Fate, destiny, prophecy all important pieces of tall tales, stories, and legends, that give everything and everyone an unchangeable path. In the play, Macbeth by William Shakespeare, the lives of man are once more played to the tune of a mischievous master. Though throughout the tale, Macbeth seemingly has free will, but in the end, realizes that he was just a pawn in someone’s game to be thrown away at a moment’s notice. As shown throughout the Book many times the witches tell Macbeth of his demise showing that he had truly no control of what was to come. In this case as in all cases the creator is at fault for creating Macbeth to bring horror, pain, and death to all those he betrayed. "All hail, Macbeth Hail to thee, thane of Glamis! All hail, Macbeth Hail to thee, thane of Cawdor! All hail, Macbeth Hail to thee, thou shall be King hereafter!" (Act 1 Scene 3) The witches are proof that fate could never be changed. By them telling of what would come to pass, due to …show more content…
As seen many time in Macbeth’s fall he becomes meticulous in his actions, going overbroad to change or follow his fate except this one instance. Early in the story he was willing to kill a longtime friend Banquo his son, and his willingness to murder an entire man’s family. Yet, he does not think to take the few steps to cut down a few trees instead finding it pointless to take action. With every prophecy, there has always been a reaction by Macbeth except this one, where he takes no steps to prevent his predetermined fate. This inaction goes against everything thing Macbeth has “chosen” to do just to simply go along with a predestined plan of the
To the “witches”, fate is not something to be too concerned with. However, their overlord, Hecate,does thinkss that it was important enough to yell at the “witches” for abusing their power to see the “fate future”. To the “witches” , fate, and for that matter it seems, time, is merely as water and bread are to Macbeth they exist and can be altered. This view of fate is not as ambivalent as the other view, but is more a view along the lines of Thomas Aquinas or Kurt Vonnegut.
Despite this, it is important to acknowledge that he has complete control over his actions in response to these two external factors. The witches predict that Macbeth will become King of Scotland, but they do not force him into acting towards their sayings. In fact Macbeth goes out of his way to contact the witches again to ask for more information. Similarly, Lady Macbeth pushes for murder but does not force him into following through with her desires. She herself even had second thoughts and did not go through with the murder.
This quote tells us that the three witches are making a spell and making a prophecy that Macbeth will become ruler of Glamis, Cawdor, and Scotland. They are controlling his destiny in this quote by creating a prophecy that tells us what is going to happen to Macbeth in the end. We know that they are writing his destiny because we have seen them use their supernatural powers earlier in the
The idea of fate or free will is something that is often linked to human nature and is reflected in many pieces of writing. They poke and prod the reader of these two beliefs, and allow them to determine the reasoning behind each character’s actions. Examples would include the play Macbeth, Oedipus and the film The Adjustment Bureau, as the main characters make decisions based with or against the newfound knowledge. Overall, it is considered that fate often dictates the influential choices, while free will consists of everyday life activities.
Importance of control elsewhere in the play • How control is shown • Reasons for control within the play Control is a recurring theme in the play "Macbeth" as it warns the audience of the repercussions of trying to control your fate. The first key event where control features in a significant way is the witches' prophecies. They tell Macbeth that he will become Thane of Cawdor and King of Scotland which establishes the importance of fate. Shakespeare conveys the witches as agents of evil that are deceptive and dangerous, "oftentimes to win us to our harm/the instruments of darkness tell us truths," showing that they use truth itself to influence a horrible outcome (Macbeth's tragic demise.) Their message is compelling and attractive and we
Did the Three Witches Control Macbeth’s Fate? “All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter.” (Shakespeare. I.iii.52). In Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, Macbeth’s fate can be seen from two different viewpoints.
A story of tragedy is not uncommon with William Shakespeare and his works of prose. In his plays, death and despair is more likely than honor and prosperity. This is an included facet to Macbeth as well, having sinister themes of greed, manipulation, and brutality. Macbeth, by the infamous playwright, Shakespeare, presents us with multiple aspects factoring into whether the main character controls his actions that lead to the tragic events.
