Macbeth's usurpation is said to have been predicted by the three witches; and the tyranny of Richard by omens. John Black's study of the Elizabethan era reiterates that "despite their learning, culture, and realism, the Elizabethans were steeped in superstition." Thus Shakespeare used imprecations and prophecies effectively to create suspense in his audience, because they gave strong credibility to the forces of the supernatural. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay The audience is first introduced to the powerful element of prophecy in Richard's first monologue, as it exposes us to his natural propensity to be evil. It is because of Richard's resentful envy towards those who have greater advantages of figure compared to the one who is "reduced of this just proportion" that makes him swell with insecurity and therefore prosper thanks to infamy . Richard's psychological acumen towards the people around him works to his advantage as he cleverly uses the prophecies as a catalyst for his plot to "prove he's a bad guy." In Act 1, Scene 1, the word prophecies is mentioned twice in the phrase "By drunken prophecies, slanders and dreams" and "About a prophecy which says that 'G', which leads the public to become aware of the power of prophecies and its dramatic nature. effect on the play as King Edward IV who "listens to prophecies and dreams" and arrests his own brother simply based on a soothsayer's premonitions. The fact that the prophecies are personified as being "drunk" further emphasizes the effect of a prophecy, which manages to influence and overcome the individual's ability to think rationally. Additionally, the prophecies have the effect of foreshadowing future events that lead the audience to anticipate Clarence's unfortunate fate at the hands of King Edward IV, as both have fallen prey to Richard's "subtle, false and treacherous" plans for cause conflict in the monarchy. thereby manipulating his brothers into being "in mortal hatred against one another". Prophecies serve to connect the past, present, and future and have elements of connection and self-containment in the play, as noted in Aristotle's Poetics. It is only two scenes later, in Act 1, Scene 4, that Clarence's fate is revealed as his nightmare which contained "So full of fearful dreams, of ugly sights" serves to foreshadow his death at the hands by Richard at the end of the scene. A person's dream is a series of thoughts, images and sensations that originate from their subconscious. Thus, Clarence remembers his nightmare that "Gloucester stumbled and, falling, struck me, which thought to catch him overboard", which reveals Clarence's underlying subconscious feeling of the threat and Richard's conspiratorial intentions. Clarence's dream evokes self-realization when he speaks of the "corners of gold, the great anchors, the heaps of pearls, the priceless stones, the worthless jewels, all scattered on the bottom of the sea" as he was drowning. However, the dream displays a mocking tone about the uselessness of wealth, which is described in the phrase "And mocked the scattered dead bones." This alludes to the fact that countless lives were lost in sheer futility during the Wars of the Roses. It is only through Clarence's dreams that he is able to realize that materialistic goods such as wealth and status have no value when the soul is absolved from the face of the earth. His dreams lead him to hell. He crosses “the melancholy flood” which is the River Styx in classical mythology which led to Hades, the underworld and the “Kingdom of Perpetual Night” which represents the afterlife. His journey into the depths of hell evokes a strong sense of fear and pity in the audience as we see Clarence purging his regrets and admitting the crimes he has committed. In this scene he is accused of perjury by Warwick through the phrase 'What a scourge for perjury can this dark monarchy afford to falseClarence' and is cursed by Edward, Prince of Wales whom he stabbed 'on the field by Tewkesbury', which echoes the same fate of Richard as he is visited by his victims in Act 5, Scene 3 which serves as a parallel comparison that exposes Richard's lack of penance in comparison to Clarence. even though death remains eminent in the vivid imagery represented by the phrase "Dabbed with blood, and he cried aloud," the reader's auditory and visual senses are inflamed as the gruesome, ghostly image of Edward, Prince. of Wales, appears and displays his loathsome disgust for Clarence through the double emphasis of his shrill sound as he "cries aloud Edward, Prince of Wales, curses Clarence as he calls to "seize." him, furies, take him to torment", which is fearfully manifested when the entrance of the two murders will fulfill Richard's promise to deliver him "from the slavery of this earth to the joys of paradise", as shown the use of double entenders to deceive Clarence with his phrase "I will deliver you or I will lie for you" in Act 1, Scene 1. In Act 3, Scene 2, Lord Stanley sends a messenger to Lord Hastings at the impious. time "at four o'clock sharp", implying that the message is of critical urgency and importance. The context of the dreams comes into play when Stanley "dreamed that the boar had shaved his helmet", which pejoratively refers to Richard as the white boar in his coat of arms. The phrase “shaved his helmet” arouses fear and gives the reader a tactile sensation as Richard is described as having ripped Stanley's head off. which provides the reader with poignant visual imagery of the boar's repulsive audacity to achieve its means. Characters who receive dreams receive a sense of foresight and knowledge as to what might happen in the future. They are therefore considered wiser than the rest of the characters. However, Stanley's early realization of Richard's betrayal proved to help him survive the play compared to Clarence's Dream which only occurred the eleventh hour before his execution. Stanley's dreams accurately prophesie "that there are two counsels held, and which may be determined in the one, which may cause both you and him to regret the other", which is soon reflected in Hastings' conversation with Catesby as he unconsciously expresses his disapproval of the coronation of Richard III as king. Thus, Hastings' hubris is largely reflected in Act 3 Scene 2 as he foolishly rejects his only chance to escape the "danger which his soul divines" by immediately dismissing Stanley's messenger as he misinterprets Richard and confidently attempts to convince Stanley's messenger that "his fears are superficial, unexampled" and "the boar will use us kindly". Stanley's dream begins to materialize as the rising action of the scene begins with the audience's anticipated arrival of Catesby to assess Hastings' view of Richard's reign through the phrase "Until this let Richard wear the garland of the kingdom.” Hasting's inability to interpret danger signs is described in his response: "I will have my crown cut off.