'Hecate, Hecate, come away' Macbeth, Act 3 Scene 5
Middleton's Additions: Worth a Second Look?
SPIRITS
Come away, come away.
Hecate, Hecate, come away.
HECATE
Hark, I am called! My little spirit, see,
Sits in a foggy cloud and stays for me.
[...]
[Spirits appear above. A Spirit like a Cat descends]
SPIRITS [above]
There's one comes down to fetch his dues,
A kiss, a coll, a sip of blood,
And why thou stay'st so long I muse, I muse,
Since the air's so sweet and good.
[...]
HECATE
Now I am furnished for the flight.
[She ascends with the spirits and sings]
Now I go, now I fly,
Malkin my sweet spirit and I.
SPIRITS and HECATE
O what a dainty pleasure 'tis
To ride in the air
When the moon shines fair,
And sing, and dance, and toy, and kiss.
Over woods, high rocks and mountains,
Over seas and misty fountains,
Over steeples, towers and turrets,
We fly by night 'mongst troops of spirits.
No ring of bells to our ear sounds,
No howls of wolves, no yelps of hounds.
No not the noise of waters-breach
Or cannons' throat our height can reach.
There is a reason why the above extract may be unfamiliar to most readers. Apart from in the Oxford editions of Shakespeare, and perhaps in other, lesser-known editions, the latter half of this passage is almost always omitted from the text of Macbeth. In most editions, Hecate and her spirits exit after 'stays for me', and the dialogue between the three weird sisters resumes.
The reason for this is that most scholars believe that the passage, and indeed all the appearances of Hecate in the play, cannot be attributed to Shakespeare (who is thought to have originally written Macbeth in 1606). The tone and atmosphere of the passage differs greatly to the other supernatural scenes within the play; Hecate's iambic octosyllabic couplets also differ greatly from the trochaic tetrametre used by the witches, and iambic pentameter used by mortal characters. But the main reason this the latter half of this passage seldom features is that it comes from another text - Thomas Middleton's 1616 play, The Witch.
So why did the editors of the Oxford editions insert it into Shakespeare's Macbeth? Firstly, the editors chose the 1623 First Folio text to be their main source text. In the Folio, Hecate exits after 'stays for me' to the stage direction: '[music and a song within: Come away, come away, &c]'. The denotation of the song title 'Come away, come away' led scholars to Middleton's The Witch, in which the song is written in full. The fact that this song title was preserved in the Folio's stage directions suggest that Middleton must have inserted the song in his 1609-10 revision of Shakespeare's Macbeth, and the song was later incorporated into performances. The editors of the Oxford editions wished to 'attempt a reconstruction of their staging in Macbeth', and so included this passage in their text. Secondly, the editors believe other lines in Macbeth can be attributed to Middleton, and if these are to be retained (as per the Folio), then to include Middleton's songs is no great fault.
But to move away from Middleton and The Witch, and to look at this passage in more detail. While I agree that it jars greatly with the atmosphere of the rest of the play, I think that the passage is a beautiful one nevertheless, and as it is so rarely printed or read, it is worth a second look.
Staging - Adding a Masque
Though it is thought that Shakespeare did not write a masque scene until The Tempest, this added passage certainly fits all the criteria for a masque. Though early performances might have been at the Globe (a report by Simon Forman places it there in 1610), it is generally agreed that the play was later moved to the indoor Blackfriars playhouse, and was possibly played before King James I. As a result, the play was most likely adapted to suit the indoor space/potential royal audience, and the masque was added (perhaps by Middleton).
As well as the song 'Come away, come away', the scene also features: a divine figure with an entourage of spirits; masked characters, such as the 'Spirit like a Cat'; stage directions for 'ascends' and 'descends' through the heavens (with actors 'furnished' with harnesses and winches); pastoral imagery of 'woods, high rocks and mountains', and playful verbs such as 'toy' and 'kiss'. We can expect that all the actors would be dressed in glittering apparel, the accompanying music would be sweet and ethereal, and the entrances and exits would be truly magical for the audience.
