...William Shakespeare’s play, Macbeth, takes place in 11th century Scotland, and has its own portrayal of that society. Although it may not be entirely accurate, the society that Shakespeare develops has distinctive gender roles and societal expectations for each gender. In this society lives Macbeth, a military nobleman trusted by the king who eventually becomes king himself, but through a murder encouraged by his wife, Lady Macbeth. His reign is tainted with inhumane acts such as murdering the family of his former friends, and hiring assassins to kill one of his friends. At the conclusion of the play, Lady Macbeth dies from unknown causes, Macbeth is murdered by Macduff, another nobleman, and Scotland rejoices because Macbeth’s reign of terror...
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...Lady Macbeth in William Shakespeare’s Macbeth illustrates one of Shakespeare’s most powerful female characters because of her role as both a driving and destructive force, which was uncommon of women during the Elizabethan Era. Women of this time (circa AD 1000) were not very influential and did not normally have meaningful input. Despite this social convention, Lady Macbeth is an unparalleled character Shakespeare creates to entertain his audience. Lady Macbeth’s passionate desire and ambition to murder Duncan in order to gain power is a characteristic developed by Shakespeare not seen in her historical counterparts. After learning of the prophecy telling that Macbeth will become King of Scotland, Lady Macbeth ferociously pushes Macbeth to murder Duncan and cleverly uses her words to manipulate Macbeth into action “through a meticulous process of cruel and piercing emasculation, purposefully designed to attack his warrior status” (Ancona and Thompson). This exemplifies how...
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...Macbeth and Gender John J. Armes, M.Ed. Ashford University June 4, 2018 Dominance; This theme occurs in so many of William Shakespeare’s plays because it is vital to the creation of conflict within a storyline. The Plot of Macbeth would have never advanced if the foresight given by the witches did not make Macbeth willing to take power away from Duncan and become king himself. Many of Shakespeare’s female characters have also been willing to obtain power; however, achieving power was not as easy as it was for men. Women were not put into leadership roles as easily as men were; they had to seek them out. Lady Macbeth from Macbeth is a the perfect example of a woman who took action to control her own life and the lives of those around...
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...is his tragic flaw? Is Macbeth aware of his flaw? Macbeth is not a villain. Although, he is very easily manipulated by his wife, Lady Macbeth, and the three witches from the woods, who do push him to commit some villainous crimes such as murder. This happens to Macbeth because he has very low self-esteem and these characters are very poor influences to Macbeth. Macbeth is very loyal to his friends, towns people and even the king. Although he does Murder the king, he did not want to, he could not say no to his wife and he was hungry for his power that...
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...Lady Macbeth is a character in Shakespeare's Macbeth (c.1603–1607). She is the wife to the play's protagonist, Macbeth, a Scottish nobleman. After goading him into committing regicide, she becomes Queen of Scotland, but later suffers pangs of guilt for her part in the crime. She dies off-stage in the last act, an apparent suicide. According to some genealogists, Lady Macbeth and Duncan's wife were sisters or cousins, where Lady Macbeth had a stronger claim to the throne then Duncan's wife. It was this that incited her jealousy and hatred of Duncan. The character's origins lie of the accounts of Kings Duff and Duncan in Holinshed's Chronicles (1587), a history of Britain familiar to Shakespeare. Shakespeare's Lady Macbeth appears to be a composite of two separate and distinct personages in Holinshed's work: Donwald's nagging, murderous wife in the account of King Duff, and Macbeth's ambitious wife Gruoch of Scotland in the account of King Duncan. Lady Macbeth is a powerful presence in the play, most notably in the first two acts. Following the murder of King Duncan, however, her role in the plot diminishes. She becomes an uninvolved spectator to Macbeth's plotting, and a nervous hostess at a banquet dominated by her husband's hallucinations. Her fifth act sleepwalking scene is a turning point in the play, and her line, "Out, damned spot!," has become a phrase familiar to many speakers of the English language. The report of her death late in the fifth act provides the inspiration...
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...Macbeth Essay – Is Lady Macbeth more responsible than Macbeth for the murder of King Duncan? Is Lady Macbeth a more evil character than her husband? Why? Macbeth is a play that was written by William Shakespeare in 1606. The story is basically revolves around a prophecies that was told to Macbeth, which in hearing the prophecies sparks Macbeth’s ambitions, which lead him on a path that would inevitably lead to his downfall. Lady Macbeth and Macbeth himself share responsibility for the murder of King Duncan. Even though Macbeth was the one to actually end his life Lady Macbeth is as much to blame as he is. Her responsibility is shown through her manipulating and influencing him. Lady Macbeth’s character is shown throughout the play with her ambition, slyness and control over Macbeth, it shows over the course of the play that though Macbeth’s ambitions are great hers are much greater. Her ambition is so extreme that she would even go as far as to cast her femininity away: “Come, you spirits That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, And fill me from the crown to the toe top-full Of direst cruelty! make thick my blood; Stop up the access and passage to remorse, That no compunctious visitings of nature Shake my fell purpose, nor keep peace between The effect and it! Come to my woman's breasts, And take my milk for gall” Lady Macbeth believes that ‘remorse’ is a factor in her femininity of which she must rid herself of if she wished to continue. She also must...
