Fate Vs. FreedomFate Vs. FreedomFate may state what will be in ones life however, how that destiny comes about is a matter of mans own choice. In other words, incidents dont occur because our destinies are written. In the play Macbeth, Shakespeare expertly uses the theme of fate vs. free will and raises the pre-eminent question of which holds power over the characters. In Shakespeare’s tragedy, fate is not the cause of his downfall, his own desires and choices prove to be the deciding factor.
There are several examples of fate playing a distinctive role in the lives of Macbeth’s players. The main catalysts behind fate are the three witches seen intermittingly throughout the production. During their second appearance, they share this harrowing truth with the audience. “Sleep shall neither night nor day / Hang upon his pent-house lid; / He shall live a man forbid: / Weary sennights nine times nine / Shall he dwindle, peak and pine (I.iii.19-23). The sailor can be viewed as none other than the Thane of Glamis, Macbeth. As seen later in the play, Macbeth becomes deprived of sleep due to the overwhelming guilt and paranoia he faces. Furthermore, he dwindles away mentally; the hallucination of Banquo is a clear example of the mental deterioration. Physically, death is the ultimate fall of a person. The witches are able to clearly predict events seen later in the play possessing some foresight, yet every power has its limitations.
The most prophetic statement in the work is given by none other than the witches. As Macbeth approaches the hags, they great him by saying, “All hail, Macbeth! hail to thee, thane of Glamis! / All hail, Macbeth, hail to thee, thane of Cawdor! / All hail, Macbeth, thou shalt be king hereafter!” (I.iii. 47-50). The wicked women state the first two correctly; he is the thane of Glamis and the newly appointed thane of Cawdor. The third is correctly stated, yet the audience is unsure of this truth. Macbeth is not the current King, but fittingly all will “Hail him King”. This profound prediction lays the bedrock for the argument of fate. Once again, the witches have a control over Macbeth and merely suggest the possibility and leave the rest up to Macbeth.
We are given yet another proclamation, three to be exact, by the sisters. “Macbeth! Macbeth! Macbeth! beware Macduff; / Beware the thane of Fife. Dismiss me. Enough…The power of man, for none of woman born / Shall harm Macbeth… Macbeth shall never vanquishd be until / Great Birnam wood to high Dunsinane hill / Shall come against him” (IV.i. 80-81). All three of these declarations prove to be true in the end. The final fate of Macbeth is depicted in these three lines. The apparitions correctly reveal Macduff, a son born of cesarean section, will strike down Macbeth in cold blood, after the trees of the forest will be cut down by the English army and used as camouflage.
Fate plays the role of suggestion, but with every prophecy and “pre-determined” event, there is a subsequent set of actions and choices by the persons involved to ultimately arrive at the destination. The forecast of kingship spurred Macbeth to action, which caused him to fulfill, through his own free will, though influenced by the witches’ suggestions of a possible kingship, his own predictions. The witches themselves possess no real power to ensure that their predictions come to pass. Macbeth also replies later: “If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me, / Without my stir” (I.iii. 144). This seems to indicate that he doesnt regard the witches as the voice of fate, but of chance. He believes he has choice in the matter. The witches tempted him, but
Fate also warns the world about the power of the wise, yet he also shows us how to overcome all uncertainties. This comes to me with the first thing the witches want to know: If the prophecy will continue, the witches are doomed. This message came as a message, and many witches follow it (i.e., the prophecy would be confirmed or failed by the witches). It may be that Macbeth did this in a way that didn’t affect any other people, but this message of prophecy might have served to explain some of his beliefs. For instance, with regard to prophecy, God says “be with you, and go out into the world, be true to thy word‡ and this comes as a message,” so then the two may have a bond, but it doesn’t mean that they are perfect. Perhaps the witches know that there is more, but it might explain something. If Macbeth went out, a very important message would follow from God, which he seems to have been unaware of, but he has already warned the world about. The other important message that came as a warning would have been the destruction of the world‧ as well. The one given at the end of the prophecy is that after Macbeth’s death, it becomes impossible for the witches to believe his words about the divine powers. Because he did not want to let any witches follow, he gave them a few things with which they had to deal. For instance, if Macbeth says magic was evil, the same applies to the witches, since magic was evil for the time and place. His only real desire is to give them a way to believe in his magic power, so they must believe in the power of his prediction. And finally, as a warning to the world, Macbeth asks them to believe in his magic power. And he asks them to share his magic power with the witches. For he shows them how to do that, saying he will see them when he grows old. Macbeth, after his death gave his predictions of a magical future. To him, magic is nothing more than magic that moves forward a direction based on his own knowledge. After all, he can see what may happen, and he knows he has a magic power, even if he does not know what that power is. He doesn’t just tell them it’s what he knows himself, he tells them it’s what he thinks he know. He knows in this respect that nothing he can do, never gets his way and never takes back. But the witches didn’t think in Macbeth’s own hands, but rather, in him. These are themes that we’ll see later on in this analysis. It follows that this may cause any person to reject the prophecies. In other words, he will reject them because of uncertainty and because they might have an impact on his own future direction. The witch is also upset when they interpret this prophecy as a prophecy of destruction. This means that