Macbeth

According to Shakespearean scholar, A.C. Bradley, "while the influence of the witches' prophecies on Macbeth is very great, it is quite clearly shown to be an influence and nothing more. There is no sign in the play whatever that Shakespeare meant the actions of Macbeth to be forced on him by external powers." Bradley's argument is valid; the witches provide the spur Macbeth needs to act on his overbearing ambition, but it is ultimately …

…influence on him. At every point in the play, Shakespeare makes it clear that Macbeth has the ability to make his own choices, and his actions are a consequence of that free will. Perhaps Lawlor encapsulates this issue of free will in Macbeth best with his question, "If a man is to go to his doom, how far does he exercise a choice which is recognizably free?"11 In Macbeth's case, the answer is, "quite far."