In the opening scene of Macbeth (Act
I, Scene I), there is a raging storm going on. There is lightning, thunder, and heavy
rain. On the abandoned Scottish heath, it is dark and foggy and eerie. The three witches
(or weird sisters) introduce the grotesque tone of the play. They make a reference to
the battle going on between Scotland and Norway, and say that they will meet again when
the battle is over. This already sets up a strange thing happening--the evil and
foreboding events will happen AFTER the actual war. Thus, it implies that the tragedies
that will happen are secretive ones. King Duncan believes that he has defeated his
enemies, without realizing that his true enemies are his own people, whom he trusts and
loves.
The witches plan on meeting Macbeth once this is
over, signaling the name of the titular character and thus alerting the audience to the
importance of this scene. The scene sets up Macbeth's tragic fate--these evil figures
are planning his doom already. His end is already in sight, even before he makes any
decision at all.
Despite being very short, the opening
scene deals with many of the major themes of the play--evil, ambition, fate, inversion,
appearances vs. reality, the supernatural, violence, and
madness.
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