Lady M Act 3

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Cards (6)

  • Key words to describe Lady Macbeth in Act 3
    Weaker, Submissive, Loosing her tyranny, Quelling his evil
  • Macbeth and Lady Macbeth role reversal
    It appears the power dynamic between the Macbeth's begins shifting in this act - Macbeth begins echoing the former sentiments of Lady Macbeth, suggesting he has extrapolated her evil. He claims they must "make our faces Vizards to our hearts" which is reminiscent of "look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent under it". This characterises Macbeth as a marionette of evil influence - he echoes both the witches and his wife in their lexis (word choice).
  • Macbeth and Lady Macbeth role reversal 2
    Although Macbeth is growing to be bloodthirsty and tyrannical, it appears he is fragile and malleable as a character - he fails to demonstrate any qualities of a respectable king to epitomise the truth that he is disrupting the natural order. This extends the idea of appearance Vs reality as "Vizards" suggests they should wear masks to conceal their true evil nature.
  • Macbeth and Lady Macbeth role reversal 3
    She discourages Macbeth from murdering Banquo, saying "you must leave this", yet he is trapped within the momentum of evil and dismisses her - "be innocent of the knowledge, dearest chuck." It is ironic that Macbeth now overpowers Lady Macbeth through feminine epithets, which belittle her much as she previously did to him.
  • Macbeth and Lady Macbeth role reversal 4
    In response to hearing Macbeth's bloodthirsty plans, she claims "you lack the season of all natures sleep". It seems she is now trying to moderate and quell is evil, as she is comparatively passive and is preoccupied with sleepe (a motif for peace and innocence). It appears she is yearning to reverse the murderous chaos as she realises her role as queen is not what she expected.
  • Summary
    A shift in power is clear when Lady Macbeth retreats into her expected submissive and weak role as a women. Her tyranny and ability to restrict her remorse weakens as she is unable to combat her natural emotional anger - Macbeth has extrapolated her evil.