Three Witches

• How many times do the witches appear on stage in Macbeth?

  Four times
• What does Shakespeare's decision to open the play with the witches suggest?

  They will take a significant role in Macbeth
• What is the first line spoken by the witches in Act 1, Scene 1?

  When shall we three meet again?
• How does Shakespeare create curiosity about the witches' role in the play?

  By starting with their completed meeting
• What theme do the witches introduce in Macbeth?

  The theme of the supernatural
• What was the penalty for practicing witchcraft in Shakespeare's time?

  Death
• How many alleged witches did King James reportedly burn in Scotland?

  Four thousand
• What book did King James write related to witchcraft?

  Demonology
• How did ideas about witchcraft change in England after Macbeth was performed?

  They became laughable to audiences
• What did the 1735 Witchcraft Act change about the penalty for witchcraft?

  Reduced it to one year in prison
• What does Samuel Johnson suggest about evaluating a writer's abilities?

  Examine the genius of his age
• How does Shakespeare differentiate the witches' speech from the nobles' speech?

  Witches use trochaic meter, nobles use iambic pentameter
• What effect does the use of trochaic meter have on the witches' portrayal?

  It heightens their otherworldliness
• What debate surrounds the witches' power in Macbeth?

  Whether they cause Macbeth to kill Duncan
• What does Dr. Emma Smith suggest about the witches' knowledge?

  They may predict rather than direct events
• How does dramatic irony affect the audience's perception of the witches?

  It suggests they are less powerful than Macbeth thinks
• What does the witch's control over the winds reveal?

  Limits of their power
• In which act and scene do the witches appear next after Act 1, Scene 3?

  Act 3, Scene 5
• What do scholars believe about the scene in Act 3, Scene 5?

  It may not have been written by Shakespeare
• How does Hecate's introduction affect the witches' portrayal?

  It undermines their perceived power
• What do the apparitions shown to Macbeth in Act 4, Scene 1 represent?

  Deceptive prophecies
• What does the first apparition, the armed head, foreshadow?

  Macbeth's decapitation by Macduff
• What does the second apparition, the bloody child, symbolize?

  Macduff's threat to Macbeth
• How does Macbeth misinterpret the third apparition's message?

  He believes he cannot be harmed
• What does the final vision shown to Macbeth reveal?

  Banquo's descendants will inherit the throne
• Why do the witches not appear after Act 4, Scene 1?

  To suggest their diminishing significance
• How did the audience's perception of witches change over time?

  They became seen as laughable
• What was the witches' impact on the audience during Shakespeare's time?

  They had a greater impact due to belief
• How does the witches' absence in the final act affect the play's interpretation?

  It questions their initial significance