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...In the Elizabethan Era gender roles were strictly defined and maintained by those in high society. Throughout Macbeth, both Lady Macbeth and Macbeth have a slow demise to insanity as they attempt to . In addition to motifs like blood, hands, and nature, Shakespeare uses gender reversals to convey the importance of congruency within genders. William Shakespeare’s Macbeth uses gender role reversals to show the character’s progression to insanity, this is to inforce the notion that men and women need to stay within their predetermined roles. Men are typically viewed as ruthless and carouse, but the men in Macbeth are seemingly gentle and value life; however, the women, especially Lady Macbeth, are the opposite of demure and very headstrong....
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...Despite Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’ being a pre-gothic text, a vast range of gothic notions remain present, including those of darkness and concealment. The role of darkness within ‘Macbeth’ forms a vital aspect of the entire nature of the plot, with characters such as Macbeth, Lady Macbeth and even the witches displaying the use of dark acts, such as murder, in order to achieve personal ambition “that wilt raven up life’s own means.” Additionally, concealment plays an equally vital role, with the ‘femme fatale’ of Lady Macbeth strongly displaying signs of duality as she represses her evil nature behind the charade of passive femininity. However, one must consider why and how darkness and concealment obtain a significant device in structuring both the plot and displaying the gothic elements. Within ‘Macbeth, one of the most significant roles of the gothic notion of darkness is to emphasise to the audience the chaos and distress caused by Macbeth’s disruption of the Divine Right of Kings; which Shakespeare highlights through the relentless conflict between dark and light throughout the plot. Although darkness plays a vital role in accentuating the beast within both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, it can be seen as equally significant in the literal sense, with the eclipse which occurs during and after the murder of Duncan - hiding the cruel, dark nature to Macbeth’s acts. Within Act Two, Scene One, Fleance expresses the fact that “the moon is down: I have not heard the clock” which instantly...
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...Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’ and John Steinbeck’s ‘Of Mice and Men’ written in the 17th and 20th century, separated by hundreds of years of development and change within the world, both reflect the ideologies, treatment and representations of women in their respective eras. The principal feminine representatives are Lady Macbeth and Curley’s wife who throughout both texts demonstrate similarities and differences in their portrayal of their relationships with their male counterpart, the description of their tragic deaths and the conventional role of men and women and how they fit or break the stereotype. In this essay, I will refer to the aforementioned depictions, analysing the techniques the writers use to create their characters, and how a Jacobean audience, one during the Great Depression of the 1930s and a modern audience would react. Rather than supporting her husband in a subservient manner, Shakespeare makes Lady Macbeth the ruthless mastermind of a fiendish, venal and daring enterprise aimed to ensure her husband would ‘catch the nearest way’. In Act 1 Scene 5, when attempting to convince Macbeth to commit this necessary deed, she utters the heartless words ‘you shall put this night's great business into my dispatch’ inferring she intends to commit Duncan's murder herself. ‘Dispatch’ would lead a modern audience to believe she will only manage and oversee the murderous plan, however, in Elizabethan England, it would have meant to kill with quick efficiency; thus, Lady Macbeth prepares...
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...In the play, Macbeth by William Shakespeare, Macbeth is given his fortunes by three witches. However, he and his wife become obsessed with fulfilling the prophecies out of greed, and begin committing murderous crimes to achieve it. His wife, torn with guilt, commits suicide and Macbeth, filled with false confidence, is beheaded. Feminism creates the persuasion for Macbeth to go through with his deceptive plans where he inevitably meets his fate. How did the role of patriarchal society play in female oppression in Macbeth's time period? Because of the patriarchal society assumption of female insignificance, it sets up undermining capabilities to create a unknown dominance in women. As a result of the time, patriarchal culture presumes weakness unto women, creating an unforeseen influence Lady Macbeth. “Patriarchy defines Lady Macbeth’s intelligence as a flaw and as an indicator that she is unnatural and “unfulfilled” as a woman”(Davis, www.studentpulse.com). For that reason, society creates Lady Macbeth to fall into a negligible classification which ultimately questions Macbeth’s capability. This forces him to later undergo the atrocities. For instance, as a result of Macbeth’s masculinity being inferior to Lady Macbeth, in all it creates Macbeth to believe he is a coward which pushes him further into committing the murderous acts where ironically gives ironically gives Lady Macbeth influential power. “‘We fail? But screw your courage to the sticking-place, And we’ll not fail...
