Challenged Gender Roles in Shakespeare´s Macbeth

The Elizabethan era was a time that had very strict expectations of what it means to be a man or a woman. However, these expectations are not followed in Macbeth. In Macbeth, Shakespeare investigates and challenges the common gender roles of the time. Through defying the natural gender roles, he shows how people can accomplish their goals. He challenges the stereotypical Elizabethan woman through Lady Macbeth and the Weïrd Sisters, and he investigates how the stereotypes for men are used for manipulation.

In the Elizabethan era, the expectations for woman were limited to being a housewife and a mother. Women were expected to obey their husbands. These expectations, and the person Lady Macbeth actually was, are polar opposites. Lady Macbeth did rely on Macbeth, but she only relied on him because she could only obtain her power through him. The methods she used to obtain this power go against the stereotypical Elizabethan woman. She used deceit to convince her husband to commit the first murder, saying that she would “chastise [him] with the valour of [her] tongue.” (I,v, 26) What convinced him to go through with the murder, however, was when Lady Macbeth laid out the plan for him. (I,vii,60-72) After the murder occurred, it was Lady Macbeth who took control, while Macbeth was extremely shaken. She returned the daggers to the chamberlains, then again insulted Macbeth, saying she would be ashamed “[t]o wear a heart so white.” (II,ii,68) She then ordered him to wash his hands, telling him, “[a] little water clears us of this deed.” (II,ii, 70) Macbeth’s inability to stand up to Lady Macbeth showed that she had complete control over him. This was not expected of an Elizabethan wife.

The Weïrd Sisters were nothing like the...

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... many degrading insults himself, Macbeth dishes one out while trying to persuade the murderers to kill Banquo. Macbeth asked the murderers if they were simply going to forgive Banquo for treating them badly, and they responded, “we are men, my liege.” (III,i,93) In response to this, Macbeth explained to them how men are like dogs: some are slow and some are strong, etc. He then challenges them to prove they are the right kind of men. (III,I,94-105) This challenge is what convinces the murderers to kill Banquo. Throughout Macbeth, Shakespeare shows that questioning whether or not someone is a man is highly effective in getting them to do what you want.

Throughout Macbeth, Shakespeare dramatically shows what can happen when our common gender roles are broken. He shows the power that people can have over others when they aren’t acting the way they’re expected to.