Macbeth active reading notes: Act 4

"Eye of newt and toe of frog, Wool of bat and tongue of dog." With these (highly reused/re-purposed) lines of incantation the three witches summon the pagan deity Hectate to which their wicked communion is interrupted by the entrance of the enraged Macbeth demanding explanations of his prophecies, deviations of his fate. Funny today most of Shakespeare's characters, story features are so ubiquitous in the foundations of western storytelling its hard to consider Shakespeare as anything but trite. Truth is, however, he was the progenitor of these tropes, the true "og". I mean everyone has seen stereotypical trios of wicked witches in one form of media or another right? Subsequently I can't help but bock to a certain extent at the cardboard, cookie cutter characters of Macbeth as compared to the morally ambiguous/dynamics of many contemporary counterparts. But I digress. The ambiguitous foreshadowings of the three witches only furthers the idea of an imminent confrontation between Malcolm and Macbeth as well as the sons Lennox and Donalbain. A bloody end to a bloody tale act 4 saw to the merciless stabbing of Macduffs son as Macbeth further descends into guilt wrought anxiety/ delusions. Recruiting the king of England as an armed aid, Malcolm seems to be the most valiant lead in the play though I handed it to Shakespeare when I say nearly all of the characters are generously flawed in a cardinal sin kind of way. To end my rambling all signs and foreshadowings lend to a climatic, violent conclusion. Wouldn't want it any other way.