After the act of regicide, it is Lady Macbeth who has the soundness of mind to plant the incriminating evidence on Duncan's guards. And yet, her firmness disintegrates gradually as the play progresses, leading to nightmares that haunt her and ultimately drive her to suicide. In this regard, Lady Macbeth appears to switch characters with Macbeth midway through the play. Although most famous for her cruelty and lines such as "unsex me here," the decline of Lady Macbeth is also of great interest and certainly a mysterious aspect of Macbeth. 1.
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
In this quote Lady Macbeth is thinking about the witches prophecy and how she can make it come true. She states that she will control Macbeth with her words and she will convince him to do what she says; like killing Duncan. This shows that Macbeth’s main action (the killing of Duncan to become king) was based on what he was told by the witches and what Lady Macbeth told him after he told her. Another case in which Macbeth is acting upon the witch’s prophecy is when he wants to murder Banquo. When Macbeth talks to the murderers and even a bit before he says, “It is concluded: Banquo thy sol’s flight, / If it find heaven, must find it out tonight.” (3.1.141-142).
She becomes evil and ambitious before the murder of Banquo, and then she becomes fearful of her surroundings because of her guilt after Banquo's murder. Lady Macbeth develops her evil character by informing Macbeth about her idea of killing King Duncan and taking over the throne. "What beast was 't then, that made you break this enterprise to me? When you durst to it, then you were a man; and to be more than what you were, you would be so much more than a man...When Duncan is asleep, his two chamberlains will I with wine and wassail so convince that memory, the warder of the brain, shall be a fume, and the receipt of reason a limbeck only..." said Lady Macbeth (I, VII, Lines 55-77). Lady Macbeth is convincing Macbeth about her plan to kill Duncan when he sleeps.
She supported her husband and Macbeth trusted her very much. Because of this trust, Lady Macbeth was able to persuade Macbeth to murder King Duncan, thereby Macbeth assuming the position of king with Lady Macbeth his queen. Macbeth carried out this plot as he felt he was obliged to give Lady Macbeth some form of ‘compensation’ as he had been unable to sire a child with Lady Macbeth. Therefore the reason for Macbeth becoming king was not only his hunger for power but to also please Lady Macbeth. Macbeth’s motive for murdering King Duncan was possibly based upon pleasing his wife as much as Macbeth’s desire to assume power.
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
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.
Macbeth’s character begins to change dramatically with the heavy influence from his wife, Lady Macbeth. When Macbeth’s stature and self-control starts to dwindle it is apparent that Lady Macbeth is the root of it. After the witches talk to Macbeth, it is realized that the death of Duncan is the only hope for Macbeth to become king. As soon as this is realized, Lady Macbeth starts to take charge and
Lady Macbeth is not satisfied with power, as soon as there is an additional opportunity for abundant power Lady Macbeth is committed to getting that power by any means necessary, moral or immoral. She desires for her husband to gutlessly murder King Duncan and expects him to be mentally stable after the murder. However, she is the one who is driven to complete insanity because of all the killing that Macbeth is doing and all the bloodshed that the pair has caused. This is essentially Lady Macbeths fault as she bestowed her corrupt morals onto Macbeth. She shaped the mindset that it was necessary to murder someone who trusts you for more power and accordingly she changed Macbeth’s way of thinking.
However, Macbeth has the ultimate decision in whether or not to commit the assassinations, but he loves Lady Macbeth and wishes to please her. After Macbeth kills Duncan, he fairly disappointed in himself for doing it. After killing Duncan, murdering others appears to be the only solution to continue to cover up his terrible actions or lose all that he has driven for. Lady Macbeth is force on Macbeth that unleashes the wicked part of him. She has a forceful impact on him and is another key character to blame for his developing desire of killing others to get away with her master plan.