![]() Either way, the witches are powerful figures who play a vital role in how the play unravels. He may have wanted them to represent real witches, or evil in human form. We do not know what Shakespeare's own attitude towards witchcraft or magic was. They use their evil magic to trick Macbeth with their half-true predictions. People accused of witchcraft would not usually have made predictions so the witches in Macbeth are unusual. ![]() In Scotland they were generally strangled before their corpse was burnt at the stake. Witches were generally sentenced to be hanged in England. In both England and Scotland, women (and men) suspected of being witches were arrested and questioned, often after being tortured into providing a confession. In Shakespeare's time most people believed in witches, the devil, evil spirits and magic. ![]() How did Shakespeare's audience view witches and witchcraft? This might explain the inclusion of witches in the play, as James had a great interest in the subject, as shown in his book 'Daemonologie'. In writing ‘Macbeth’ it is likely that Shakespeare was keen to win the favour of the new king of England. This union of the crowns ensured that from 1603 the king was simultaneously King James VI of Scotland and King James I of England. Written between 16, 'Macbeth' was one of the first plays Shakespeare produced during the reign of the newly crowned King James I of England (James VI of Scotland).Īlthough James had acceded to the Scottish throne as an infant in 1567, he only became king of England in 1603 after the death of Queen Elizabeth I, who had failed to produce an heir. Sir Walter Scott writing in 'Tales of a grandfather' about the three witches in 'Macbeth'. 'Nobody would believe such folly now-a-days, except low and ignorant creatures such as those who consult gipsies in order to have their fortunes told'. Illustration from 'The Picture Shakespeare: Macbeth', 1901. Macbeth and Banquo meet the three witches. ![]()
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