Weird sisters are seen in many novels, but two famous ones about three supernaturally evil sisters are Dracula and Macbeth. Dracula is about an old vampire coming to London and some vampire hunters trying to track him down, after he kills someone they love, and turns her. There are three vampire sisters in the book seen in Dracula’s castle. Macbeth is about a thane who gets greedy and kills to get and keep the throne, and his guilt from those deeds. There are three witch sisters in the play/book seen by Macbeth and Banquo.
In Bram Stoker’s Dracula, the weird sisters are more enticing and sexually active han the weird sisters in Shakespeare’s Macbeth who are more dark and similar to the three fates, though both are supernaturally evil and symbolize temptations. The three vampire sisters in Dracula symbolize temptations in the book. Jonathan Harker talks about the three sisters, seeing them for the first time after waking up in the parlor, showing that they symbolize sexually temptations for him. “There was something about them that made me uneasy, some longing and at the same time some deadly fear.
I felt in my heart a wicked burning desire that they would kiss me with those red lips” (Stoker 40). Jonathan thinks about and is tempted to kiss the sisters, even though it may hurt Mina. The sisters in Dracula symbolize sexual temptations and show the fear of female sexuality in Victorian society. The other set of sisters however, do not having anything sexual about them. The three witches in Macbeth symbolize temptations to do bad things to get ahead and what is wanted.
Macbeth talks to himself about the temptation given to him by his prophecy, and with the prophecy of his future, he is tempted to do something illegal to get what he wants. This supernatural soliciting cannot be ill, cannot be good… If good, why do I yield to that suggestion whose horrid image doth unfix my hair and make my seated heart knock at my ribs against the use of nature? ” (Shakespeare 1. 3. 132-139). Macbeth wants to be king so bad that he is willing to make it happen by doing the unthinkable, murder. The three girls in this book tell Macbeth about his future, causing him to be interested to kill the king to become king faster. The sets of sisters symbolize different temptations, but are not only similar in representing an enticement.
Both groups of the supernatural sisters are also similar in how they leave. When the sisters go to eat for the night, after the Count stops them from drinking from Jonathan, Jonathan watches as they disappear in the parlor. “The women closed round, whilst I was aghast with horror; but I looked as they disappeared, and with them the dreadful bag.. They simply seemed to fade into the rays of the moonlight” (Stoker 42). The girls just vanish into thin air, not to be seen again for a while. The three sisters in Macbeth also disappear into nothing.
After hearing their prophecy from the witches, Banquo and Macbeth see them vanish. “Whither are they vanished ‘Into the air, and hat seemed corporal melted, as breath into the wind” (Shakespeare 1. 3. 81-83). The men comment on the witches’ disappearance and compare it to melting. All six girls leave the scene by vanishing into thin air, though differently. The vampires fade into the darkness, while the witches melt into the wind. They may also be similar in this way, but their characteristics prove them to be more unalike.
The vampire sisters in Dracula are sexually enticing to the men that meet them in the book. Jonathan is sexually attracted to the three sisters, seeing them for the first time in the parlor. All three had brilliant white teeth that shone like pearls against the ruby of their voluptuous lips… then all three laughed–such a silvery, musical laugh” (Stoker 40). From his description of the women and how he wants to kiss them, one can tell how attracted he is to these girls. The girls want to kiss him as wellI, as in drinking his blood.
Jonathan is not the only man in the book to be attracted to the sisters. Van Helsing is there to kill the vampire girls, yet he becomes distracted by their beauty, seeing one of them sleep. “She lay in her Vampire sleep, so full of life and voluptuous eauty that I shudder as though I have come to do murder” (Stoker 402). He also describes their beauty goes on to say that if it were many years ago, and he was not as strong, he would be weak and want a kiss from those voluptuous lips. These girls are beautiful and sexually appealing, the witches in Macbeth however, are not.
The witch sisters in Macbeth are like prophets and are similar to three Fates. Banquo sees the sisters in Macbeth and tells how they are not seen as beautiful, and more like old hags. “What are these so withered and so wild in their attire, that look not like th’ inhabitants o’ th’ Earth… By ach at once her choppy finger laying upon her skinny lips. You should be women, and yet your beards forbid me to interpret that you are so” (Shakespeare 1. 3. 39-47). Banquo cannot even tell what these three are, looking like women, but at the same time not.
The witches are not only ugly, but they like to play with Macbeth and tell him his future. These three like to play games on people especially Macbeth by telling him his fate. They show him apparitions to tell him his fate and to trick him into being overconfident. “Beware Macduff. Beware the thane of Fife.. ‘Laugh to scorn the power of man, for none of woman born shall arm Macbeth’.. ‘Macbeth shall never vanquished be until Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane Hill shall come against him” (Shakespeare 4. 1. 71-94).
The witches tell Macbeth of his future, making the like prophets, and then later talk more about Banquo’s line of kings, to play with him and make him overconfident to see what he will do to change or speed up his fate like the three Fates weaving human destiny. These witches are ugly women to tell of the future to play with Macbeth. Their characteristics are very different from the three vampires. The features of the three sisters in both books are evil yet different. Van Helsing sees the vampire girls outside at night, and they evilly try to get Mina to go with them, and are also very enticing to the men because of their beauty. I knew the swaying round forms, the bright hard eyes, the white teeth, the ruddy colour, the voluptuous lips. They smiled ever at poor dear Madam Mina; and as their laugh came through the silence of the night… in those so sweet tingling tones” (Stoker 400).
These girls are supernaturally evil and like most vampires, lure in their prey, and because of their beauty, it is easier for them to lure in men. The witch sisters are also evil, and they like to play with people. When a woman insults one of the witches, she tells her sisters how what she will do to play with that woman’s husband. I’ll drain him dry as hay… He shall live a man forbid. Weary sev’nnights nine times nine shall he dwindle, peak and pine” (Shakespeare 1. 3. 18-23). These girls are evil in that they love to toy with and destroy people. While both like to play, the vampires are more inviting and play with their food, and the witches like to destroy people. The three weird sisters in Bram Stoker’s Dracula and the three weird sisters in Shakespeare’s Macbeth seem similar, but their individualities make them more different.
The three sisters in Dracula symbolize sexual temptations while the sisters in Macbeth symbolize temptations to do to get what is wanted. The three vampires are seen as more voluptuous and the two men Jonathan Harker and Van Helsing are sexually attracted to them. The three witches are seen as old hags and tell both Macbeth and Banquo their future. “And oftentimes, to win us to our harm, the instruments of darkness tell us truths, win us with honest trifles, to betray’s in deepest consequence” (Shakespeare 1. 3. 125-128).
