Lady Macbeth challenges him, saying that he is not a man. Macbeth becomes defensive, and to defend himself, he kills Duncan. So, in the end both are to blame. Macbeth had committed the actual murder, and Lady Macbeth made the plan and convinced her husband to commit the
Lady Macbeth has just been thinking that her husband is too weak willed to seize what she sees as rightfully his, the throne of Scotland. When she hears that King Duncan will be staying in her home, she says: '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' (1.5). In other words, she longs to act like a 'man' and kill Duncan herself. Lady Macbeth goes as far as to invite demons, or spirits, to inhabit her, enabling her to commit this great evil
As influenced by the witches, Macbeth allows them to manipulate him with their power. This is continually shown throughout the play as Macbeth is adamant to kill King Duncan by the witches telling him he will be King. The witches may have only said this to gain high hopes from Macbeth, yet Macbeth takes this as confirmation and
When she says “What need we fear who/ Knows it, when none can call our power accompt?” (5.1.37-38). In making a comment on this, it not only gives away the fact that she did indeed commit murder, but also that she and her husband, Macbeth, need not worry about people knowing who they had killed if they were able to retain power. The fact that Lady Macbeth was so hungry to for power that she was ready to kill will lead to her self destruction, which would result in her insanity. This demonstrates how ambition can cause destruction. Ultimately, the hallucinations of bloodstains on Lady Macbeth’s hands are what symbolize the guilt and lack of innocence.
The truth is that many of these decisions that Macbeth makes or follows is based on what the witches told him. One example of this is when Lady Macbeth convinces him to kill Duncan in order to become king. She specifically says, “Glamis thou art, and Cawdor, and shalt be / What thou art promised. Yet do I fear thy nature / … / That I may pour my spirits in thine ear, / and chastise with the valor of my tongue” (1.5.16-17, 27-28). In this quote Lady Macbeth is thinking about the witches prophecy and how she can make it come true.
Even at the beginning of the scene where she is so confident that her plan is fool proof and her husband has killed Duncan (lines 4-8), where she says, “he is about it … “. From the very beginning we perceive Lady Macbeth as manipulative and deeply ambitious and essentially has the power to control her husband's actions. This is evident through the plot to kill King Duncan in Act 2 scene 2. Lady Macbeth insulted her husbands manhood stating: "What beast wasn’t then, When you durst do it then you were a man; And to be more.... Showing that she would be even more of a man if she were him, thus forcing him to slowly leave his conscience aside and do what his wife has told him.
* She knows immediately that murdering Duncan is the only way of quickly achieving her goal. When Macbeth brings further news that Duncan is actually coming to spend that night with them, it becomes clear that her role is to seize the moment and facilitate her husband's rise to kingship. Before the murder (Act 1, Scene 7) How does Lady Macbeth persuade her husband to kill Duncan when he does not want to? Lady Macbeth uses different methods to persuade Macbeth to change his mind. Which one really affected Macbeth?
Within this relationship there is rarely true equality - one partner almost always has undue power or influence over the other. At the beginning of the play, Lady Macbeth seems the controlling influence. But, again, by the time we reach the final act she is deranged and will suffer and die virtually alone. In many ways, charting this private change of influence tells the story of Macbeth. A renowned warrior and the saviour of his country, Macbeth's authority naturally commands the respect of his countrymen in the opening scenes.
Lady Macbeth is a victim of her uncontrolled ambition.This ambition causes her to push herself and Macbeth to the very edge. She convinced Macbeth to kill Duncan by questioning his manliness. Lady Macbeth shows her negative ambition and ruthlessness while speaking to Macbeth in this quote: "Was the hope drunk?...Like the poor cat I' th' adage." (Act I, Scene vii, Lines 35-45) In this quote Lady Macbeth is asking Macbeth if he is afraid to kill Duncan, and if he has enough courage to say so. She is asking him if he wants to be king or not, and if he is to be king he must commit regicide.
William Shakespeare – Macbeth “The Role of Female Characters in William Shakespeare’s Macbeth” William Shakespeare’s Macbeth is unarguably one of his most famous plays. This tragedy of character and morals offers numbers of focuses yet the role, importance and strength of female characters of the play can hardly be omitted in most of them. Female characters are crucial for the play’s premise and development. This short analysis focuses on the strength of suggestion and control of female characters of the play. Albeit Macbeth may seem as a strong and independent character his actions are substantially influenced by the female characters of the play.