lady macbeth 1

• keywords:

  • femme fatale, tyrannical force, androgynous (masculine + femininity), rejects femininity, temptress, gender non-conformity
• Lady Macbeth has rich significance in terms of her literary context.

  • She subverts the audience's expectations of a woman as weak and passive.
  • Instead, she is arguably a driving force that prompts Macbeth's tragic downfall.
• Lady Macbeth plans to "pour my spirits in thine ear" (pour her spirits of evil into Macbeth) depicts her evil and manipulative qualities:

  • The noun "pour" links to her emasculating threat that Macbeth is "too full o th'milk of human kindness" suggesting she will replace this milk with evil.
  • The noun "milk" is a symbol of femininity and maternal nurturing, Lady M rejects notions of femininity.
  • Almost like a fourth witch, "spirits" is reminiscent of the supernatural.
• The supernatural is reinforced by her imperative language:

  • "unsex me here", "come, you spirits" and "come, thick night" - It seems almost like she is casting a spell.
  • "spirits" and "night" allude to a dark supernatural force.
• Lady Macbeth yearns to be rid of her femininity to encompass the inhumane and witchlike role that would grant her power.
• Lady Macbeth is aware her femininity constrains her and means she has this "passage to remorse". Her want to stop "access" to remorse, not necessarily a maternal emotion, highlights how she sees emotion as synonymous with weakness.
• The 'fall of man' is a central idea of tragedy, for a religious Jacobean audience this would be reflective of the archetype, the story of Adam and Eve.

  • Eve was tempted by Satan in the form of a serpent to eat the forbidden fruit (much like Lady Macbeth being tempted by the Witches' suggestion of kingship).
  • Eve ate the fruit and convinced Adam to do the same, resulting in the downfall of them both and they were banished from the garden of Eden.
  • It could be argued that Lady Macbeth, much like Eve, set the foundation for her husband's evil.
• Both Lady Macbeth and the Witches personify the motif of appearance vs reality in the play.
• Lady Macbeth encourages Macbeth to "look like th'innocent flower but be the serpent under't":

  • Biblical allusion to "serpent" seen in the fall of mankind in Genesis where the serpent tempts Adam and Eve, is used by Lady Macbeth to highlight how effective deception can be when executed with an "innocent" facade.
• Lady Macbeth mercilessly states she would remorselessly "dash'd the brains out" of her unborn child.

  • Her rejection of motherhood is salient, however, her barbaric nature is revealed - she would be remorseless in extinguishing fragile and vulnerable human life.
• Both Lady Macbeth and the Witches disregard of fragile human life can be seen in their interactions with Macbeth.
• Lady Macbeth mobilizes the plot of regicide through her manipulation and emasculation of Macbeth.
• Lady Macbeth uses the epithet (insult) "coward" which threatens Macbeth's entire sense of being as a soldier, not only is she questioning his masculinity but also his livelihood.
• Lady Macbeths emasculation becomes more explicit. She interrogates Macbeth with a rhetorical question "Was the hope drunk/Wherein you dress'd yourself?"

  • To ridicule and question his state of mind.
• The merciless act of rejecting maternal inclinations characterizes Lady Macbeth as violent and determined, she effectively competes with Macbeth who, as a man of that era, could not be weaker than a woman.