I chose to create a detailed sketch focusing on two apparitions, the Armed Head, the Bloody Child and the Child Crowned with a tree in his hand, to highlight how significant these prophecies are for Macbeth as a character because they change him to becoming extremely irrational and overconfident, which inevitably lead him to his death. I chose to create a detailed sketch of the Bloody Child, Armed Head, and the Child crowned with a tree in his hand to display the disregard and sense of irrationality and over-confidence that they give him. I decided to create a sketch of these to display the simple and black and white view that Macbeth takes away from these apparitions. The first apparition he hears from is the Armed head and he says to fear …show more content…
After hearing these two apparitions, Macbeth responds by saying, “Then live, Macduff; what need I fear of thee?” (4.1.93). Macbeth hears the second apparition and is then not scared that the Armed head said to fear Macduff, expressing how he cannot think of two simple contradicting ideas and turn them into a corroborating complex one. As I explain later, his total disregard to the Armed head is also exemplified in my sketch with the armed head being small, and located in the background of the image, and the Bloody Child being displayed as the focal point, such as it was for Macbeth, and in the middle of the foreground. Right after the second apparition disappears, a third one appears, a Child Crowned with a tree in his hand. This apparition says that Macbeth will not be defeated until Birnam Wood moves to fight Macbeth at Dunsinane Hill (4.1.105-107). This also enlarges Macbeth’s ego because of its impracticability. Since there are two prophecies that give him a …show more content…
As mentioned in the first paragraph, Macbeth blatantly disregards the first apparition which is displayed by his comment about not killing Macduff. Macbeth’s irrationality is established off of the Bloody Child’s words, which are to not fear any man who is born of women. This prophecy creates overconfidence for Macbeth, thinking he is invincible and that no one can kill him, even though he was just told to fear Macduff. After hearing third apparition’s prophecy, Macbeth responds by saying that it will never happen, because trees can’t uproot and move and that he will be king until he dies naturally (4.1.109-113). The Child Crowned prophecy leads Macbeth to believe he is invincible and that he will never die, which raises his confidence and irrationality. Before act 5 scene 3 starts, it is implied his servants bring Macbeth news that an army led by Malcolm is coming to take him down and Macbeth asks, “Till Birnam Wood remove to Dunsinane I cannot taint with fear. What the boy Malcolm? Was he not born of woman?” (5.5.4). Through asking this question, Macbeth displays his reliance and dependence on the prophecies, but only the two that give him a sense of invincibility. As mention is the first paragraph, this displays his checklist use of the prophecies, implying that if the trees have not uprooted and move and that if his attacker, Macduff, was
Thirdly, feelings of paranoia and guilt cause Macbeth characters to make damaging choices. When Macbeth asks the witches to reveal the truth of their prophecies to him, they summon horrible apparitions, each of which offers a prediction to allay Macbeth’s fears. First, a floating head warns him to beware Macduff. Macbeth says that he has already guessed as much. Later when Lennox enters and tells Macbeth that Macduff has fled to England. Macbeth in reply says, “The castle of Macduff I will surprise; / Seize upon Fife; give to th'edge o'th'sword / His wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls / That trace him in his line.” (4.1.149-152). As Macbeth descends to madness he becomes obsessed with eliminating any threats to his power. Macbeth orders the murderers to kill Macduff's family and eliminate any threat to him. Ironically, this is the moment that Macbeth seals his own fate, by murdering Macduff's family he ensures Macduff's retaliation against him, which ultimately leads
When Macbeth informs Macduff of the prophecy, which Macbeth thinks, will protect him and will allow him to maintain hold over Scotland, Macduff now makes it know that he was not born of woman. The third piece of fate is now complete; Macbeth can be killed. Macduff becomes assured that he can defeat Macbeth for he was not born of a woman. With this new knowledge Macduff knows that he must be the one to kill Macbeth and secure Malcolm’s right to the throne. Macduff does kill Macbeth, being the only one able to do so and secure peace and prosperity for Scotland.
