Macbeth :: essays research papers

How do the witches create an atmosphere of nightmare And evil in ‘Macbeth’? The play ‘Macbeth’ was written in the early seventeenth century, in a time when the English people believed very strongly in the existence of witches. A range of powers were certified to these evil beings, including the ability to see into the future, control the weather, fly and become invisible at will and communicate with the devil. The witches were believed to enjoy making human beings suffer, by causing livestock to get ill and die, for example. From the outset of this play, when three witches appear on stage, the contemporary audiences would have anticipated a plot that demonstrated just how evil such creatures could be. In Act 1 Scene 1 Shakespeare introduces the witches immediately and this sets the tone for the rest of the play, it sets a mood of evil and supernatural influences. In this scene the witches meet close to the battlefield, this associates them with destruction and death. The first impressions we get from this scene is that there is aggressive weather which reflects their tendencies and their presence causes chaos in nature, also darkness links the witches with evil, two thirds of the play is set in the darkness. An absence of light suggests an absence of God and he is associated with light and goodness. The witches speak in rhyming couplets â€Å"When shall we three meet again? In thunder, lightening or in rain?† Speaking in rhyming couplets gives the impression of chanting or a spell being cast. Their control over the weather is alluded to as they discuss what it should be like the next time they meet. The witches refer to the current battle as a ‘hurly-burly’. Bu t really this was a battle of horrific proportions that was to decide the fate of an entire country, resulting in many deaths. The witches’ description of this as a ‘hurly-burly’ suggests that they are dismissive of it, comparing it more to a childish scuffle in a playground. This shows how contemptuous they are to the affairs if man and their lack of concern at such human carnage and suffering. The witches know when the battle will be over suggesting that they may have some influence on this and reinforcing the idea that they can see into the future. They discuss their plan to meet with Macbeth, an intention that convinces the audience they mean to cause him harm.