For Macbeth, he is motive by the fulfill of the prophecies, which facilitate the growth of ambition. “He will be fooled into thinking he is greater than fate, he will mock death, and he will think he is above wisdom, grace, and fear.” (Crowther.3.5.2). As Hecate, the head of the witches suggests, the prophecies are made to fool Macbeth and lead him into the completely wicked way of killing people in order to satisfy his intrigued ambition and paranoid thoughts. In other words, the deterioration of Macbeth’s character and all the immoral practice done by Macbeth and her wife predominantly provoked by the prophecies, which in fact, only contains one piece of real information, possession of The Thane of Cawdor by Macbeth.
At the start of the play, Macbeth visits the witches with Banquo at the closing of the battle. The witches speak to Macbeth and Banquo and get the idea of a prophecy in Macbeth’s mind. “All hail Macbeth, hail to thee, Thane of Glamis./ All hail Macbeth, hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor./ All hail Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter” (1.3.46-48). When the witches get the prophecy in Macbeth’s mind, he believes it will come true and misunderstands the prophecy of the witches. Although the witches make Macbeth believe in the prophecy of becoming the King, Macbeth is responsible for his downfall because they do not recommend Macbeth to kill Duncan.
William Shakespeare is considered as one of the best play writers in history. One of his most well known plays is Macbeth where a Scottish general named Macbeth has a strong desire to be king which leads him to betray and murder his king, Duncan. He also kills the nobles who have been loyal to him in order to maintain his title as king. Throughout this play, Shakespeare uses the motif of ambition, guilt, and fate to characterize the characters, show the different themes present within the play, and how the motifs are still relevant today.
Throughout life, most people have the chance to make their own decisions. With these decisions, there will either be good or bad outcomes. In the case of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, these decisions lead to a very grave consequence; a tragedy. The main character in the play, aptly named Macbeth, makes some choices that do not match with the morals of mankind.
Fate Versus Free Will In Macbeth Fate versus free will is a theme well known throughout literature and in life as well. Is life controlled by fate, or are people’s lives dependent on the choices they make? In Macbeth, Shakespeare emphasizes the idea of fate vs. freewill, indicating that both elements play a role in the lives of individuals, as well as society as a whole. The main character, Macbeth’s, life is a combination of fate and his conscious decisions. The witches in Macbeth can control the fates of many, but only to a point.
In Shakespeare’s Macbeth the witches informs Macbeth of his fate that he will become the king in the future. Macbeth believes the witches words and Lady Macbeth persuade him to become the king and murder all the people that get in the way. Shakespeare shows us that fate is complicated by our actions, Macbeth will do anything to meet his fate that in the end lead him to his death because of his greediness.
Nola Kilar Mr. Norman Honors English 08 February, 2023 Fault and Fate Macbeth is a Shakespearean play with many themes tying into religion and philosophy. The biggest and arguably most important subject in the play is the idea of free will versus unchangeable fate. Macbeth wants to be king and consults the wayward sisters (witches) for advice. They tell him he will reign but Macbeth feels that he must murder the people in line for the throne to get his crown. He feels that the murders are his fate, yet he still makes the decision to commit them.
and obtains the title, which trigger an arrogant and self-absorbed thinking leading to madness and finally, death. The play seems to bring up the question, whether Macbeth is fully responsible of his own destiny, or under control of fate. In the first glance, the play seems to take rather fatalistic direction, meaning that we are powerless to make decisions as they are inevitably determined by supernatural power (Hugh 1)) It is due to the presence of supernatural forces throughout the whole play that systematically fulfills the prophecy; therefore the witches represent the idea of fate in the play. However, Shakespeare seems to rather intertwine fate with free will and perhaps even promotes the second philosophy as the play evolves.