Eye of Newt, and Toe of Frog

@celticeagle (190074)
Boise, Idaho
October 4, 2022 7:56pm CST
Shakespeare wrote some grand plays such as Henry VI and Romeo and Juliet. He was quite the dramatist. I love some of his phrases. Like the one from "Tragedy of Macbeth: "Eye of Newt, and Toe of Frog". Remember the scene with the three witches stirring the cauldron? I think the weirder the ingredients the better the spell. The toe of the frog is actually a buttercup. The tongue of the Newt plant is actually a mustard seed. Other odd ones are wool of bat which is holly leaves or moss and blind worms sting. These are an adder's tongue and a blindworm. Houndstongue is a herbaceous plant. Shakespeare even uses a different rhythm to separate the witch's speech from the others in the piece. He wrote this play in 1606. Picture is mine.
5 people like this
4 responses
@josie_ (10033)
• Philippines
5 Oct 22
Somehow, "Eye of Newt, and Toe of Frog" has more mystery compared to buttercup and mustard seed.
3 people like this
@celticeagle (190074)
• Boise, Idaho
5 Oct 22
Exactly. He knew how to write, that's for sure.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (222898)
• United States
5 Oct 22
Interesting how many of these ingredients are plants.
1 person likes this
@BarBaraPrz (51839)
• St. Catharines, Ontario
5 Oct 22
"Witches" or wise women, were herbalists.
2 people like this
@celticeagle (190074)
• Boise, Idaho
5 Oct 22
@BarBaraPrz .......Yes, they wore many hats.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (222898)
• United States
6 Oct 22
@BarBaraPrz Thank you for the information!
2 people like this
@jstory07 (148777)
• Roseburg, Oregon
5 Oct 22
The play from 1606 is still a good play. He had a way with words.
1 person likes this
@celticeagle (190074)
• Boise, Idaho
5 Oct 22
Yes, he sure did.
@LadyDuck (502886)
• Italy
5 Oct 22
I remember the play that we studied in school during our English classes.