How Does Shakespeare Use Biblical Prophesies In Macbeth

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After a close reading of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the most prominent influence has been narrowed down to the biblical imagery that Shakespeare incorporated into the play. Macbeth makes many direct quotes towards spiritual beings. William Shakespeare's use of biblical imagery in Macbeth reflects our predilection toward literature that reflects morality, prophecy, and mythology. Morality can is defined as having the quality of being in accords with standards or right or good conduct. Knowing “good from bad” is a morality trait. There is an evident line between good and evil shown in Macbeth. It is not hidden that Macbeth is a bloodthirsty fiend. He will always be the bad guy. Based on this, Macbeth is obviously a morality play. In Howard …show more content…

Macbeth is sure getting him self into some double toil and trouble! The “Weird sisters” give Macbeth three prophesies. By them selves, the prophecies given to Macbeth are not necessarily mythological, because they can be found in the bible. The way that Shakespeare included them into the play makes them more classical. There are two distinguishable forms of prophesies in Macbeth. The first one is a simple, classic, mythological prophesy: A prophesy that is made, and there is nothing that any one can do to make it not happen. So in other words, it’s going to happen no matter what. The other kind of prophecy is the self-fulfilling prophecy. The witches gave Macbeth three prophecy. The first was that he would become the Thane of Cawdor, the second, that he would become the King of Scotland, and third that Banquo’s sons would become kings. The first prophecy is a mythological prophecy. Macbeth became the Thane of Cawdor by fighting bravely in the war against Norway. It so happened that the original Thane was a traitor, and was leaking information to Norway, so he was killed. Duncan had seen how Macbeth fought, and thought of him as an honorable man, leading him to the decision to make Macbeth the Thane of Cawdor. The second prophecy is a self-fulfilling prophecy. Macbeth knew that he would become king if the present king were dead. He mentions this to Lady Macbeth, and she persuades …show more content…

The allusion to many mythological stories in Macbeth puts a different light on the morality parts of the play. The prophesies in the theme are important to the tragedy of the play, and in the light of it all, Macbeth is a victim, not the victimizer. Because of the witches, Macbeth is seemed to commit the sins that he is accused of. Surly, Macbeth is not the only villain in the

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