Macbeth: Decisions That Determined Fate People everyday are faced with decisions. The way one decides to act on these determines the outcome of the days in their life. In Shakespeare's tragedy MacBeth, the characters are develops so their decisions determine their fate. In the play, MacBeth's downfall is influenced by the three witches' prophecies, his wife Lady MacBeth, and the apparitions shown to him. In the beginning of the play, MacBeth is approached by three witches. The witches accost him with the titles "Thane of Glamis, Thane of Cawdor, and that shalt be king hereafter" (Shakespeare Act I