Appearance vs Reality/Witches Flashcards
“your face my thane is like a book”.
The Witches capitalise on the obvious intentions and ambitions of Macbeth, as demonstrated through this simile. The Witches can be argued to simply be a catalyst to Macbeth’s inevitable fulfillment of his ambition for power: his demise.
“lost and won” & “lesser than Macbeth and greater”
Shakespeare establishes the Witches as a source of chaos and disorder. This is evident as their interference causes the reversal of order. Things that shouldn’t be able to coexist begin to occur as the complex riddles of the Witches come to fruition. Paradoxical phrases are often used by Shakespare, when the Witches are speaking to demonstrate the ostensibly (seemingly true but not necessarily true) nature of their positive prophecies made to Macbeth.
“Fair and Foul”
The oxymoronic language used by Shakespeare reflects Macbeth’s confusion in the audience, who would be similarly ambivalent towards the actual meaning of the prophecies, as they too cannot understand the oxymorons. This works to cultivate intrigue and build tension. Things that are accepted as foul seem fair to Macbeth, like regicide (killing the
King). Macbeth who was fair becomes foul, himself.
“When the battle’s lost, and won,”
“Fair is foul, and foul is fair,”
“So foul and fair a day I have not seen”
The Witches are the first exposure we get as an audience to the chaotic and inverted world of Macbeth. The opening of the play creates a paradox, the contradictory statements are reflective of appearance versus reality. One witch says, “When the battle’s lost, and won,” (1.1) which suggests there are two sides to every story. One side loses, but one side wins. One of the most famous lines is, “Fair is foul, and foul is fair,” (1.1), the use of the conjunction “and” shows both good and bad can exist at the same time. Even the weather is reflective of this, as Macbeth declares “So foul and fair a day I have not seen”. Here Shakespeare warns his audience that no one and nothing can be trusted. In a wider sense, he suggests that there are no certainties when it comes to morality. What appears to be good on the surface may not be.
“not like th’inhabitants o’ th’ Earth”
“Often Times, to win us to our harm, / The instruments of darkness tell us truths; / Win us with honest trifles, to betray’s / In deepest consequences,” (1.3)
Despite the grotesque outer appearance of the Witches - Banquo describes them as looking "not like th'inhabitants o' th' Earth" (A1S3) - what is interesting to note is the Witches aren’t overtly violent or cruel within the context of the plot. They don’t tell Macbeth to kill Duncan. Instead, it is the chaos and confusion they create that is so frightening. Shakespeare uses the Witches to show how human greed makes us vulnerable to deception and betrayal. Early after their meeting with the Witches, Banquo reminds Macbeth, “Often Times, to win us to our harm, / The instruments of darkness tell us truths; / Win us with honest trifles, to betray’s / In deepest consequences,” (1.3). This shows that humans can be easily fooled by lies if they are given with small truths. These contradictions confuse us and lead us astray
