Supernatural In Macbeth

The supernatural elements in literature take us on a journey in which we fully understand the characters, their personalities and goals that help shape a complex, enrapturing story. The 1611 Shakespearian play 'Macbeth', explores the power of the supernatural and their ability to wield it in the mortal world as a weapon to play with the character's minds and morals. The story follows an ambitious King and his power-hungry wife as they progress up the royal hierarchy through murder and deceit. Mankind is both fascinated and frightened of a power that is stronger than our own as it proves that even the greatest of men can be influenced, a discovery Shakespeare made and used as a tool to enrapture the audience. In the film, the supernatural reveals …show more content…
The supernatural is used as a scapegoat in Macbeth for everything that goes wrong in the character's lives, even if it is a consequence of their own actions. Lady Macbeth requests help from the supernatural when mustering up the courage to kill, pleading, ‘Come you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts/ Un-sex me here.’ Her reference to ‘spirits’ indicates that she believes she needs help from another realm in order to commit an evil deed and the cold-heart of a man, to be ‘unsexed’, to live with herself afterwards. While this was all her prerogative, later on in the play she exclaims, ‘What? Will these hands ne’er be clean?’ whilst sleepwalking, informing the audience that she regrets her actions. Macbeth calls upon fate, thus calling on the supernatural, ‘come fate into the list, And champion me to th' utterance!’ to give him the strength to murder Banquo, demonstrating his willingness to let the witches interfere with his life and his dependence on a power greater than his own to boost him up the royal hierarchy. However, later on when he is murdering Duncan, he blames the supernatural for his actions, declaring ‘Come, let me clutch thee’ as if the dagger, and thus the supernatural, is forcing him to commit murder. The personification of the knife is a metaphor for the real reason he is committing the murder, the paranormal. Shakespeare has used the supernatural as a vehicle to direct the audience’s attention towards each character’s misfortunes as a result of their willingness to allow the magical elements to control their lives and later use it as an excuse for everything that has gone wrong. Not only does it prove to the audience that the characters are misguided and simply looking to share the blame, it also provides an idea from which the audience can

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