Expert: Randy Sus - 8/10/2009

Question
Hi Randy, it is an irrefutable actuality that witches play an important part in "Macbeth" and there is no surprise that the public attending the play in that era did not feel strange watching activities and part of witches in the theme. My question here is, whether the same drama-loving public had gotten inspiration from the plot and led to violent behavior with their routine? I read somewhere that particularly in that period more than 15000 women were killed due to witchcraft accusations. If that’s true, then do we to assume it was due to “Macbeth” influence? Thanks… this is Raj from India.

Answer
Hi, Raj,

Thanks for calling upon "Allexperts" for an opinion regarding the influence of Shakespeare's witches in Macbeth.
I agree with you that the witches have a very pivotal role in the plot of Macbeth and that the Elizabethan audiences had little trouble understanding this.  The audience, I'm sure, appreciated the use of witches in this play just as much and they enjoyed Puck and Oberon in A Midsummer Night's Dream and even Prospero and Ariel in The Tempest.  Magical characters are almost always entertaining to any audience, young or old, ignorant or intelligent, then AND now.

That magical characters' behaviors in plays influenced REAL violence in Elizabethan or any OTHER period of time is doubtful.  I have NOT read that thousands of Elizabethan women were put to death because of their alleged ties to witchcraft.  The Salem witch trials were held in another place and time.
The behavior of real citizens may have been somewhat influenced by their perception of literary or dramatic characters, but I believe that that that behavior was modified only VERY slightly because of malevolence developed during a play performance.

That's my opinion regarding the matter of ANY play's performance affecting later real behavior--it's almost insignificant.  OTHER personal characteristics cause behaviors----and it takes MORE than a dramatic portrayal to set them in motion.

Happy trails, Raj,

Randy