Macbeth Themes - The Supernatural
- Created by: maha.shahzada
- Created on: 03-05-18 19:20
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- The Supernatural
- In the first scene of the play, the Witches, which were seen as a supernatural phenomenon in the 17th century, state the famous line "Fair is foul, and foul is fair" which highlights many key themes in the play but also establishes the supernatural as an important theme
- Just before killing Duncan, Macbeth sees a hallucination of a dagger and asks "Is this a dagger which I see before me, the handle toward my hand?" - although this could be a sign of Macbeth's mental state, it could also be seen as a supernatural sign from the Witches, which pushes Macbeth to kill Duncan
- Banquo's ghost is a key supernatural feature of the play, which shows lots about Macbeth's mind with "Never shake thy gory locks at me" and "Avaunt and quit my sight!"
- About the Witches, Banquo says "The instruments of darkness tell us truths... to betray's in deepest consequence"which hints that the Witches and supernatural are misleading
- Lady Macbeth welcomes her husband with "Great Glamis, worthy Cawdor, greater than both by the all-hail hereafter" which mirrors the earlier words of the witches and suggest she has a link with the supernatural
- "Come, you spirits" and "you murd'ring ministers" could imply that Lady Macbeth is truly evil but could also imply that she has a link with the Witches
- "Me thought I heard a voice cry 'Sleep no more, Macbeth does murder sleep'" links to earlier in the play where the witches say, about the sailor "Sleep shall neither night nor day"
- When Macbeth starts to feel anxious in Act 3 Scene 2, he uses lots of unpleasant animal imagery, such as "scorpions", "bat", "beetle" and "crow" which links to the Witches
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