How Did Hitler Influence Macbeth

In January 1933, Germany let a man by the name of Adolf Hitler come into power. With the worldwide depression hitting Germany hard and the humiliating defeat Germany had had in WWI, they were lacking confidence in their government. With that, Hitler rose to be the chancellor and began influencing the country all throughout WWII. Much like Hitler had influence on Germany through WWII, the Weird Sisters from William Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Macbeth had the most power to influence characters in the play.

In the beginning of the play, Macbeth is okay with being a warrior and fighting in battle. He is recognized for his bravery and defeat of the King of Norway. While walking through the forest, Macbeth and his companion Banquo come across three witches known as the Weird Sisters. There they are told a prophecy that proclaims Macbeth to be Thane and then king and that Banquo would be father to future generations of kings (I.iii.149-170). If the Weird Sisters had not told Macbeth, the prophecy he would not have taken action to fulfill the prophecy
In the beginning of the play Lady Macbeth hears about the prophecy given to her husband and encourages him to kill King Duncan so that they can come into power sooner rather than later (I.v.389-410). Since Lady Macbeth is able to easily convince her husband to kill the king many believe she has a lot more influence than the Weird Sisters giving the prophecies. The evidence however, overwhelmingly supports the argument that the Weird Sisters have more influence in the play. While Lady Macbeth may influence Macbeth in the beginning the guilt begins to get to her after Banquo’s murder and she ends up killing herself (V.v.2373). The Weird Sisters prophecies had the most influence throughout the play because the fear of not being able to control the future drove characters to act in ways that could be considered sociopathic