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Why does Macbeth react the way he does to the witches' prophecies in Act I?

In Act 1 Scene 3 of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the three witches reappear and encounter Macbeth and Banquo.  When prompting the witches to speak, Macbeth is extolled by the witches as they proclaim, “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, thane of Cawdor! / All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!” (I. iii. 50-51).  This proclamation startles Macbeth and he is rendered speechless as noted by Banquo:



Good sir, why do you start and seem to fear
Things that do sound so fair? (to the WITCHES) I' th' name of truth,
Are ye fantastical, or that indeed
Which outwardly ye show? My noble partner
You greet with present grace and great prediction
Of noble having and of royal hope,
That he seems rapt withal.  (I. iii. 52-58). 



Banquo’s address reveals that Macbeth is apprehensive and shocked by the witches’ address of “thane of Cawdor” and “king hereafter.” This is in part due to the fact that the thane of Cawdor is still living at the time, as expressed by Macbeth:



By Sinel’s death I know I am thane of Glamis.
But how of Cawdor? The thane of Cawdor lives,
A prosperous gentleman, and to be king
Stands not within the prospect of belief,
No more than to be Cawdor. (I. iii. 72-76)



Macbeth reacts startled and speechless because he cannot believe that he will be the thane of Cawdor, for the “prosperous gentleman” lives, and further, he cannot begin to fathom becoming king. Yet, when Macbeth prompts the witches to explain and say more in regards to the prophecies, the witches vanish and he is left alone with Banquo.  It is not until Ross and Angus, noblemen of Scotland, arrive that Macbeth learns that the king has named him thane of Cawdor for his bravery.  Ross states,



“And, for an earnest of a greater honor, / He bade me, from him, call thee than of Cawdor: / In which addition, hail, most worthy thane” (I. iii. 105-107). 



In a line that echoes the witches prophecy, Macbeth is again hailed as the thane of Cawdor, and he later learns that the current thane of Cawdor has been sentenced to death for treachery.


Upon hearing this, Macbeth, in an aside states, “Two truths are told, / As happy prologues to the swelling act / Of the imperial theme” (I. iii. 130-32).  With his new thane of Cawdor titled confirmed, Macbeth begins to believe that his “imperial” crowning will surely happen.  In one of the most infamous Shakespearean asides, Macbeth delivers the following lines:



This supernatural soliciting
Cannot be ill, cannot be good. If ill,
Why hath it given me earnest of success,
Commencing in a truth? I am thane of Cawdor.
If good, why do I yield to that suggestion
Whose horrid image doth unfix my hair
And make my seated heart knock at my ribs,
Against the use of nature? Present fears
Are less than horrible imaginings. (I. iii. 134-142)



It is in this aside that Macbeth develops thoughts of murder to propel his way to the crown to fulfill the prophecy. The witches’ prophecy and the confirmation of his new title turn the wheels of greed that drive Macbeth to commit his villainous acts later in the play.  Macbeth acts startled and motivated because at first he cannot fathom either title, but when one prophesy comes true, he takes matters into his own hands to ensure the second one does as well.

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