Macbeth's response to the first apparition ¨Whate'er thou art, for thy good caution, thanks.Thou hast harped my fear aright.¨ (Act 4 sc. 1, Line 83-85) Macbeth was not sure if he needed to fear Macduff now that the apparition showed him about Macduff, he was sure now that he needed to fear him. His response to the second apparition “Then live, Macduff. What need I fear of thee? But yet I’ll make assurance double sure, And take a bond of fate. Thou shalt not live, That I may tell pale-hearted fear it lies, And sleep in spite of thunder.” (Act 4 sc.1, Line 93-97) Now he does not need to fear Macduff, but he still wants to be sure so he is going to kill Macduff. His response to last apparition is “That will never be. Who can impress the forest, bid the tree Unfix his earthbound root? Sweet bodements! Good!” (Act 4 sc. 1, Line 109-110) Macbeth is sure that he will never be defeated because Birnam wood will never
The second apparition encourages him with an alliteration to “Be blood, bold and desolate,” allowing Macbeth to believe that he cannot be dethroned and he should be able to rule as he pleases. Furthermore, the third apparition encourages reckless behavior, manipulating Macbeth to rule carelessly, believing he is undefeatable. However, the result of his actions is witnessed near the end of the play, as he was abandoned by most of his citizens and soldiers. The apparitions prophesized that no one born of a woman can harm him and he can not be defeated until Birnam Wood forest reaches Dunsinane. These equivocations deceived Macbeth as these requirements seem impossible to meet. These quotes reveal the power the prophecy withholds over Macbeth as the previous parts such as: becoming the Thane of Cawdor came true. As the play progresses, Macbeth deteriorates from a noble character to a ruthless king, enrooting his actions from the invincibility of the prophecy. This is demonstrated as he attempts to reassure himself prior to the
Macbeth has three apparitions at different points in the tragedy. The first apparition is of “an armed head”(Shakespeare 35). The head is a representation of Macduff who will come to Scotland representing Malcolm, the future king. Macbeth is shunned when the questions the First Witch who tells him that the thoughts in his head are the right ones. She hits the nail in the head with Macbeth’s thought. When the First witch cries, “Macbeth! Macbeth! Macbeth! Beware Macduff; Beware the thane of Fife"(Shakespeare 37), Macbeth is sure of what is to come but he is too late to do anything to do anything about it since Macduff has already fled the place. Macbeth’s belief in the apparition causes an instillation of fear in his own self and his abilities are constantly being hindered when ...
Lastly, Macbeth proves to be easily deceptive by those who wish to fool him. It becomes clear that Macbeth has some encouragement for going forward with this murderous plan but it is evidently his nature that causes him to fall. Towards the end of the play, seeking guidance, Macbeth turns to the witches for help by asking them for advice. Macbeth then sees three apparitions, the first one saying, “Beware Macduff. / Beware the Thane of Fife” (IV. I. 74-73). Macbeth takes this into consideration. Macbeth also says that he feared Macduff could be the one to drag him down in the end. The second apparition that appears says, “Laugh to scorn
Then when Macbeth kills Steward and Macduff's young son, his "pretty chicken" is called an "egg" before being murdered. When king Duncan thanks Macbeth for his heroic service in the battle he replies “Your highness a king cares for his people as a father cares for his children and the people represent the loyal children to the father (I, iv, 23-25). Later in the scene, Lady Macbeth shames her husband so he can continue with the plan of killing Duncan. To shame Macbeth, she calls him a coward, questions his manhood, and tells him that he should be as tough as she is (1.7.54-59). The second apparition is a bloody child which shows Macbeth "The power of man, for none of the woman born shall harm Macbeth" (4.1.81).
