What is Macbeth’s attitude towards the witches when he goes to meet them the second time?
a) He ?is grateful and thanks them for telling him the truth.
b) He ?is suspicious of them.
c) ?He is not afraid, but rather is arrogant and demanding.
d) ?He is very afraid, but wants them to tell him the rest of his future.
The Correct Answer and Explanation is:
Correct Answer: c) He is not afraid, but rather is arrogant and demanding.
In Act IV, Scene 1 of Macbeth, Macbeth seeks out the witches for a second time. Unlike his initial encounter in Act I, where he is intrigued and somewhat hesitant, his demeanor during this second visit has significantly changed. He is now emboldened by his previous rise to power and the partial fulfillment of the witches’ original prophecies. This shift in status has made him more confident—and arrogant.
Macbeth no longer passively listens to the witches’ predictions; instead, he demands answers. He tells them: “I conjure you, by that which you profess, / Howe’er you come to know it, answer me.” His tone is imperious and commanding. He even declares that he doesn’t care if the answers come with dire consequences: “Even till destruction sicken, answer me / To what I ask you.”
This shows that Macbeth is not fearful of the witches anymore; instead, he believes he can control them and the supernatural forces they represent. His arrogance blinds him to the dangers of relying on such ambiguous and deceptive prophecies. When the witches conjure the apparitions, Macbeth interprets their cryptic messages in a way that reassures him and fuels his sense of invincibility, such as believing that no one born of a woman can harm him, and that he is safe until Birnam Wood comes to Dunsinane.
Ultimately, this arrogance is his downfall. By trusting the witches too much and acting on their misleading prophecies, he seals his own fate. His demanding attitude and false confidence contrast sharply with the fear and uncertainty he showed earlier in the play. Thus, his attitude in the second meeting with the witches is best described as arrogant and demanding, not fearful or merely suspicious.
