lady macbeth act 2

• topic sentence

  immediately after duncan’s murder lady macbeth and macbeth have diametrically opposed reactions showcasing ther fragmented relationship. this scene reveals lady macbeths true cowardice, her deceptive facade is fragmented as she descends into insanity
• how does she emasculate macbeth

  “i shame to wear a heart so white” to ridicule his cowardice
• how does she attempt to excuse herself

  • “had he not resembled my father as he slept i’d had done it”
  • exposes inner cowardice and ingrained fear of patricide
  • operates in a liminal gender
  • takes advantage of alleged feminine weakness when it favours her
  • brutally rejects it when it represses her
  • subtle commentary on how arbitrary gender roles are
• contributes to fear of appearance vs reality

  • “a little water clears us of this feed”
  • simultaneously deploys litotes and euphemism
  • litotes downplay murder and guilt
  • laced with irony as lady macbeth shifts to a melodramatic state of insanity
  • speaks in hyperbole as guilt overtakes her
  • exposes indifference to murder as a facade - hinted by euphemism
  • lady macbeth fails to face reality
  • must placate it into less heinous words to maintain composure