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Supernatural Forces In Macbeth

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Supernatural Forces In Macbeth
In William Shakespeare's tragic play Macbeth, supernatural forces make an appearance and influence the main character Macbeth’s actions in life altering ways. The three witches prophecy to Macbeth and Banquo at the beginning of the play opens a door to the supernatural world that Macbeth is not able to escape. Supernatural forces turn a worthy and honorable human being into a power hungry and villainous man. Shakespeare uses the theme of witchcraft to appeal to the people of his time, as well as King James I, and during the creation of Macbeth, witchcraft is associated with death and darkness. By the time Macbeth is published in 1623, witchcraft has been considered a capital offense for nearly twenty years, and it’s both feared and frowned upon. The author, William Shakespeare, knew the people of his time believed witches were evil and that they were capable of all of the things they did in Macbeth. …show more content…
The witches in Macbeth represent everything that is feared about witchcraft, and they perform every act that is believed to be of dark magic and evil at this time. The witches can see into the future, cause the death of their enemies as well as call up the dead, just like Shakespeare's peers feared they could do. It is the words of the witches that causes Macbeth to get the idea of being a king into his head and motivates him to kill. “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, thane of Glamis! All hail, Macbeth, hail to thee, thane of Cawdor! All hail, Macbeth, thou shalt be king hereafter!” (Act 1, Scene 3). Here, is the witches prophecy, which drives Macbeth to consider the possibility that he can one day be king. The witches make what can be considered the largest supernatural impact on the story of Macbeth. If it hadn’t been for their encounter with Macbeth, he would have never thought being king could
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