Macbeth And Witches Essay, Research Paper

Macbeth by William Shakespeare tells the story of how one mans love of power

leads him to murder and madness. Macbeth is a great soldier, a man that is fit

to be king. He was ? thought most worthy the government of a realm?.

However, it is his ambition to be King, spurred on by his wife and the witches

that finally lead him to destruction and we are left wondering how such a

?noble? man can do such vile deeds. Lady Macbeth and the Witches are more

responsible for the murders that occur in the play than Macbeth. When Macbeth

first hears the witches prophecies, ? All hail, Macbeth! That shalt be King

hereafter? he does think of killing the king, but then he thinks he wont need

to do anything about it: ? If chance will have me king, why chance may crown

me without my stir? However, when Lady Macbeth hears about the prophecies she

immediately starts to think that both she and her husband will have to kill

Duncan. She appeals to the evil spirits to give her strength to kill Duncan as

she rightly believes that Macbeth is too nice and too ? ful o?the milk of

human kindness? to do the deed. She view thing in either black or white and

has none of Macbeth?s ability to see what may happen afterwards. She summons

Hell to get thing done and doesn?t think of the consequences, while Macbeth

thinks only of damnation. Because Macbeth loves his wife and wants her to think

well of him he can?t bear not to do what she asks. He says before he kills

Duncan that he will feel nothing but guilt, but he still does it anyhow. ? I

am settled, and bend up Each corporal agent to this terrible feat. Away, and

mock the time with fairest show; False face must hide what the false heart doth

know.? The three witches, three sisters without names or individual

characteristics, represent the power of evil and trap Macbeth into doing his

evil deeds. At first, after considering that he could commit murder to achieve

what the witches propose, he puts aside the idea. However, by the second act ,

he no longer attempts to stifle his conscience , and seems to accept that the

murder of Duncan is inevitable.. ? I go and it is done: the bell invites me

? Macbeth of course was free to resist, but it seems that without the powers

of evil that the witches represent, he wouldnot have done it.