In this essay, I am seeking to answer the question: "What is the significance of the three witches in Macbeth?". In order to answer this, I will look at the following things: what I believe Shakespeare intended the witches to represent; what the witches aim to achieve throughout the play; and what they do ultimately achieve and its ramifications by the end of Macbeth.

First of all, who and what are the witches? Clearly, they are not your friendly neighbourhood types (overplayed somewhat with the rather excessive pathetic fallacy) Some Shakespeare scholars have speculated that the three witches on Macbeth are intended to represent the three Fates of ancient mythology. However, as the latter are goddesses with powers far greater than the three hags of Shakespeare's tale, and the connection, I believe, is at best dim. Interestingly enough, three seems to be a recurrent figure in Macbeth. In Act I, Scene3, one of the "weird sisters" invokes magical powers:

"Thrice to thrice, and thrice to mine,

Again, at the start of Act IV, the first witch projects the time of Macbeth's second encounter with the weird sister

Shakespeare's witches refer even to the apparitions that they raise as:

Why hath it given me earnest of success

"Thrice the brindled cat hath mew'd"

It is entirely self-fulfilling, and Macbeth is the only one who could ever fulfil himself.

They have malicious intentions and prophetic powers. Yet they are not active agents in the sense that they do anything other than talk and offer visions and potions. They have no power to compel or command.

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Approximate Word count = 1944
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page double spaced)