The Purposes of the Three Witches in Macbeth
Macbeth is a symbolic story of how people can be easily influenced. In the beginning of the play, Macbeth meets the three witches and hears about his prophecy from them which he will become the next King of Scotland. These witches are important characters to develop the story. Every time when Macbeth needed them, he received prophecies from them. These prophecies affect Macbeth and reveal his evil personality. As revealed in the play, the purposes of the three witches in the play are to foreshadow, advance the plot, and show the human weakness. One of the purposes of the witches in the play is to set allusions. In the beginning of act one scene one, the three witches planㄴ to meet at the open field to see Macbeth after the battle is over. As they promised, they wait for Macbeth and Banquo to return from the battlefield. When they faced each other, the third witch said, “All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter”(Macbeth 1.3. 51) to Macbeth. Then the first witch tells Banquo that, “Thou shalt get kings, though thou be none/ So all hail, Macbeth and Banquo!”(Macbeth 1.3. 68-69), which she meant that Banquo will become the father of the kings. Later in the story, Macbeth seeks for the three witches to hear more about his future. They told him that “Be bloody, bold, and resolute. Laugh to scorn/ The power of man, for none of woman born/ Shall harm Macbeth.”(Macbeth 4.1 81-83). These prophecies eventually become true. There are no doubts that the tree witches allure the story by telling the futures.
The weird witches not only foreshadow but also advance the story. The story mainly develops by the prophecies. After Macbeth hears about his future from the witches, he writes a letter to Lady Macbeth, his wife, about the prophecy. Since Lady Macbeth had no doubt about this prophecy of Macbeth becoming the king, she plans to assassinate the King Duncan to fulfill the prophecy. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth put their plan...
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