Natural Order in Macbeth:
In Macbeth, the reader is positioned to understand the naturalised hierarchy through references to animals, the weather, and gender. Unnatural events such as murder and witchcraft are often followed by unnatural events in nature. Order can be seen as resembling the animal world, with the falcon ruling over the smaller and less powerful animals.
After the murder of Duncan, the weather patterns are absurd: “And yet dark night strangles the travelling lamp. Is ‘t night’s predominance or the day’s shame that darkness does the face of Earth entomb” (Act 2, Scene 4).
Banquo spoke about the lack of moon and the presence of a heavy wind. The morning after the murder, Ross speaks to an old man about the strange weather and odd animal behaviour. The old man also mentions the unexpected killing of a falcon by a mere owl that usually hunts mice. Ross then brings up the strange happening of the King’s horses breaking loose and turning wild and eventually eating themselves.
“On Tuesday last, a falcon, tow’ring in her pride of place, was by a mousing owl hawked at and killed” (Act 2, Scene 4).