Lady Macbeth: Macbeth: Characters

Lady Macbeth

Macbeth's wife. An ambitious woman, who plans the murder of king Duncan and manipulates Macbeth into following through with the plan. A strong minded and determined woman, Lady Macbeth eventually goes mad with guilt and kills herself.

Lady Macbeth's virtue

Lady Macbeth's virtue is her strength of character, especially in an era when women were not seen as ambitious or powerful figures outside of their domestic roles.

Lady Macbeth's fatal flaw

Lady Macbeth's ruthless ambition is her flaw. In seeking to make sure Macbeth becomes king, Lady Macbeth sacrifices her humanity and acts in ruthless and cruel ways.

Villain

Lady Macbeth is arguably the villain: she make an alliance with evil spirits, plans Duncan's murder, manipulates Macbeth into following the plan and finally, she is driven insane through guilt.

Ambition

Lady Macbeth is just as ambitious as Macbeth, and upon reading Macbeth's letter commits herself to ensuring Macbeth becomes king (A1:S5). Lady Macbeth's ambition is so powerful that it gives her the confidence to manipulate Macbeth into killing Duncan even after Macbeth insists that they "proceed no further" with the evil plan.

Guilt

While Macbeth is filled with doubt and worry after murdering Duncan, Lady Macbeth is not! However, by the end of the play Lady Macbeth suffers greatly from her guilty conscience, for she sleepwalks while scrubbing at an imaginary spot of Duncan's blood on her hands. Eventually, this guilt drives Lady Macbeth to suicide.

Deception

Lady Macbeth is a deceptive character. She welcomes Duncan warmly to her castle, knowing that she plans to murder him. She faints at the news of Duncan's death, having handled the daggers and she lies about Macbeth's behaviour at the banquet, knowing that he is guilty of regicide.

Supernatural

Lady Macbeth calls upon the spirits to give her the strength and determination she needs to help Macbeth become king (A1: S5). However, the witches do not talk to Lady Macbeth or seem to take an interest in her.

Come you spirits, That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here.

(Lady Macbeth A1:S5) Fearing Macbeth lacks the ambition to fulfill the witches' prophecies, Lady Macbeth calls on evil spirits to strip away her humanity, so that she will have the cruelty and determination needed to do whatever is neccessary to ensure Macbeth becomes king.

Look like th'innocent flower, But be the serpent under't

(Lady Macbeth A1:S5) Lady Macbeth worries that Macbeth's worried face will give away their plan to murder Duncan. So, Lady Macbeth instructs Macbeth on how to deceive the king. She tells Macbeth to look innocent, sweet and cheery and keep his true treacherous nature hidden beneath this fake exterior.

A little water clears us of this deed

(Lady Macbeth A2:S2) While Macbeth is horrified at the sight of Duncan's blood, Lady Macbeth is calm and in control. She feels no guilt at this point, and thinks that their guilt is something which can be hidden from others. Lady Macbeth ignores the fact that they cannot hide the guilt from themselves!

What's to be done?

(Lady Macbeth A3:S2) An important change in Lady Macbeth, for now she asks Macbeth what he plans to about Banquo. This is the total opposite to the start of the play, where Lady Macbeth was in control and made the plans. This shows that Lady Macbeth is losing control of Macbeth.

Out, damned spot! Out, I say!

(Lady Macbeth A5:S1) Sleepwalking through the castle, Lady Macbeth rubs her hands together as if trying to wash them clean of Duncan's blood. The fact the blood stain will not wash away symbolises her guilt over murdering king Duncan.

Yet who would have the thought the old man to have so much blood in him?

(Lady Macbeth A5:S1) Sleepwalking and hallucinating, Lady Macbeth re-lives the night of the murder. Lady Macbeth is haunted by the bloody image of the murdered Duncan, and is unable to console herself. Her tone remind us of how Macbeth felt in Act 2 at the start of his hallucinations which were brought on by a guilty conscience.

Act 1

Having read Macbeth's letter about the witches, Lady Macbeth calls on evil spirits to take away her humanity, so that she may do whatever evil deed is necessary to make her husband king. Lady Macbeth plots Duncan's murder and manipulates Macbeth into following the plan.

Act 2

On the night of the murder, Lady Macbeth corrects Macbeth's mistake by taking the bloody daggers and placing them by Duncan's guards in order to set them up as suspects. When Duncan's murder is discovered the following morning, Lady Macbeth pretends to faint in order to look innocent.

Act 3

Lady Macbeth is unaware that Macbeth had plotted Banquo and Fleance's murder, which is the first sign that she is losing control over events in the play. However, at the banquet, Lady Macbeth has to make excuses for Macbeth's strange rantings at Banquo's ghost (who only Macbeth can see).

Act 4

Lady Macbeth does not appear in this Act. Instead, we are introduced to Lady Macduff and her son. Here, Shakespeare shows the audience a contrasting image of family and the idea of womanhood when compared to the murderous Macbeths.

Act 5

Lady Macbeth suffers terribly from a guilty conscience. She repeats details and acts out events from the night of Duncan's murder, such as washing her hands. The guilt proves too much and Lady Macbeth commits suicide.

Shakespearean Women

Women in Shakespeare's time had a lower status with little legal or property rights. In fact, any property women did have usually went to their husbands upon marriage. Expectations for women were very restrictive, such as being mothers, supporting their husbands and looking after the home.

Sleep

Lady Macbeth's sleepwalking symbolises her guilt at murdering Duncan. Although Lady Macbeth shows no guilt immediately after Duncan's murder, by the end of the play her guilt is so disturbing it haunts her in her sleep, causing her to sleepwalk. Her lack of sleep might also symbolise madness and the unravelling on her mind.

Verse and Ramblings

Lady Macbeth's language reflects her state of mind. At the start of the play, Lady Macbeth speaks confidently in eloquent verse, evoking evil spirits and manipulating her husband. However, by the end of the play, Lady Macbeth's language has descended into the ramblings and repetitions of madness.

Patriarchy

Broadly speaking, a society dominated or controlled by men, or where men benefit from rights that others do not have.

Foil

A foil is a character who contrasts with another character to highlight their qualities. Lady Macbeth's foil is Lady Macduff, for Lady Macduff is presented as a conventional shakespeare wife and mother. This contrasts with Lady Macbeth, who plots the murder of the king and manipulates her husband into committing murder in their own house amongst many other things!