The Macbeth Witches Essay - 833 Words

The Macbeth Witches In the first scene in act one we can see that the witches have some kind of psychic ability from when they predict that Macbeth will win the battle. The witches appear to be having some sport of shared vision. We can tell this from the second quotation- â€Å"When the hurlyburly’s done. When the battle’s lost and won.† The witches clearly know that King Duncan’s side will win the battle. They also know when they will meet with Macbeth- â€Å"There to meet with Macbeth.† This addresses the theme of witchcraft and is Shakespeare’s way of letting the audience know that the witches have powers. The scene is set in the dark on the heath- a very open place, and the thunder and lightning in the background ‘top it off’ as such.†¦show more content†¦At the opening of scene three again we hear thunder, not only does this create the spooky atmosphere as before, but it also confirms the witches’ predictions about the weather and makes the audience think that they have some sort of power over the weather. The first witch begins to tell a story of a sailors’ wife towards whom she has taken great umbrage. She tells the others how she will get back at the woman by torturing her husband. She says she will sail in a sieve to him at Aleppo. We then see that the witches can control the weather again when the others say they will help her by sending a wind. The first witch refuses and continues to tell of her wicked ways with the sailor. She possesses a pilot’s thumb which is quite disturbing for the audience and highlights the key theme of witchcraft again. Suddenly we hear a drum and once again can see that the third witch in particular may be psychic. â€Å"A drum, a drum! Macbeth doth come† Then the witches begin to chant a spell. When it is done they say â€Å"Peace the charm’s wound up.† This confirms for us that it was a charm or spell and makes the audience wonder what it has achieved. When Banquo speaks we get the first idea of what the witches look like. â€Å"What are these, so withered, and so wild in their attire, that look not like th’ inhabitants o’ th’ earth, and yet are on’t? This tells us that whatever wayShow MoreRelatedEssay On The Witches In Macbeth1134 Words   |  5 Pagesplay, Macbeth, by, William Shakespeare, the witches have a significant role. They represent that some things are too good too be true and sometimes we shouldn’t try and follow everything that we hear. The witches give Macbeth many prophecies throughout the play. Macbeth listened to the things they said and it resulted in his death and his own downfall. 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