Question

ASAP!!!!! 15POINTS

Answer 1

Answer:

• The First Witch provides a few example's of what she can do to a man - "drain him dry as hay" (line 18) or make him never sleep as in "Sleep shall neither night nor day / Hang upon his penthouse lid" (lines 19-20). The 'penthouse lid' is literally the upper eyelid, so the image is that 'sleep' can't 'hang' on the top eyelid to close it.

• The witches' prophecy influences the actions of the characters, thus, causing them to do things they never before would have considered. In the case of Macbeth, an honorable and loyal soldier, we see the prophecy of becoming King opens him to dishonorable acts.... acts that multiply and become increasingly despicable. Rather than wait to see if the prophecies are in fact fated.... Macbeth helps them along and feels justified in doing so.

• This scene shows us that the witches do have some supernatural power, although we cannot know for certain just how much.  

         They tell Macbeth that he will be made the Thane of Cawdor, and this                is not technically a prophecy because it has already happened: Duncan told Ross at the end of the prior scene to go and execute the Thane of Cawdor for treason, "And with his former title greet Macbeth" (1.2.76). Macbeth isn't aware that this has happened, however, and so when Ross approaches him to present him with his new title, it seems as though the Weird Sisters have foretold the future. It is possible that when they tell him that he will be king, they aren't prophesying but rather telling him something to manipulate him: they might just want to see what he'll be willing to do in order to make this statement become reality. If so, then they perhaps have no real ability to foretell future events.

However, they do vanish (according to the stage direction just after line 81). Being able to disappear into thin air does seem to indicate that they have some supernatural ability, if not the one they claim to possess. At the beginning of the scene, they discuss a number of things which, if they can really do them, would also indicate their supernatural natures: sailing anywhere in a sieve, torturing a man by preventing him from sleeping for a long period of time, controlling the winds, and so on.

• The witches prediction for Banquo: line 67, his children will be kings.

• Prediction for Macbeth: lines 49 and 50, that he is the Thane of Cawdor and will be the king soon.

• Macbeth doesn't believe their prediction because, as he says, "The Thane of Cawdor lives" (line 72), and for the prediction that he will become king, that's just a crazy stretch to Macbeth - it "Stands not within the prospect of belief" (line 74).

Hope this helps <3