P1 - Witches as Catalysts

• The Witches are said to be catalysts for Macbeth’s ambition - as it is not until after their visit in Act 1, Scene 3 that Macbeth really starts to contemplate the lengths he is willing to go to fulfil these ambitions he did not realise he had.
•  The first mention of Macbeth’s ambition unravelling is within his first soliloquy where Shakespeare emphasises the possibility of Macbeth heading down the wrong path. In Act 1, Scene 4 he states in an aside “Stars, hide your fires, let not light see my black and deep desires”.
• This soliloquy explores Macbeth’s internal conflict, between his moral compass and his ambition, as he struggles to decide whether his desire to become King overpowers the consequences he will face if he chooses to disrupt the Divine Right of Kings.
• The words “stars” and “fires” create a semantic field of light which has some underlying religious imagery. The juxtaposing images of light and darkness could be a reference to heaven and hell, therefore emphasising the continuous paradox between good and evil which is first established by the Witches in the exposition. A Jacobean audience would feel sorry for Macbeth, as he is portrayed as a victim of the Witches.