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  • Essay / Supernatural Entities in Macbeth by William Shakespeare

    A wise man named Joseph Conrad quoted: “Belief in a supernatural source of evil is not necessary; men alone are quite capable of all wickedness. One man alone has the power in his hands to cause all wickedness and evil. Every action is responsible for the depth of a person's beliefs. A person's belief always affects their actions in many ways. Conversely, selfishness can also breed meanness. There is always a story behind a man's action. The supernatural plays a major role in someone's actions. In the play Macbeth, the supernatural was a major factor in the style of the play. Among the supernatural events evident in the play were the witches, of which they were the most prominent. Other events were the dagger, the ghost and the three apparitions. It all started when the three witches came to Macbeth and his best friend Banquo and said to Macbeth, “Hail, Macbeth, who will be king henceforth” (1.3.53). Regarding what the witches notified what is Macbeth's good news, Banquo also inquires about his predictions and what is his good news, the witches also inform him that one of his sons will be king. When Macbeth returns home, he shares the news with his wife, Lady Macbeth, and she tells him that he should be king and that she also wants to be queen, so she insinuates a plan that Macbeth must murder his cousin, the King Duncan. . Macbeth was not happy with his plan, but because of how much Lady Macbeth made him feel like less of a man and she kept pushing him. As Macbeth marches to murder his same-blood cousin, he begins to hallucinate about the dagger: "Is this it?" a dagger that I see in front of me, the handle towards my hand? Come, let me hold you in my arms. I don't have you, and yet I still have you. Aren't you, f...... middle of paper ......stions, that the consequence will be violent and destructive for nature. The witches promise to respond and, at Macbeth's choosing, add other unnatural ingredients to the cauldron and call their masters. This is where the prophetic apparitions appear. The first appearance is Macbeth's own head (which is later cut off by Macduff), confirming his fears of Macduff. The second apparition tells Macbeth that no one born of woman can harm him. This knowledge gives Macbeth a false sense of security because he believes that no harm can be done to him, but Macduff was not born of a woman, his mother was dead and a corpse when Macduff was born. This leads to Macbeth's downfall. A child with a crown on his head, the third appearance, represents Duncan's son Malcolm. This appearance also gives Macbeth a false sense of security because of the prophecy of Birnam Wood..