the witches 3

• Shakespeare makes the witches appear synonymous with wickedness and hell to compound how the inference with the supernatural is inherently evil.
• During Hecate's want to manipulate Macbeth she refers to meeting at "the pit of Acheron".

  • Acheron was one of the rivers that ran through Hades (the underworld/hell in Greek mythology).
  • As they are depicted as meeting there, it reinforces how the witches are inextricably linked with hell and thrive in this depraved environment.
• Within Christianity, the foundations of religion in Christian society, there is the holy trinity, which is the idea that God exists in 3 forms: the Father, the Son, and the holy spirit.

  • As the witches always appear as a trio, they could be seen as the anti-trinity as they persistently tempt fate and indulge in wicked actions.
• Shakespeare intends to be condeming of the Witches and their wickedness as this would directly appease his patron, James I, due to him believing they were agents of the devil - this is seen in his book 'Daemonologie'.