The part of the play the witches take part in is indeed a role difficult to define. They do not control fate, nor are they mere foreseers of the future. They have the role to develop matters further whether it would be to set the tone of the play or to help unleash Macbeth's most secret desires.
The witches are the first characters the audience is first introduced to in the play. .
The audience is immediately given the impression that these witches are unlike humans, they all speak in rhyme, rhythm and repetition, crying "When shall we meet again?/ In thunder, lightning, or in rain?" .
Their preferred place of meeting are during unpleasant conditions, a lot of what they speak is in the future tense, of events that have yet to occur. All witches speaking in unison, and with the alliteration with the repeated "f" sound, they give prominence to their observations, "Fair is foul and foul is fair. Hover through the fog and filthy air." Establishing the main theme of the play, that things are not what they seem, that good is confused with evil, and neither can be distinguished from the other. .
Their speech is riddled with equivocation, causing Macbeth to misinterpret their meaning. Banquo who sees through the witches, says, "The instruments of darkness tell us truths, win us with honest trifles, to betray's in deepest consequence.".
The witches are the physical forms of evil, full of wickedness and mischief. They have otherworldly powers and behaviour that humans do not possess, yet here they are, dwelling among them, meddling in their affairs. As questioned by Banquo, "They look not like the inhabitants o" the earth/And yet are on't?" .
Their evil is revealed as they discuss with glee the destruction and disorder they have created on land and sea. "The Weird Sisters, hand in hand/ Posters of the sea and land/Thus do go, about, about/ Thrice to thine, and thrice to mine, and thrice again to make up nine.
There are many essays written on the role of the witches in MacBeth. Because the witches are female, it is important to note their role as women, not just witches. ... After MacBeth kills Banquo, he returns to the witches to seek their advice. ... Although the witches perform a service for MacBeth, he is not thankful. ... The other is feminized in the characters of the witches and Lady MacBeth. ...
In public they assume given gender roles, yet when in each other's company, the roles are reversed. In Macbeth, the author, William Shakespeare, uses the reversal of gender roles to show the demise of both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. ... Macbeth is skeptical at first of the witches' prophecy because he does not believe that he can be anything more than he is now. Once certain parts of the witches' prophecy come true, Macbeth has a sense of hope that he will be King. ... Throughout this play, both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth struggle with their gender roles. ...
Unlike Shakespeare's great villains, such as Iago in Othello and Richard III in Richard III, Macbeth is never comfortable in his role as a criminal. ... The witches foretold that Macbeth would be king and that Banquo's line would eventually sit on the throne. ... Suddenly a drum beats, and the third witch cries that Macbeth is coming. ... The witches hail Macbeth as thane of Glamis (his original title) and as thane of Cawdor. ... The witches also declare that Macbeth will be king one day. ...
Purpose: to explain who is responsible for Macbeth's downfall and the reason being Audience: Those who wish to explore the many issues raised by Macbeth The evil actions committed by Macbeth cannot entirely be blamed on Macbeth as Lady Macbeth and the witches also play a role in Macbeth's downfall. ... Lady Macbeth's role in Macbeth's downfall is due to her want for her husband's success in his desire to become king. ... Lady Macbeth spurs Macbeth into fulfilling the witches" prophecies. ... The idea to kill Duncan is nurtured within Macbeth by the witches. ... Mac...
Macbeth Essay The witches, Lady Macbeth, and Macbeth himself, are all responsible for Macbeth's downfall. ... Lady Macbeth encouraged Macbeth to act upon the witches" predictions. ... The witches confronted Macbeth predicting, "All hail, Macbeth! ... Lady Macbeth played a very persuasive role in the downfall of Macbeth. ... Macbeth, although influenced by others, had the greatest role in his downfall. ...
The Three Witches of Scotland In the very first scene of the play MacBeth, we are introduced to the three Witches. Therefor, we as the readers should assume that these witches will have an important role in the play. ... With Banquo hearing of MacBeth's fate, he requests that the witches reveal something to him. ... However, I feel that the witch's prophecies also had a major effect on Lady MacBeth. ... From our assumptions of the witches and their significance, we can now be assured that these three witches will have an important role in this play, and be the main reason in wh...
What Was the Witches' Role in Macbeth? ... The evil forces that the weird sisters, who were witches, possessed, put Macbeth's mind in another direction. ... The witches did possess some sort of power, otherwise, how could they have known that MacBeth had been appointed Thane of Cawdor? ... Hecate is rebuking the witches for not consulting her about revealing MacBeth's destiny. ... Although MacBeth needs to be wary, the witches' objective is to trick MacBeth into making the fatal mistake of feeling secure and even invincible. ...
What role do the witches play and in what way do they affect Macbeth? ... The Witch's words were tantalizing and they enticed Macbeth to process his inner thoughts. ... The Witch's prophecies portray the future and warn Macbeth. ... I think in this scene the witches are playing macbeth against his mind and conscience. ... Maybe the witch's intentions in the play were to test Macbeth and his instincts. ...
Gender Roles in Macbeth The history of our civilization has equated masculine traits to the qualities we look for in a good leader. ... Macbeth's ability to make decisions is brought to an end when he succumbs to the fatalistic predictions of the witches and to his wife. In these ways Macbeth switches from a masculine role to a traditionally feminine role. ... The bottom line in this play is that the witches and Lady Macbeth, all women, are responsible for the provocation of all the events in this play. Certainly, they aren't as guilty as Macbeth, but must be held partiall...