The bloody child assures Macbeth that “none of woman born shall harm Macbeth” (4.1.91). However, the bloody child represents the only person who can harm Macbeth: Macduff. Macduff was “from his mother’s womb / Untimely ripped” (5.8.19-20) and fulfills the requirement the bloody child proclaims. The crowned child with the tree assures Macbeth that he will not be defeated until Great Birnam Wood marches to high Dunsinane Hill which is a theoretically impossible occurrence. The crowned child represents Malcolm, who will lead the march of the trees to Macbeth’s overthrow. Finally, eight kings and Banquo appear, reminding Macbeth of Banquo’s descendants becoming kings. Although Macbeth does not realize the full meaning, the apparitions prophesize Macbeth’s downfall by emphasizing the idea of children. Sometimes children are unsophisticated, like Duncan; at other times, children are unpredictably wise, with a greater understanding and meaning than one might expect. Similar to how Macbeth underestimates the power of the youth, Macbeth underestimates the meaning of the apparitions’ prophecies and gains a false sense of security. The apparitions predict the future impact of Macbeth’s failure to dispose of Malcolm, Donalbain, and
The First Apparition tells Macbeth directly that he needs to be aware of Macduff and states he should
In Macbeth, The Witches provided a basis for the collapse of Macbeth's reign. The apparitions fortified Macbeth's mental reasoning for the deeds he committed. The prophecies sparked the journey of Macbeth\s self destruction, causing him to uproot his possible kinghood and the bloodline that followed. Macbeth’s delusional and confused state was wrongfully justified by the apparitions, clouding his judgment and in conclusion, prevented his accession to power and lead to his
...rd apparition states, “Be bloody, bold, and resolute; laugh to scorn/The power of man, for none of woman born/Shall harm Macbeth (Shakespeare, 4.1.78-80). Macbeth believes that no one can kill him, when in reality Macduff can since he is born from a c-section. The witches’ ambiguous language concealed the whole truth from Macbeth eventually resulting in his gruesome death. Finally, without the witches, Macbeth would not have been so entirely affected by the supernatural. For instance, Macbeth sees a hallucination of a dagger before killing Duncan and he seems to believe that it is a sign that he is doing the right thing. He also begins to believe everything the witches’ say, even if it is outrageous, such as him becoming king. This belief in the supernatural leads Macbeth to commit corrupt acts such as killing Duncan and is one of the causes of his growing paranoia.
There are three apparitions that the witches give to Macbeth about his future. “First apparition: an armed head…. Macbeth! Macbeth! Macbeth! Beware Macduff, beware the Thane of Fife” (Shakespeare, 145). The witc...
Macbeth meets the witches a second time, demanding his future. Feeding off Macbeth’s pride, the witches make three apparitions that make him overconfident. Seeing the third apparition Macbeth feels that nothing will stop him until Great Birnam Wood moves toward Dunsinane. Later on he feels deceived by the witches, as his overconfidence leads to irony. “I pull in resolution, and begin to doubt the equivocation of fiend that lies like truth: ‘Fear not, till Birnam wood do come to Dunsinane”; and now a wood comes toward Dunsinane” (5. 5. 47-51). This shows how his confidence has failed. Yet another example Macbeth’s conceitedness is when he misinterprets the second apparition. A bloody baby states that no man born of woman shall kill Macbeth. “Then live, Macduff. What need I fear of thee?” (4. 1. 89). This is Macbeth’s cocky response, he is so confident that no one can kill him, though this results in his ironic death. In Macduff and Macbeths final conflict, Macduff reveals that he was born through caesarian section, therefore not technically born by woman. This once again shows how Macbeth’s pride is diminished, as he finally realizes that he misinterpreted the witches’ words and acted over
Scene 1In a cavern, a boiling cauldron hisses and spits, and the three witches appear. They circle the cauldron and chant spells and add bizarre things their brew. Hecate appears and compliments their work. One of the witches chants: “By the pricking of my thumbs, / Something wicked this way comes” (Act 4. Scene 1. Lines 44–6). In fulfillment of the prophecy, Macbeth enters. He asks them to reveal truth to him. To answer the questions, they call apparitions, each one gives a prediction to alleviate Macbeth’s worries. First, an Armed head (symbol of Macduff) warns him to “Beware Macduff! Beware the Thane of Fife.” (Act 4. Scene 1. Lines 71-72.). Next a bloody child (symbol of Macduff a birth) appears and tells him “none of woman born / shall
The deliberately ambiguous apparitions play on Macbeth’s hubris and they make him feel so overconfident that he feels invincible and unstoppable. In his castle, Macbeth jokes that he will never fail “till Birnam wood remove to Dunsinane” (V.iii.2) thinking that the apparition literally means that the forest will pick itself up and move to Dunsinane which he thinks is impossible despite all the supernatural events he has experienced. However, the forest does not move by itself but it does move to Dunsinane because of Malcolm’s ingenious strategy. As Malcolm approaches Macbeth’s castle with the English forces, he orders each soldier to cut off the branches of the trees of Birnam Wood to use as camouflage. This greatly contributes to Macbeth’s downfall since he was nowhere near ready for an invasion of the English forces. However, because of his hubris, he is still confident that he is unstoppable as he believes no one “borne a woman” (V.iii.6) can harm him. Unbeknown to him, Macduff was born through a caesarean section and thus not “borne” so much as “taken” from a woman. This lack of access to the entire truth sees Macbeth eventually