In developing the plot for Macbeth, Shakespeare had to use the second edition of the Chronicles published in the year 1587. Shakespeare used the book for a history of most of the plays that he created. Later in his plays, Shakespeare uses the book as a source for the historical events at the time of Henry V. It is important to note that, in his work, Shakespeare did not just pick the work and put it to use. Rather, the playwright dramatized the work and exaggerated it to bring out his intended perception, and thus create his desired impression on the various characters. For example, in Macbeth, Shakespeare exaggerates the art of witchcraft and evilness in the society by portraying a series of deaths and by elaborating on the occastration of violence that was happening at the time (Shakespeare, 55). For the purpose of this essay, we shall discuss how Shakespeare adopts Holinshed’s the chronicles of England, Scotland and Ireland in the light of his play Macbeth.

In the instance of the witches, it is imperative that reading from the original text of Holinshed, we derive the understanding that the author describes them as “creatures of the elderwood … nymphs or fairies” (Taufer, 268). Where, in general understanding, we derive that the meaning of the Nymph or friaries is used to represent what is beautiful or youthful. It is used in this light to reflect the witches as not necessarily evil, but as part of the society, that makes it more beautiful from their actions. Shakespeare presents them differently. In his work Macbeth, Shakespeare presents the witches as bizarre, ugly and dark. It is important to understand that in, the light of the purpose of the play, the playwright Shakespeare had an original intention of the need to heighten the suspense and the darkness of the play. This made the play more interesting and more real especially considering the modern perception of witchcraft. The chronicles were among the elements that were missing in Macbeth but were evidently present in the original work by Holinshed. There was thus need for Shakespeare to develop a proper framework for the play and thus the reason as to why he made a lot of improvising on several points in the play. He further adopted characters Fleance and Banquo from Holinshed’s work, though in, the modern times, the characters are often considered mythical or to have been a creation of the Scotland rulers at the time.

In Holinshed’s book, a man by the name of Donwald comes home and finds out that the king had put his entire family to death in an explanation that he was dealing with the witches. It is under the pressure of the wife that he and his servants kill the king in his house. In chronicles, Macbeth is portrayed as a king who is struggling to keep himself in power with the influence and support of his wife, they commit a series of murders after he and Banquo have met with the three witches. The two murder Duncan from the urge of the wife of Macbeth. The two scripts are parallel, and share a lot and thus bring an array of comparable characters to the advantage of Shakespeare. The motivation for Macbeth to undertake the murders, and the move to consult the witches came from his wife.

For the purpose of this essay, it is also worth noting that the death of Elizabeth and the coming to power of James 1 of England was a major turn for England (Holinshed, 43). This was because the king James was married to Anne of Denmark and was rumoured to be catholic, a religious group that was unacceptable to many. Shakespeare borrows this in his account of Macbeth and incorporates the turmoil that was faced in England at the time of James 1. The play Macbeth has been termed as a cautionary tale for James. The play is designed to create the understanding that James Descended from Banquo, and that most of the themes developed are meant to incorporate those that James would have been interested in (Holinshed, 64). This is all borrowed from the Chronicles though Shakespeare uses the array of facts and manipulates them to develop the various themes and achieve the desired impression for the audience. Some of the themes that he uses in implying that James would have been interested in such include; witchcraft, the royal family tree in Scotland as well as the dangers that are associated with regicide.

In conclusion, Macbeth is a play that has been entirely developed from Holinshed’s book Chronicles. The book features the events that were happening in Scotland at the time and creates events that Shakespeare uses widely in developing the plot for the play. It is evident that Shakespeare manipulates the events and the characters by picking from the events happening in Scotland at the time, and fixing them at the time of Macbeth. Additionally, he develops his own plot from the chronicles partially because the chronicles did not exist at the time of Macbeth.