In the first two acts of Macbeth, issues of gender, violence, and what it means to the definition of masculinity arises. Lady Macbeth constantly manipulates her husband by belittling and questioning his manhood. She assumes the responsibility of creating a plan to kill Duncan the king, and commanding her husband on his every move. On page twenty-eight she says to Macbeth: “…that I pour my spirits in thine ear, and chastise with the valour of my tongue all that impedes thee from the golden round.” The behavior of Lady Macbeth, and Macbeth’s response to her, shows that they equate masculinity with aggression, evilness, and violence.
Even though the men in the play are the only ones who have committed the physical violence, such as war and murder, the aggression and hunger of Lady Macbeth is more outstanding and surprising because it is contradictory to the usual expectation of how a woman should behave. She wishes to be “unsexed”, (30) and have all maternal, nurturing, and traditionally female attributes of her body stripped from her, and have them be replaced with evilness and cruelty. Her ambition for power and royal status is almost stronger and more apparent than her husband’s, as well as the other men in the play.
The other females who have appeared in the play thus far are the three witches. However even they appear manly because of their bearded chins. The witches are the initial spark that encourages violence, because of the prophecy they told Macbeth. Shakespeare has linked violence, and evil with the four prominent female characters in the play, demonstrating that women can be just as masculine and cruel, if not more so, than their male counterparts.
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This reminds me of a concept I came across in a history class I had last semester. The idea was women may have had more prominent roles in history than historians give them credit for. Granted this is a play and not an actual historical account but, the way women manipulate the men in their lives fits with the idea. Although the female role in history has always been portrayed as docile in the public eye, it does not mean women did not have a voice in their home. Lady Macbeth is a prime example of showing how a woman’s words influence a man's actions and, create a more equal partnership between men and women in the home life. Of course this relationship between males and females was far from perfect; however, it gives a new spin to the way we think of women’s roles in society throughout history.
ReplyDeleteI personally like the role that Lady Macbeth depicts in the play Macbeth. Lady Macbeth is strong, willing to kill, and manipulative. By no means do I feel that those traits are essential to the success of a woman in her era but I think it gives women activist and women that don't see gender barriers the hope and drive to speak out and be heard.Women are powerful in their careers, home life, and social endeavours. This parallels the ideals that many people have about women in the home and that men are the head of the household. I enjoy the risky nature and edgy ways in which Lady Macbeth breaks barriers and creates avenues for women today to overcome and create endless possibilities for themselves and generations to come.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Lady Macbeth's role is a sexist stand point about women. I think it comes from the whole idea that women descended from Eve who ignored God's command and was corrupted by evil. Lady Macbeth calls on the spirits to thicken her blood and make her not care as much about manipulating her husband into killing a man. This character is dark, violent, and is driven by personal gain. The only other female characters happen to be witches. Witch, certainly has negative connatations. So far I have not seen any redeeming or postive characteristics of women's roles in this play.
ReplyDeleteLady Macbeth seems to be a character whose heart has already been filled with evil and whose actions imply evildoings and trickery. I dislike how Lady Macbeth wishes to be unsexed based on a prophecy Macbeth describes from the witches. Her ruthless actions taken toward royal dominance shows to me how there is a gender discrepancy in the book. The very fact that she would go so far as to call upon the Gods to commit treason says something. I wonder why Shakespeare took the route to make the female characters in the play the very foundation of the plot. Why is Lady Beth so ruthless? What is the purpose of making the women dark, sneaky characters who play a dominate role in Shakespeare's Macbeth through their devious inconspicuousness? Is it because the story is based on Macbeth’s inner struggle to masculinity. Macbeth struggles with his masculinity because the very woman he loves brings it to question. Why isn't masculinity used to prevent Kind Duncan's death?
ReplyDeleteThe arguments made pertaining to the reversal of gender roles in “Macbeth” are completely accurate. The female characters who have appeared in the play do not possess traditionally feminine qualities. When Macbeth has reservations about murdering King Duncan, Lady Macbeth tells her husband, “I have given suck, and know how tender ‘tis to love the babe that milks me: I would, while it was smiling in my face, have pluck’d my nipple from his boneless gums, and dash’d the brains out, had I so sworn as you have done to this.” (page 42) Unlike most conventionally feminine characters who are seen as complacent and affable, Lady Macbeth is so ruthlessly ambitious and belligerent that she would even kill a baby if she was determined to do so. In addition to Lady Macbeth, the witches, who first appear in Act I, do not fit the accepted roles of women. By telling Macbeth he will be king, these three female characters become the source of Macbeth’s demise. Their omen concludes in the downfall of not only Duncan, but ultimately Macbeth himself.
ReplyDeleteThe female characters in Macbeth prove that women too have the ability to be as strong and as powerful as males. I agree that Lady Macbeth bosses her husband around because he feels that he will not be able to do what she asks properly and when it needs to be done. I feel that every woman has the ability to take charge and I think this play accurately portrays that strength. I like the fact that Lady Macbeth is so confident in her ability to succeed and get what she wants. She does not seem to worry at all that her plan might fail or that she might not get away with Duncan’s murder. I also think that it is interesting how Lady Macbeth does not put much thought into her plan. It seems as if she comes up with an idea and runs with it, not paying much attention to consequences. I like that she is spontaneous.
