The Significance of Act 1 Scene 1 of William Shakespeare's Macbeth

The Significance of Act 1 Scene 1 of William Shakespeare's Macbeth

The story of ‘Macbeth’ opens in ancient Scotland during a time of war

between Scotland and Norway. In thunder and lightening, not far from

the place of battle, three witches meet on a lonely heath. They are

very important in the plot and develop certain aspects of the play.

They make greater theatrical experience with images of darkness,

thunder and lightning that make Macbeth the tragedy it is. I believe

that even though the witches appear in the play only a few times, they

play a very important role in Macbeth. They have a great deal of

influence not just on the major characters, but also on some minor

characters. I feel that the witches contribute a great deal to the

overall atmosphere of the play dramatically. It is at the beginning of

the play that we are introduced to the evil sisters, when they meet in

an open place in "thunder and lightning". Right from the beginning,

the witches create a mysterious atmosphere. In the first scene we meet

three witches who make certain prophecies relating to Macbeth on which

the entire action of the play hinges. Apart from their role in the

action of the play, these supernatural characters impart an eerie

character to the play and hence its horror. In philosophical and moral

terms this play may be described as a study of evil.

In fact the play has been called Shakespeare’s most profound and

mature vision of evil. The play centres on a struggle between an

individual and between the forces of evil on the world. Evil has in it

the seeds of self-destruction: this is what the play demonstrates.

Terror is one of the dominant feeling...

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poor and pointless by some. However, the scene has also been defended

as striking the keynote of the play. This scene contains the important

prophecies on the part of the witches which determine the whole course

of the play. The first appearance of the witches prepares us about

what is to come in the play. A reference to the central character

namely Macbeth is also made in the opening scene. Thus the

relationship between the witches and Macbeth is established at the

very outset. Many themes are revealed in the brief opening scene such

as virtue versus vice and deceit. The witches stand for nothing but

for the voice of the devil and the play is about good caught in the

tight grip of evil. Finally, the moral of Macbeth is that no matter

how strong and influential wickedness is it succumbs to honesty and

integrity.