Lady M Act 5

• Key words to describe Lady Macbeth in Act 5

  Somnambulism, Hallucinogenic madness, Carcase of insanity, Mentally fragmented, Need for salvation
• Need for light in eternal darkness

  Lady Macbeth "[enters with a taper]" (taper meaning candle). As a '[taper]' provides light - emblematic of Lady Macbeth seeking light, hope, and solace in her eternal mental darkness. Jesus was seen to be the 'light' of the world, providing salvation for mankind, therefore her dependency on light could illuminate how she is hopeful for salvation and retribution for her sins. She understands that her violations of religion, the D. R. O. K. , and the G. C. O. B. will mean she is eternally punished in hell, hence her clinging to the hope of her redemption.
• Need for light in eternal darkness 2

  Her need for light is the antithesis to her earlier presentation in Act 1, when she calls upon the night and wants darkness - "come thick night". When performed in the Jacobean era, Lady Macbeth would have typically been played by a young boy as females weren't allowed on stage. This would have exacerbated (further show negatively) her fragile presentation on stage.
• Comparison

  It is clear that Lady Macbeth's personality is duplicitous - initially, she is Machiavellian (evil, cunning, and manipulative - a common way of characterising the villain within literature), yet she descends into overt helplessness. The two identities of her personality are brought together by her use of imperative verbs, yet they serve opposite purposes. At first, her domineering nature stems from a perceived sense of self - importance, yet it now extends from anxious desperation.
• Lady Macbeth's somnambulism (sleep walking)


  Lady Macbeth has been critically described by D. J. Enright as a sprinter in evil, unlike Macbeth, who is more like a long - distance runner. This is apparent throughout the play, as the drive of evil is transient, and she is rendered a carcass of insanity by act 5.
• Lady Macbeth's somnambulism (sleep walking) 2


  She concedes to a state of Hallucinogenic madness that Macbeth displayed when he was poisoned with guilt, attempting to wash imaginary blood clean from her hands, and exclaiming "out, damned spot! Out I say!", which directly juxtaposes her litotes in Act 1 Scene 5, "a little water clears us of this deed". This "spot" is emblematic of the scar the murder has created on her mind.
• Lady Macbeth's somnambulism (sleep walking) 3


  However, this spot may be interpreted in another sense by Shakespeare's contemporaries. Madness was often perceived as a sign of being possessed by demons - it was believed that demons and witches had a "spot" on their bodies, which identified them as evil. This is reinforced by "damned" which has connotations of hell. It is interesting that she is sleep walking, operating within a Liminal realm between sleeping and walking - it conveys her entrapment within her mind and could suggest the blurring of the two facets of her personality.
• Lady Macbeth's change in speech

  In the beginning of the play, Lady Macbeth speaks in blank verse (iambic pentameter), which denotes characters of a high status.However, by act 5, she is speaking in disjointed prose. Prose is normally associated with low status, inferior characters. Her regression from black verse to disjointed prose shows that her guilt has infected and engulfed her mind so consequently, she has lost the status she once had.
• Lady Macbeth's change in speech 2

  She is the only Shakespearean character to die speaking in prose, which dismisses her as insignificant, although she played an influential role in instigating the murder, she was discarded soon after and reaped no reward from it, yet faced the worst consequence - insanity, leading to inevitable death.
• Summary

  Lady Macbeth's guilt and insanity drives her into a state of somnambulism - this allows the audience to view the turmoil within her mind. Her anxious state completely juxtaposes her past domineering self and gives the impression of her being possessed.

  Lady Macbeth's reliance on her "[taper]" (candle) shows her desperation to find light and hope in her mental darkness and turmoil. This directly juxtaposes her earlier presentation of calling upon darkness to help her be remorseless. Shakespeare shows that being overly ambitious is synonymous with a tragic ending.