Lady Macbeth

• Lady Macbeth symbolises Appearances vs Reality
• Lady Macbeth


  • Viewed as an antagonist for driving Macbeth towards murder and bloodshed despite his protests
  • Viewed as a tragic heroine who falls from grace due to an error in judgement
• Lady Macbeth is the wife of a Thane, living in luxury with a good reputation, childless at the time of the play
• Lady Macbeth's actions


  Receiving a letter from Macbeth about the Witches' prophecies, determined for Macbeth to become king, mocking and tempting him until he gives in, growing more anxious and blunt after Duncan's murder, ultimately broken by grief and guilt leading to her own death
• Lady Macbeth's motivation


  • Traditionally supportive of husbands' careers and aspirations
  • Demonstration of love for Macbeth
  • Her own ambitions and goals due to limited career prospects as a woman in society
  • Compensation for her lost children if she had any
• Shakespeare's message in 'Macbeth' is that nothing is as it seems, appearances cannot be trusted as they rarely match up with reality
• Lady Macbeth's role


  • To shake things up and cause havoc, fool and manipulate people with her deceitful ways, benefit from the divide between appearances and reality, rely on people's prejudices and assumptions to get away with her actions
• Lady Macbeth's manipulation


  • Uses her feminine wiles to persuade Macbeth to kill for her, exploits social conventions surrounding gender to her advantage, advises Macbeth to put on a facade for others
• Lady Macbeth's influence on Macbeth

  Transfers her desires and plans into Macbeth, acts as the villain behind the scenes while Macbeth fulfills her wishes
• Lady Macbeth exploits appearances by

  Transferring her desires and plans into Macbeth
• Lady Macbeth is the villain kept behind the scenes


  Though Macbeth is the one acting and killing, he is fulfilling Lady Macbeth’s wishes
• Lady Macbeth's manipulation of appearances

  Connection between her and the Witches
• Femme Fatales


  Common archetype for female characters in literature and art who are mysterious and seductive, using charm to ensnare men and lead them into dangerous situations
• Common traits of Femme Fatales

  • Heightened sexuality
  • Rejection of motherhood
• Femme Fatales are seen as threatening because

  By rejecting motherhood, they deny a man his immortality and ability to leave a legacy, ultimately leading to the destruction of all men
• Femme Fatales use of feminine wiles


  To exploit men and accomplish their own goals
• Shakespeare uses aspects of the Femme Fatale archetype in the character of Lady Macbeth by


  Threatening to emasculate Macbeth and using her power over him as his wife to get her own way
• Shakespeare demonstrates in Lady Macbeth the dangers of

  Unrestrained female ambition and power
• Theme of 'The Fall' is linked to the concept of the tragic hero where


  A character descends from a higher to a lower state, often losing their innocence and happiness
• Commonly, a woman is responsible for the fall of an honourable man as seen in

  The story of Eve in the Garden of Eden
• Parallels between Lady Macbeth's story, the archetype of 'The Fall', and the Biblical tale of the Garden of Eden

  Exist
• Eve convinced her husband, Adam, to eat the Forbidden Fruit

  They lost their innocence and were expelled from the Garden by God
• Parallels between Lady Macbeth’s story, 'The Fall', and the Biblical tale of the Garden of Eden


  Similarities between Eve being historically viewed as the cause of mankind’s Fall and Lady Macbeth's character being interpreted as the root of Macbeth’s evil
• Arthurian Legend refers to the legends of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table
• Characteristics of King Arthur and his Knights

  • Brave
  • Noble
  • Kind
  • Loving
  • Chivalrous
  • Adventurous
  • Determined to protect their kingdom
• Lady Macbeth takes a similar role to Morgan le Fay in Arthurian Legend


  She is the lover of the story’s main hero but also his downfall
• In the Jacobean Era, women had no legal rights in society
• Women in the Jacobean Era became the property of their husbands when they married
• Domestic abuse and domestic murder were extremely common in the Jacobean Era
• Maternal mortality was extremely high in the Jacobean Era
• A woman’s destiny in the Jacobean Era was to get married and have children
• Women in the Jacobean Era were taught skills like cooking, cleaning, dancing, or embroidering to attract a man
• Men in the Jacobean Era were entitled to divorce or disown their wives at any time
• In 'Macbeth', Lady Macbeth copes with the aspects of life for women in the Middle Ages
• Lady Macbeth is a dominant figure within her marriage with her own clear identity and purpose
• Lady Macbeth is viewed only as Macbeth’s wife and a good host outside of her marriage
• Lady Macbeth's relationship with motherhood is complicated as she rejects the role of mother altogether
• Shakespeare explores the perils of femininity or androgyny through Lady Macbeth depending on the success of her prayers to the spirits
• If Lady Macbeth was successful in unsexing herself, her villainy suggests that gender nonconformity is dangerous
• If Lady Macbeth is viewed as a female character, her acts portray women as deceitful and wicked beings