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...From shamming ones feminine acts to discriminating because of gender, Shakespeare’s play, Macbeth, is infused with quotes that reveal how each character portrays gender roles. Determined to become King, Macbeth kills anyone that gets in his way. Lady Macbeth has an important role in Macbeth's actions; throughout the play she provokes him to do specific tasks when he fears that he has gone too far. The theme of gender is a prominent theme that exposes the personalities of the different characters and forwards the plot of the play. Characterization is an essential element to help the viewers connect with the characters and further the understanding of the story. To begin with, at the beginning of the play when Lady Macbeth fears that her husband might not be up for the brutal task of killing another person, she says, “unsex me here, and fill me from the crown to the toe top – full of direst cruelty” (1.5.40-42). This quotation shows that Lady Macbeth wants to become more cruel. Lady Macbeth is saying she wants to be stripped of her femininity to become more masculine because in her mind to be cruel is a more masculine trait that her husband lacks. Secondly, Lady Macbeth states that she would be cruel enough too kill her own child in order for her husband to advance to become king. Lady Macbeth says, “I would, while it was smiling in my face, have pluck’d my nipple from his boneless gums, and dash’d the brains out, had I so sworn as you have done this” (1.7.56-59). Again this...
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...by creating a character like Lady Macbeth. What reactions might the reader have of Lady Macbeth? Shakespeare portrayed Lady Macbeth in many ways in different situations. However, readers would believe her to be manipulative, scheming, deceptive, ruthless and going down the path of evil for power and position overall. Creating the character Lady Macbeth, Shakespeare has made her the catalyst, (including the witches) as Macbeths evildoings and leading towards the downfall of him and herself. He has made her a very significant part of the play. This is because she is always with Macbeth telling him what she thinks he should do, and structuring the deed. When he calls off the whole plan of killing Duncan therefore not gaining full power, Lady Macbeth has the confidence to call her husband a coward and ridicule his masculinity in order to persuade him to commit the murder. She challenges his feelings of guilt and pity for Duncan and replaces them with malicious and spiteful feelings. This shows Lady Macbeth can go to extremes as she has the courage to question his coward-ness and masculinity. The readers can admire or look down on her ruthlessness and her power in the relationship. Also her persuasive skills. Not only taunting him, but using her femininity to her advantage as she sexually touches him while persuading him. Shakespeare has achieved to make Lady Macbeth unique as most wives wouldn’t argue with their husbands however Lady Macbeth did therefore leading to self-destruction...
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...Manhood in Macbeth In today's society the traditional stereotype of manhood is that men are to be strong and powerful. Normally males demonstrate a being strong and have a powerful exterior, while females usually show that they are full of inertial emotions. Common Manhood motifs shown in in Macbeth are tied together with strength, power, physical courage, and force. The characters in the Macbeth use the idea of manhood to instigate one another into fighting, just to serve their own benefits the characters have manipulated their ideas of manliness. Masculinity becomes a trait that is manipulated by Lady Macbeth and Macbeth. Lady Macbeth manipulates Macbeth by making him questioning his manhood and convincing him to murder the King of Scotland, Duncan. The same way Lady Macbeth manipulates her husband. Another example would be how Macbeth convinces the three murderers he hired to kill Banquo and Fleance by questioning them, and making them question their own power and masculinity. One point of view of masculinity could be its dominance over femininity. The first women that appear in the play are the witches. When they meet Macbeth for the first time, he “start and seem to fear” (1.3.54) their prophecies. While it is not shown in the play, there is also a wish that...
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...by Shakespeare’s Volumnia and Lady Macbeth In both Coriolanus and Macbeth, powerful women exploit their power over important male figures through their manipulation of gender roles and performance. In “Identity-Formation and the Breastfeeding Mother in Renaissance Generative Discourses and Shakespeare’s Coriolanus,” Victoria Sparey compares the symbolic relevance of breast milk and blood in Shakespearean literature to explain the immense power Volumnia holds over her son Coriolanus. Ralph Berry argues the sexual motivation behind Volumnia’s control in his article “Sexual Imagery in Coriolanus.” Berry states that “from Volumnia, we derive a strong impression of the interlinked impulses of sex and power” (316). Lady Macbeth’s character and influence over her husband is explored thoroughly in William T. Liston’s "Male and Female Created He Them": Sex and Gender in "Macbeth." Liston outlines the ways Lady Macbeth manipulates both her husband’s masculinity and her own femininity to achieve her personal ambitions. Although Sparey and Berry examine the motives and character of Volumnia and Liston recounts the ambitious incentives of Lady Macbeth, this paper will focus on the performance of gender and how it is used to manipulate the masculine body, the feminine body, and to overcome the societal boundaries set out for individuals at the time of Shakespeare’s writing. Using Judith Butlers concept of gender performativity, Volumnia and Lady Macbeth break their roles as the proper wife...
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...In the tragic play script ‘Macbeth’ written by William Shakespeare, we follow Macbeth and Lady Macbeth as their ambition turns from good ambition like respecting their country and fighting for their King, to evil ambition, as they develop an evil flaw by performing evil acts like murder and deceitfulness. At the beginning of the play script, Macbeth is determined to do good works so that he will be well known and remembered. Then Lady Macbeth’s longing for the crown causes her to be very manipulative. She persuades her husband to do evil and once Macbeth does what she wants, they are caught in a spiral of evil doings. At the beginning of this play script, Macbeth does well in the war against the Norwegians. King Duncan orders the death of the...
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