The Mistakes of Macbeth Sometimes man is led to fall into states of disillusionment, both through his own fault and that of others, and this can lead him to commit serious errors. The character of Macbeth suffers from a delusional view of the world. The diluted way in which he interprets many of the prophecies predicted by the witches produces a harmful effect on many of his colleagues and acquaintances and leads him to make serious mistakes. It is Macbeth's choice to interpret things in a more literal, rather than prophetic, meaning that becomes the undoing of many characters in the story. The intrusive witches cannot be left without blame, for it was their prophetic truths that led Macbeth to take such a literal stance on all impending prophecies. “Men are sometimes masters of their own destiny: the fault is not in the stars, but in ourselves.” However it is Macbeth's fault for pushing the prophecies beyond destiny. At his first meeting with the witches, Macbeth is told three prophecies. The witches call him Lord of Glamis, Lord of Cawdor, and henceforth king. Macbeth initially dismisses the prophecies as fantastic. Then thoughts of a greater power enter Macbeth's mind. The “demons that lie like the truth” (Shakespeare) encourage Macbeth's mischievous thinking by foretelling the truth that Macbeth will indeed become Thane of Cawdor without any further effort on his part. Banquo, although initially fascinated by the witch's prophecy for him, eventually tends to dismiss it as a witches' trick. “To bring us to our harm, the instruments of darkness tell us truths, conquer us with honest trifles, to betray with deeper consequences,” (Shakespeare)Once Macbeth was named Th...... middle of paper ... ...y Macbeth, many of Macbeth's mistakes led him into a delusional state of mind which in turn led him to commit heinous murders against many characters, including his best friend, his cousin, and king. It is evident that Macbeth's main mistake was taking the witches' prophecies literally and listening too carefully to his wife. Instead of letting fate take its course, he took it into his own hands and lost sight of reality. Lady Macbeth also played a major role in his mistakes, because he allowed himself to be manipulated and persuaded to carry out these heinous tasks in order to gain power. Works Cited Boyce, Charles. Shakespeare A to Z. New York, NY: Roundtable Press, 1990. Foster, Edward and.. Masterplots. Englewood Cliffs: Salem Press Inc., 1949.Shakespeare, William. Macbeth. New York, New York: Washington Square Press, 1992.