As well as the song 'Come away, come away', the scene also features: a divine figure with an entourage of spirits; masked characters, such as the 'Spirit like a Cat'; stage directions for 'ascends' and 'descends' through the heavens (with actors 'furnished' with harnesses and winches); pastoral imagery of 'woods, high rocks and mountains', and playful verbs such as 'toy' and 'kiss'. We can expect that all the actors would be dressed in glittering apparel, the accompanying music would be sweet and ethereal, and the entrances and exits would be truly magical for the audience.
Characters - Comparison with The Tempest
The passage from Macbeth does have significant similarities to the masque in The Tempest in terms of staging and language. The characters also appear to be similar: the divine figures (Hecate, and Juno/Ceres/Iris) and the spirits who summon and accompany them (Malkin and other spirits, and Ariel and his spirits).
Yet, Hecate and her spirits behave quite differently to the supernatural figures in The Tempest. Firstly, they do not appear to mortals, as with Miranda and Ferdinand - in this passage at least, Hecate only appears to the three weird sisters, who are supernatural beings themselves. Hecate does hold an influences over the lives of mortals, but not by granting a blessing, as Juno and Ceres do - when Hecate does interfere with humans, it is to 'draw [Macbeth] on to his confusion', giving him a false hope and security that will lead to his downfall. Despite her pleasant word choice ('sweet', 'dainty') and playful verbs ('dance', 'kiss'), Hecate appears to be malevolent and cruel.
The passage from Macbeth does have significant similarities to the masque in The Tempest in terms of staging and language. The characters also appear to be similar: the divine figures (Hecate, and Juno/Ceres/Iris) and the spirits who summon and accompany them (Malkin and other spirits, and Ariel and his spirits).
Yet, Hecate and her spirits behave quite differently to the supernatural figures in The Tempest. Firstly, they do not appear to mortals, as with Miranda and Ferdinand - in this passage at least, Hecate only appears to the three weird sisters, who are supernatural beings themselves. Hecate does hold an influences over the lives of mortals, but not by granting a blessing, as Juno and Ceres do - when Hecate does interfere with humans, it is to 'draw [Macbeth] on to his confusion', giving him a false hope and security that will lead to his downfall. Despite her pleasant word choice ('sweet', 'dainty') and playful verbs ('dance', 'kiss'), Hecate appears to be malevolent and cruel.
Plot - Does it add anything?
Yet despite her malevolence and her plot to manipulate Macbeth to his doom, the spirits seem to remain largely distant from the human world. Malkin calls Hecate away, back to the heavens where she belongs, and with her 'troops of spirits', she seems happy to go - together they fly until the sounds of bells, howling animals, and cannon fire are beyond their hearing and their caring. If it wasn't for Hecate's return in Act 4 Scene 1, and Macbeth's predetermined downfall, we might believe the divine had forsaken the human world for good.
This is perhaps why the passages featuring Hecate are so easy to omit. As additions, they do not integrate into the text very seamlessly, and as a result, do not have a significant enough impact on the plot to warrant their inclusion. It is true that Shakespeare's text works well enough without this passage, and I understand the desire many scholars have to retain only Shakespeare's original work; however, I still think this passage is interesting to consider, especially with regards to how a text was altered to suit a different playing space or a different audience.
This is perhaps why the passages featuring Hecate are so easy to omit. As additions, they do not integrate into the text very seamlessly, and as a result, do not have a significant enough impact on the plot to warrant their inclusion. It is true that Shakespeare's text works well enough without this passage, and I understand the desire many scholars have to retain only Shakespeare's original work; however, I still think this passage is interesting to consider, especially with regards to how a text was altered to suit a different playing space or a different audience.
Photo credits:
Francesca Faridany as Hecate in the 2013 Macbeth at the Vivian Beaumont Theatre, found here.
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