shakespeare used this fear to create suspense within the play and it led to the involvement of the weird sisters and the crazed actions committed by Macbeth and his wife.

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William Shakespeare, playwright of Macbeth, shows the importance that power and corruption can hold on a person’s humanity. In order to prove the true effect of personal gains, he uses the main character, Macbeth, to show how evil people are willing to become. Personal power has the ability to be essential to greatness, but at the same time is able to destroy a person’s true nature. Believe it or not, Macbeth once was a man of honor. At the beginning of the play, Macbeth was loyal to King Duncan, a strong military leader, and a respected husband.

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“ I have no spur To prick the sides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition which o’erleaps itself And falls on the other” (I, vii, 26-28) Macbeth's fatal flaw is too much ambition and he even says it himself. This quote is very ironic because he says that ambition will make people rush into disaster, which is exactly what happens to him later on.

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In today’s society many people possess strong ambition when it comes to getting a job, following a passion and being immensely successful in life. Having an abundance of aspirations can have both successful and faulty outcomes depending on the situation and how individuals respond to the circumstance. For example, in the play **Macbeth written by Shakespeare, a prime example of an excessive amount of ambition is displayed through both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s actions. Essentially, Macbeth becomes power hungry and goes on a rampant killing spree that causes Lady Macbeth and Macbeth to be overcome with guilt. They both contain an excessive amount of desires due to their ultimate goal being for Macbeth to be crowned king.

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“Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood clean from my hand? No, this my hand will rather the multitudinous seas incarnadine, making the green one red.” (Act II, Scene II) Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare in the 1600’s, is the shortest of Shakespearian tragedies. The main character, Macbeth, receives a prophecy that he will become King of Scotland. Ambition takes over him and he commits many murders to keep the throne.

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Shakespeare engineered a most impressionable character in Macbeth who easily succumbs to the extensive magnitude of opposing constraints. This character is Macbeth, who is the protagonist in the play and husband to a conniving wife, who in the end is the sole cause for Macbeth 's undoing. Conflicting forces in the play compel internal conflicts within Macbeth to thrive on his contentment and sanity as he his torn asunder between devotion, aspiration, morality and his very own being. He has developed a great sense of loyalty from being a brave soldier; however, his ambition soon challenges this allegiance. As his sincerity begins to deteriorate, his own sanity starts to disintegrate until the point where he cannot differentiate between reality

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What seemed like a fearless soldier soon would have his life turned around by his own innocent ambition that furthermore evolved into blinding greed, need for power, and selfishness. This soldier was Macbeth, he didn 't realize the toll this had on his mental health and others. Macbeth had many distinct layers to him that he personally didn 't know he acquired over the course of time. This is what you 'd call a complex character, one who can 't be cognized yet till you fully get to know their mindset and thoughts. Traditionally this would be a great way to describe Macbeth, throughout this book readers slowly started to comprehend his intentions and actions .

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The witches played a colossal role in Macbeth’s downfall and ultimately, his death. Since the first part of the prophecy stated Macbeth as being the new Thane of Cawdor, he believed he could continue to become king as well. In knowing his prediction, Macbeth also realized that since the king was in good health, so he would have to kill the king himself. For the rest of his prophecy to come true he would have to kill the king for himself. “All hail, Macbeth that shalt be king hereafter!”

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William Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, the main character; Macbeth, is seen as an evil character. The play is based off of Macbeth’s decisions and his actions to become King. In the beginning Macbeth starts out as a hero in Scotland’s war with Ireland and towards the end he is transformed into a murderer. Macbeth is not wholly evil because of is heroism in the war, his love for Scotland, and because he didn’t want to kill King Duncan initially. Macbeth was brain washed by his wife and tricked into killing the King.

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703 Words | 3 Pages

He let his ambitions take control of his actions. Macbeth is a tragic hero because he redeemed a small measure of his nobility. He redeemed himself by fighting until the end of his life. He understood his fate and still fought.

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