ReplyDeleteI think the Lady Macbeth is the real leading role in the story. She has a great plan for Macbeth to become a king. And Macbeth, her husband as well as her puppet in some cases, has the courage and ability to help her achieve the goal. She did not satisfy with what she had owned at that time and desired the supreme power and honor. We can see Lady Macbeth’s intelligence and ambition from her behavior after Macbeth killed Duncan: she imputed the murder to those innocent people and pretended to be extremely afflicted. But it was totally Macbeth’s guilty. She never killed anyone.
ReplyDeleteThe three witches seem to be unnecessary at the beginning of the story. Maybe Shakespeare wanted them to say what the other roles can not say in order to connect the whole story and make understood, like what Cabrown wrote. I agree with her.
I personally like the fact that Shakespeare has associated the power with the women of the play because it shows the women having power and influence at a time when that was not necessarily the case. During Shakespeare’s time, women were often overlooked because if their lack of power but he really makes them stand out and be remembered in this play. This theme also relates to the Bible. In Genesis, the woman is the “evil” one, when Eve convinces Adam to eat from the forbidden tree of knowledge. This is a very interesting parallel because it shows that even though woman were not seen as influential people, they really had more influence than anyone else because they know how to manipulate and control people. Shakespeare saw beyond what others saw in women and open the eyes of others through his play.
ReplyDeleteMacbeth seems to be a play of a male world where manhood and masculinity are associated with aggression, violence, vengeance and absence of emotion. At the time of this play, femininity was crushed and women were devalued, they were either witches or lonely like Lady Macbeth. In my opinion, Lady Macbeth, if viewed by the other characters from our perspective, would have appeared to be a man hidden in a woman’s body because she was filled with so much desire for power, greed and hate. She was also very controlling and manipulated her husband, Macbeth into killing Duncan. I greatly admire Lady Macbeth’s ambition because if she were living in the 21st century, I can imagine her running countless blooming businesses which portrays women more positively. Our present society has so many outlets for females and their creativity. Lady Macbeth reveals to me that women may be viewed as weak and vulnerable but given the same situation/task as a man, women can execute the task equally good as men or even better.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Amber. Sure, women weren't treated with as much respect, or given as much power as men. But are we forgetting that Macbeth, in his letter home, calls his wife his "partner in greatness"? That doesn't seem like the kind of relationship that a woman would need to manipulate to her benefit. It seems to me that Lady Macbeth doesn't need to be filled with bile/unsexed to accomplish her goals--she's already crazy enough. Macbeth's problem isn't his lack of masculinity, it's the fact that his wife is insane.
ReplyDeleteI love what everyone has mentioned about women playing a dominant role in there relationships. Lady Macbeth pushes Macbeth in the direction that she feels that he should be going as if he were a puppet. The funny thing is back in shakespeare's time women were not even allowed to be in plays. Men acted on behalf of all roles which further goes along with a man being pursued and guided by a women.Shakespeare captures the true personality of a women and not the stereotype of being passive and submissive that society has placed on women.
ReplyDeleteTo further what GG and most have already mentioned: I believe that because women were not participants in Shakespears plays as actresses, women were given more aggressive and domineering roles. I can see Lady Macbeth as an extension of Macbeth, not necessarily his wife. By this I mean that they are in unison. Lady macbeth acts as the agressor and Macbeth as the passive, submissive one. This is apparent especially when LMB reads the letter sent to her by Macbeth and all the possibility of attaining such powers corrupts her.
ReplyDeleteI also like the character of Lady Macbeth. She's strong-willed and ambitious to the point of cruelty, and I think that in a time period where women were expected to be very complacent and non-confrontational it's nice to see a woman who is willing to go after what she wants. Shakespeare has made Lady Macbeth the most powerful character in this play. She convinces Macbeth that murder is a good idea, she comes up with the murder scheme, she frames the king's servants. She has the courage to do something that she knows is morally wrong, which in some ways takes more courage than doing something morally right does. I think that Shakepeare made a powerful statement about the strength of women in a time when women were often overlooked because they were thought to be weak.
ReplyDeleteIt seems to me that Lady Macbeth's role is entirely purposeful on Shakespear's part. To understand Lady Macbeth, as well as other women characters throughout his works, one must understand his relationship with the women in his life. I think that Lady Macbeth's dominence comes from Shakespear's relationship with his wife who was older than he was and had a rather detached marriage before he became a well known play-writer. Also, as stated by others, Lady Macbeth's role may derive from the idea that women are evil and they corrupt men to do evil. This is evident throughout the play also, by how she comes up with the plans but has her husband do the dirty work.
ReplyDeleteLady Macbeth was sort of masculine in a way only from the mere fact that she was acting more like how a man is supposed to act. The world says that women are supposed to be these gentle, caring, loving beings, and from this novel, Lady Macbeth is not gentle or caring. When Macbeth feels uneasy about killing Duncan, or when he starts having hallucinations, she steps up and convinces him to go through with it. She seems nonchalant and numb to the fact that she just ordered her husband to commit a horrific act.
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