P5 - Lady Macbeth

• Lady Macbeth’s ambition is much more intense than Macbeth’s. She wishes for her husband to be King, so that she could reap the benefits of being Queen. She is willing to do anything to push Macbeth to commit the act of regicide - including manipulating him and insulting his masculinity. Her ambitious character seems to subvert traditional gender roles at the time; as her deceitful, machiavellian nature does not conform to the stereotypes of women.
• She shows that she is willing to lose her feminine identity to fulfil her ambitions in her first soliloquy, stating “Unsex me here”. This metaphor shows she is calling upon evil spirits to make her more masculine to participate in the cruel act of regicide. The Macbeths’ roles in this play could be a reflection of the story of “The Fall”, which shows that a woman is commonly responsible for the downfall of an honourable man.
• The consequences of her ruthless actions are shown in Act 5, Scene 1 - where the guilt is catching up to her. Lady Macbeth’s somnambulism is another symbol of psychological deterioration. She now speaks in prose instead of blank verse which shows how she is now torn between her ambition and her guilt.
• This scene shows the hypocrisy of her character - how she initially scolded Macbeth for feeling guilty, but now irony shows as she cries out “Out damned spot! Out I say” upon realising she cannot ever get rid of this guilt. The use of imperative language highlights her desperation and torment.