Fate vs. Free Will (p.3) Chirag A. Bhatia, Samantha Braverman, Tori Knabb, Kristina Miller

Act I, Scene 3 ● “If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me” Line ● Macbeth is relying on the Witches’ prophecy and fate to guarantee him his kingship.

Act I, Scene 3 ● 1st witch: “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis!” 2nd: “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor!” 3rd: “All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!” Lines ● The witches foreshadow Macbeth’s future power.

Act I, Scene 3 ● “Or have we eaten on the insane root That takes the reason prisoner?” Lines ● Banquo is referring to the mysterious disappearance of the witches, but this statement connects to Macbeth’s feeling of not being able to turn back from his path or change his fate. That path is bound to the the prophecy by his obsession for power.

Act I, Scene 5 ● “Come, you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, and fill me from the crown to the toe-top of direst cruelty.” Lines ● Lady Macbeth is asking the spirits for strength even though it is prophesied that her husband will become king. She feels that they will both need strength in order to take charge and help the prophecy come to fruition.

Act II, Scene 1 ● “Is this a dagger which I see before me, The handle toward my hand?...Thou marshall'st me the way that I was going; And such an instrument I was to use.” Lines ● Macbeth is blaming fate for “putting the dagger in his hand.” This foreshadows the dilemma Macbeth faces when he tries to stop fate’s control over him.

Act II, Scene 1 ● “Which now suits with it. Whiles I threat, he lives. Words to the heat of deeds too cold breath gives.” Lines ● Macbeth resolutes to kill Duncan, fulfilling fates prophecy.

Act III, Scene 1 ● “Thou hast it now- King, Cawdor, Glamis, all as the Weird Women promised, and I fear thou played’st most foully for ‘t. Yet it was said it should not stand in thy posterity, but that myself should be the root and father of many kings.” Lines 1-6 ● Banquo suspects that Macbeth has been consumed by the prophecy, but he remembers that ultimately it is his bloodline that will be royalty. Fate interplays and guarantees an end to Macbeth’s prosperity.

Act III, Scene 1 ● “Rather than so, come fate into the list, and champion me to the utterance!” lines ● Macbeth is asking fate to “champion” his cause for a continued royal line rather than Banquo’s offspring, whom fate has dictated will rule after Macbeth.

Act IV, Scene 1 ● “ Be lion-mettled, proud; and take no care Who chafes, who frets, or where conspirers are. Macbeth shall never vanquished be until Great Birnam wood to high Dunsinane hill Shall come against him.” Lines ● Macbeth is reassured by the Third Apparition and becomes overconfident, sealing his defeat.

Act IV, Scene 1 ● “ Then live, Macduff; what need I fear of thee? But yet I'll make assurance double sure, And take a bond of fate: thou shalt not live,” Lines ● While fate tells Macbeth that he does not have to fear harm from a man born of a women, it does tell him to beware Macduff. As a result, Macbeth decides to make “double sure” of his reign and kill Macduff (his family is killed not him).

Act V, Scene 5 ● “As I did stand my watch upon the hill, I looked toward Birnam, and anon methought the wood began to move.” Lines ● The statement that the third apparition had made came true. This instills fear in Macbeth since it threatens his kingship.

Act V, Scene 8 ● “Despair thy charm and let the angel whom thou still hast served tell thee Macduff was from his mother’s womb untimely ripped.” Lines ● This seals the deal as Macbeth is destined to be slain by one who is not of woman born. Also, it proves that the Witches’ warnings were not made to grant his security, instead, they foreshadowed his death.

Conclusion Ultimately, the witches (fate) were the driving force behind the affairs since their prophecies played on Macbeth’s greed, causing them to occur sooner. Free will’s influence is almost insignificant compared to Fate’s.