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During Shakespeare's time, England was hysterical about witches. There were witch-hunts and sixteen thousand women were killed because they were thought to be witches. They were burned at the stake or drowned. Shakespeare knew of this hysteria so he added them into the storyline so lots of people would be interested in the story. The story was originally written for King James 1st. It was aimed at him because of his unique fascination of the supernatural. He even wrote a book called 'Demonology'. Witches were seen as the devil's advocates. At the time there were apparently thousands of them around. If a woman made special herbal medicines or owned a black cat then she was seen as a witch. In the opening scene of the play Macbeth, the witches are in a desolate place. There is thunder and lightning in the background. This makes the atmosphere seem eerie. It creates tension...

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