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Two early scenes (1 & 3) deal with Macbeth's initial contact with the three witches. They confuse him with
promises which are true and yet appear to be contradictory.
WITCHES & WITCHCRAFT
Witches and witchcraft played a natural role in medieval society.
Life in medieval times tended to be very short, with the average life-span for the townspeople being only
about 29 years. Cause of death was mainly squalid and unhygienic conditions, poor food, disease and
violence.
Women particularly were prone to short lives, often dying during childbirth or shortly thereafter --
post-natal disease and loss of blood being the chief reasons for their deaths. It was common for a man,
therefore, to have two or three wives during his lifetime.
Elderly people were usually a country phenomenon, largely because country folk had access to better food
and cleaner water. Towns were quite literally cesspits whereas the country villages were much cleaner
and healthier.
Country women tended therefore to live much longer and, in doing so, hoarded up masses of knowledge
about natural herbal medicines -- both for healing and for poisoning.
These women also acted as doctors in a pre-medical society. They then passed this knowledge on to
their daughters who, in turn, became medicine women for their villages.
Because many of these country women were old, they showed typical signs of post-menopausal aging:
facial hair in the form of moustaches and beards, long noses with warts, and a wrinkled skin.
Because the menfolk often died younger through accidents or fights, most of these women were widows.
They therefore wore black clothing and lived alone -- often with cats for company.
They came to be termed witches. Indeed, are not all the aspects mentioned above still seen as common
attributes of witches -- even today?
These women were probably skilled in magic of both the black and white forms. If someone needed a
blessing, the witch would be consulted. If someone needed a curse, the witch could help.
It was a time of superstition and these old women preyed on this to make a living. So did the priests who
charged people for their magical trick of turning bread and wine into the body and blood of Jesus at the
mass.
It was also believed that witches had a remarkable ability to see into the future, with the result that they
tended to be consulted by everyone -- especially by the rich and powerful.
Even kings hesitated to make any major decisions without first consulting the oracles, who were usually
women.
It was considered a major crime to kill a witch. Indeed, it was originally so great a crime that it demanded
the death sentence. Witches were therefore relatively immune from revenge.
Macbeth is not surprised when he sees the three witches and he immediately believes everything they tell
him. He still does not doubt them even after their so-called prophecies start to go wrong for him -- and
he certainly never considers taking revenge on them.
The very honourable Banquo also believes what the witches tell him, although he rightly realises that their
prophecies might not come true in precisely the manner in which they expected.
Have you looked at the questions
in the right column?
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TEST YOURSELF!
Read the left column and then answer
the following questions:
"A sailor's wife had chestnuts in her lap,
And munch'd, and munch'd, and munch'd:--
'Give me,' quoth I:
'Aroint thee, witch!' the rump-fed ronyon cries.
Her husband's to Aleppo gone, master o' the Tiger:
But in a sieve I'll thither sail,
And, like a rat without a tail,
I'll do, I'll do, and I'll do."
- How does the first witch's short speech reveal her total control over nature? (6)
[Need help?]
In medieval Europe, it was believed that witches had complete control over nature. They could ride on
broomsticks, slither down chimneys, slip through keyholes and under doors, etc.
Shakespeare mentions none of these, but he does include other things:
- the witch sails over the sea on a sieve;
- she controls people's lives;
- later the witches simply vanish into thin air!
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- Why would the witch be "like a rat without a tail"? (4)
[Need help?]
It was always believed that witches could transform themselves into animals but, if they did, it would never
be a complete transformation. The animal would always be defective in some way.
Indeed, this defect in the animal allowed people to recognise the presence of a witch!
In our case, the witch could change into a rat but the rat would have no tail!
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The witch states that she is going to track down the husband who has "to Aleppo gone".
- Does she sink the husband's ship? If not, why not -- and what does she actually
do? (4)
[Need help?]
Although witches had power over nature, they did not have total control of destiny. The witch could blow
a ship off-course, cause leaks to appear, but she could not actually sink the ship.
The first witch says quite clearly that "though his bark cannot be lost, | Yet it can be
tempest-tossed."
In this case, the witch is threatening to cause utter chaos in the sailor's life by blowing the ship off course,
causing storms so that the sailor will not be able to sleep -- and all of this lasting for a very long time.
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- Is the witch in fact referring to someone in particular? Explain. (4)
[Need help?]
Later we will find that Macbeth is unable to sleep and that Lady Macbeth sleepwalks.
Have a look at Macbeth's arrival on the scene. The witch has just finished saying, "Here I have a pilot's
thumb | Wracked [tortured] as homeward he did come" when the witches announce Macbeth's arrival:
"A drum! A drum! | Macbeth doth come."
The sailor is tortured as he homeward comes, and Macbeth is also tortured as he homeward comes. And
so the witches are speaking about Macbeth.
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What three things did the witches prophesy for Macbeth? (3)
[Need help?]
Macbeth would have the following pieces of good fortune:
- he would be Thane of Glamis, which he was already;
- he would become Thane of Cawdor;
- sometime in the future he would also become King of Scotland.
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What did the witches prophesy for Banquo? (3)
[Need help?]
Banquo would never be as great as Macbeth, and yet in some ways he would be greater. He wouldn't be
as happy as Macbeth, but in some ways he would be happier. Finally, he would never become king but
his progeny would be kings.
One can presume that Banquo would not be as great as Macbeth because he himself would never be
king, and yet he would always be an honest man whereas Macbeth would degenerate into becoming a
murderer.
Banquo would not be as happy because he would in fact soon be murdered but, by remaining honest, his
conscience would at least always be clean.
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What does Macbeth mean when he says, "Why do you dress me | In borrowed robes"? (2)
[Need help?]
The witches have addressed Macbeth as the Thane of Cawdor. Macbeth appears, however, to have no
suspicion that Cawdor had been treacherous at the Battle at Fife, and therefore has no idea that Cawdor
has been sentenced to death.
The robes therefore refer to the title of Thane of Cawdor -- and since Macbeth believes Cawdor is still
the rightful Thane, the robes in which they "dress him" are therefore borrowed.
For a deeper discussion on this point, read about who was the real "Bellona's Bridegroom".
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Why was the Thane of Cawdor under heavy judgement? (2)
[Need help?]
In Scene 2, we read how the Thane of Cawdor had betrayed Scotland by aiding the King of Norway. Once
captured, he would be sentenced to death.
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"Two truths are told." Macbeth says, "as happy prologues to the swelling act of the imperial
theme."
- What are these two truths? (2)
[Need help?]
The two truths are that Macbeth is the Thane of Glamis and now the Thane of Cawdor.
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- What is meant by "the imperial theme"? (2)
[Need help?]
The imperial theme is that he will be King (Emperor) of Scotland.
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