The Curse of Macbeth
by Barry Wright
Essay: The Curse of Macbeth
Pages: 10
Rating: 3 stars
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Many people believe that there is a terrible curse that has been put upon Shakespeare’s Macbeth. Since the
premiere of Macbeth in 1606, it has had a run of unlucky events influencing superstitions in the theater world,
which have inspired traditions that are now common in theaters, such as never whistle on or off stage, never wish
good luck, and, most well known, never speak of "Macbeth" in the theater unless you are performing it. (Molly…)
In 1604, William Shakespeare trying to please King James I, cast caution and imagination aside and for the
opening scene of Macbeth's Act IV he reproduced a 17th century black-magic ritual,. Without changing an
ingredient, Old Will provided his audience with step-by-step instructions in the furtive art of spell casting:
Macbeth was written for King James I. In this time period, an estimated nine million women were put to death for
being accused as witches. The King was very interested in witchcraft, so Shakespeare incorporated it into Macbeth.
(Hanske/Monson) The belief in the reality and power of witches was broadly believed in Shakespeare's day. The
practice of witchcraft was seen to threaten the traditional order of religion and society, and therefore was not
tolerated. Witch hunting was a respectable, and ethical chase through much of the fifteenth, sixteenth, and
seventeenth centuries. (Riedel…)
Macbeth is one of Shakespeare's more popular plays, but not as many people know about the superstitions that
surround Macbeth. There's an old belief that when Shakespeare had produced a sacred black-magic ritual where a
group of witches danced
around a black cauldron, shouting spells in the opening scene of Act IV, without changing an ingredient, he
provided his audience with step-by-step in...