THE WITCHES
The witches stir things up in the play. Their importance is shown when they open the play. They are agents of fate. Do they simply know the future or do they manipulate Macbeth to control it? We know little about the witches. Are they women? Are they human? Are they even of this earth? They are designed to be mysterious which makes their meddling in Scotland’s future bring tension to the play.
They are joined by their familiars (spirit animals) and later by Hecate, a queen of witches, who scolds them for meddling with Macbeth without her permission.
PIVOTAL MOMENTS
-The witches open the play in Act 1, Scene 1 creating an immediately mysterious atmosphere
-The first round of prophecies upon the heath to Macbeth and Banquo:
1. Macbeth will be Thane of Cawdor
2. Macbeth will be King of Scotland
3. Banquo’s children will be kings
-The second round of prophecies that precedes Macbeth’s downfall:
1. Macbeth should be afraid of the Thane of Fife, Macduff
2. Birnham Wood will have to move to Dunsinane before Macbeth is defeated
3. No man of ”woman born’ will harm Macbeth
PURPOSE
The witches are the starting gun for all the events in the play. We can call them a catalyst or describe their first round of prophecies as the inciting incident that causes Macbeth to begin his path to both becoming King and being killed.
They represent evil and Shakespeare uses them to shock and excite the audience. They show how even great men can be manipulated by their own weaknesses.
STRETCH VOCAB
Enigmatic
Malevolent
Malignant
Manipulative
Calculating
Vindictive
Unsettling
Key Quotation Analysis
LINKS WITH OTHER CHARACTERS
MACBETH
Macbeth is inspired by the witches to begin his murderous rampage. They tell us their target is Macbeth in the opening scene then manipulate him over two rounds of prophecies. Macbeth understands they are forces of darkness but still falls into their trap that leads to his downfall.
BANQUO
Banquo, meets the witches for their first prophecies upon the heath. Whilst he questions them at the time, he ultimately does not fall under their spell like Macbeth and warns him of the dangers of listening to them. His knowledge of the witches and the fact they predict Banquo’s children will be kings, leads Macbeth to kill him and try and kill his son Fleance.