| The Supernatural In Macbeth, Act 4, Scene 1 Essay, Research Paper
Shakespeare?s writing of
Macbeth may have been partly motivated by a desire to impress King James I of
England the king had written a book called Demonology and studied
witchcraft.Banquo who is in the play, is also James’s ancestor.It
is also believed that the source of the play is Chronicles of England,
Scotland and Ireland, by Raphael Holinshed.The play tells the story
of a man, urged by his wife and foretold by prophecy, who murders the king in
order to gain power.The scene I am studying, Act
4 Scene 1, begins
with three Witches stirring the cauldron chanting "Double, double, toil
and trouble,". . . . (4.1.20).The witches call up apparitions which give
Macbeth warnings, promises, and prophecies The Witches vanish and Macbeth calls
in Lennox, who tells him that Macduff has fled to England, whereupon Macbeth
orders the murder of Macduff’s wife and children.The atmosphere that is created at the
beginning of this scene is of a sinister and isolated place, as the witches
gather on the moor. There was thunder at the time which also helped to create
an evil setting. Shakespeare?s use of language helps to create this atmosphere,
with the use of rhyming couplets , ?snake, bake? (4.1.12&13). The
witches use words associated with death and of nocturnal creatures. The other
characters use blank verse in the play.Macbeth laughs at the first apparition’s
warning, ?for thy good thanks? (4.1.73), thinking that he has nothing to
fear from Macduff, and also swearing to kill him, just to insure that the
prophecy does not come true, but then he becomes alarmed with the other
two apparitions, he believes in? the
witches as they foretold that he was going to become Thane of Cawdor, and this
came true.The apparitions are important because the
events that they portray come true. The first, ?beware Macduff?, the
consequence of this will be Macduff killing Macbeth. The second, ?none born of
women shall harm Macbeth?, this also means that Macduff can harm Macbeth
because he was born by caesarean. The third, ?Birnam Wood comes to high
Dunsinane?, (4.1.70, 80 & 90), Macbeth will not be defeated until
Birnam Wood comes to high Dunsinane. Macbeth is over confident and does not
believe this can happen. The Globe Theatre itself is
designed to operate in much the same way as it would have done in the 16th
century, with no electronic equipment, microphones, or stage lighting (except
for floodlights that give the impression of daylight during the performances).
There is no scenery except for furniture and props. Everything has been
designed to correspond as closely as possible to the workings of the
Elizabethan stage. Some props used in the play Macbeth, may have been mirrors,
to make the affect of there being eight kings (4.1.110).a cauldron pot
and swords. Many Elizabethans believed in forms of supernatural, so the effects
that needed to be created would not have to have been so realistic, any hint of
supernatural would of caused fear among the audience.Shakespeare today has also
been brought to film, many versions of Macbeth have been made, where special
effects are used with a eerie soundtrack, which can enhance the action of the
film. Some of Shakespeare?s plays have even been made into blockbuster movies
by making them more modern, as with Romeo & Juliet and 10 things
I hate about you (Taming of the shrew), it has made people more interested
in Shakespeare?s work.From my understanding of the
play, the story of Macbeth is a story of jealousy and power at any cost, which
becomes a dangerous combination. He was prepared to do evil for the love of his
wife and for the desire to be king. His weak character meant that he was easily
lead by his wife, he does not take notice of the witches warning and suffers
the consequences, when he is murdered by Macduff at the end of the play. The
moral of this tale is actions always come with consequences and fate on its own
can not be trusted.They make greater the theatrical experience with images of
darkness, thunder and lightning that make Macbeth the tragedy it is. Macbeth is a play where atmosphere and setting plays a very
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