(33) Macbeth

Macbeth, Shakespeare’s shortest tragedy (and almost his shortest play. I think The Comedy of Errors is his shortest, in case you were wondering), is a tight, dark exploration of evil, fate, politics, and terror. I've probably read this one more times than any of his other plays, and I can tell you, it doesn't get old. From the opening scene (the shortest opening scene in all of Shakespeare), things take off, with witches brewing and plotting, and a vicious battle, where our hero Macbeth has just cut a man in half, or in Shakespeare’s words “unseamed him from the nave to th' chops.” The action of this play is all business, and proceeds quickly and with purpose. Macbeth, the mighty warrior, buys into a prophesy spoken by the famous “weird sisters” that he will be king. Consumed by this ambition, he and his wife (the great character Lady Macbeth) become the ultimate tyrants, murdering more and more people (children even!) as they and their kingdom spiral out of control. From murder to civil war, to madness and to death, this play is brutal, complex, and strikingly brilliant.  It’s a great read.

One of the ideas that I think this play is trying to convey is the concept of fate versus freewill. We discussed this recently in a reading group I joined, the way this plays out in the play, the dichotomy of these two competing ideas. On the one hand, you can make the argument that Macbeth is charmed by the witches, right at the start, and thus not responsible for his actions. Indeed, everything changes (for the worse) after he runs into the three sisters and hears that he will be king of Scotland. Evil magic, he’s under a spell.

Too simple, right? So is it really a matter of freewill, Macbeth acting out under his own misbegotten desires? Are the weird sisters simply an excuse for him to pursue something he already wanted, just water on the seed, so to speak? Grist for the mill? Perhaps, but it is interesting to point out that the witches tell him all sorts of things throughout the play, describing in vivid detail a number of strange and bizarre prophesies. Macbeth buys into them all and Shakespeare, in his wisdom, makes each and every one of them come true. From what I can tell, everything foretold in this play comes true. What does this say? Is fate responsible for everything then, is it the only driver, the culprit and the cause of all things? Or not? Or both (is both even possible…does even the slightest bit of fate nullify all possibility of freewill…or vice versa)? And, does predicting something automatically indicate fate? Beh! My head hurts, and sorry for all the questions. The Bard can make that happen from time to time.