The element of time plays a pivotal role in nearly every great story. There are countless possibilities of the form time can take in a writing, television and movies. Whichever film you watch and novel you read, the aspect of time makes its presence felt. Correspondingly, the well-known Shakespearian masterpiece, "Macbeth", depicts a strong sense of time throughout its entirety. This classic novel essentially has three different categories of time. Chronological time is the earliest form, followed by providential time and Macbeth's time. With these three diverse forms come many instances throughout the book where time plays an important role. I hope to give an explanation of these forms and provide an ample amount of cases where a specific time is present.
Chronological time is the first form of time that appears in Macbeth. What this form entails is a specific time an event will take place. With this form, there is no question as to when exactly an occurrence will happen on this books extensive timeline. Key words within Macbeth that can be an indicator of chronological time include suppertime, dinner and sunset. To take a more in depth look, we begin with the opening lines of the play. The first occurrence of chronological time lies within Scene I of Act I where we are presented with three evil witches. With thunder and lightning roaring in the background, they discuss a time and place where they three shall meet again. The witches quickly reach the conclusion of meeting at " ere the set of sun." Hence, they have set a time for which an occurrence (their next gathering) will take place and have exemplified chronological time. We are also presented with chronological time in Scene I of Act II when Macbeth is on the verge of murdering Duncan in his sleep. The whole purpose of this scene is to set the time of midnight, which is an only a few moment before Duncan's bloody murder at the hands of Macbeth.