There is always someone pulling all the strings behind every evil plan. Lady Macbeth in the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare. Macbeth is a play written and taken place in the 16th century about a man, Macbeth, receiving a prophecy that he will become king. He receives this prophecy from witches and reacts to this prophecy with great thirst and ambition to become king. He lacks however in the ideas and strength to carry on the deeds required to fulfill the prophecy. Lady Macbeth is able to play a key role in the assassination of the current king by persuading Macbeth to eagerly join along. It is Lady Macbeth who pulls all the strings to go through with this evil plan of killing the king. She has a strong, persuading, and deceiving voice that make kings, Duncan and later Macbeth, bow down to it.
The difference in power domination between Lady Macbeth and Macbeth is most evidently seen through the characterization of both characters. The first person Macbeth goes to in his desire to take the throne is to his wife. He talks about the risks while Lady Macbeth talks about the desirable outcome. Throughout their conversation Macbeth becomes more scared and cautious of his plan and before closing the discussion closes Lady Macbeth remarks “Only look up clear, to alter favor ever is to fear, leave all the rest to me” (1.5.63-65). Macbeth proceeds to talk a soliloquy in which he says his position on the murder plan. He confesses his guiltiness for backstabbing his king and a guest in his house. He ends his soliloquy with “Vaulting ambition, which o’erleaps itself, and falls on th’other” (1.7.26-29). He is only motivated by ambition but he knows it will lead to disaster. Lady Macbeth is fully aware of Macbeth’s ambition and proceeds to c...
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... Macbeth is weak and easily swayed as well as thirsty for power. Banquo isn’t easily manipulated by fate or by anyone because he thinks clearly and wisely. Macbeth’s mind has been blurred by his thirst and ambition and because of this he is easily manipulated by the witches and Lady Macbeth.
Lady Macbeth has the power to deceive and control kings. She shows this through her ability to lure King Duncan into her home’s traps very easily. She also demonstrates this by abusing Macbeth’s desire for power and having him engaged with the plan. Macbeth has too many weaknesses and opponents that he can’t handle. He fears King Duncan and the heir and has too much “human kindness” to execute such a plan. His happiness and fate were told and foreshadowed from the very start and he played right into the witches’ cards. Macbeth holds the titles, but Lady Macbeth holds the power.
Lady Macbeth did not think he had what it took to become king, "Yet do I fear thy nature; / It is too full o' the milk of human kindness / To catch the nearest way" (1.5.16-18). Her reaction to the leader show she knows her husband very well. The “nearest way” for both of them is murder. In an earlier scene, Macbeth had commented, "If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me, / Without my stir" (1.3.143-144), but later he assumes that he must murder in order to become king. And this has always been his wife's assumption, which later he beings to follow. Macbeth never senses how much power Lady Macbeth has and how much he influences his political decisions. It is as if he is a robot and she is controlling him. He listenes to almost everything she tells him throughout the play and never second guesses
Lady Macbeth has a greater control on Macbeth’s actions than any other character in Macbeth apart from the Weïrd Sisters. She is well known for her persuading speeches to her husband, convincing him to fulfill the murder of King Duncan. Lady Macbeth challenges Macbeth’s manly qualities, and informs him that only when he follows through with the murder that
When Macbeth becomes king he controls almost everyone, from servants to assassins. He even attempts to order the three witches to do his bidding. However, Macbeth’s actions and demeanor later in the play are the result of Lady Macbeth, who holds sway over her husband. It is she who at first coaxes and controls Macbeth, resulting in the change in his personality. The supernatural, in particular the three witches, exert control over both Macbeth and his lady. In fact, it is their influences that initiate the sequence of events, and are therefore an integral part of the play.
A lot like Macbeth, the character Banquo was also a highly skilled soldier, and very much trusted by their king, even though Macbeth respects Banquo’s bravery he also fears his wisdom. While Macbeth is quick to action and has little to no time for thought Banquo chooses not to turn his thoughts into action, Banquo is however a lot more cautious as shown when he and Macbeth met the three witches. Banquo actually considers the reasons for what the witches are offering and later realizes they are telling him his future and thinks that the witches are attempting to make him greedy for power. Macbeth however reacts oppositely. Banquo actually considers the reasons for what the witches are offering and rather than thinking about the outcomes of his
At the beginning of the play, Macbeth is a trusted soldier, who is honest and noble. Unfortunately, he meets three witches who tell him three prophecies; that he will become thane of Cawdor, that he will become king and that Banquo’s sons will become kings. These three prophecies slowly change his opinions on life and turn him into a greedy, dishonest, tyrant, full of ambition. Lady Macbeth’s thoughts change as well when she is told about the three prophecies that were told to Macbeth. In the beginning of the play, Lady Macbeth is ambitious, controlling and domineering. She is the one who encourages him to kill the king, she not only encourages him, she makes all the plans herself, which shows her determination and persistence."Yet I do fear thy nature, it is too full o’th milk of human kindness. To catch the nearest way thou wouldst be great. Art not without ambition, but without the illness should attend it." (Act 1, scene 5). Lady Macbeth is the force behind Macbeth’s sudden ambition and she tries to manipulate him into feeling guilty and unmanly for not following through with the murder, by using her husbands emotions, she manages to convince Macbeth to murder Duncan.
Power is a theme used by Shakespeare throughout the play Macbeth. The plot involves Macbeth trying to gain more power. Lady Macbeth tries to convince Macbeth to kill Duncan so that he will become king in his place. Macbeth also is persuaded to kill anyone who threatens his chances of being king, including Banquo. Power is used by certain characters in the play to influence others. One such character is Lady Macbeth. In the beginning of the play, she is a strong-willed character. She takes on the role of a dominant male. She has great influence over her husband, who appears to be weaker than she is. It is her influence that convinces Macbeth to murder Duncan. Lady Macbeth is the dominant partner at the beginning of the play, she persuades Macbeth to achieve his goal, and she plans the murder of Duncan.
Humans are always fascinated by power. Sadly, they do not realize the danger of it until it is too late. In the play Macbeth, William Shakespeare's underscores how Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are both consumed by power. In the beginning, Lady Macbeth dominates Macbeth, manipulating him to kill Duncan. After the death of Duncan, Macbeth becomes ambitious, and hires murderers to kill Banquo without notifying Lady Macbeth. Even though he is a decorated soldier, when Macbeth rises to power, he becomes ruthless. On the other hand, Lady Macbeth becomes weak, and insane. Shakespeare illustrates how Macbeth’s obsession with power undermines his moral judgement, leads to his mental deterioration, and ultimately results in his death.
Secondly Lady Macbeth shows more ambition then Macbeth does in terms of gaining power regarding kingship. When Macbeth does not want to murder Duncan anymore, for he recognizes that he is a kind man, good king and thinks Duncan should remain the king. Lady Macbeth however shows more ambition for power, becomes very upset upon learning how Macbeth feels how he doesn’t want to kill King Duncan anymore, she says “And Live a coward in thine own esteem” (1.7.46) meaning she’s calling him a coward for not wanting to kill Duncan and thereby gaining power. She convinces him to change his mind to want the power of kingship now, which can only be achieved by killing Duncan.
Lady Macbeth is a dominant character as soon as she is introduced into the play. A.C. Bradley wrote about her as “…the most commanding and perhaps the most awe-inspiring figure that Shakespeare drew” from his article titled Lecture X. She became a image known for her ambitious nature. Her thirst for power and disregard for life was shocking to the audience, as to her own husband. The moment she learns of the prophecies, she decides to stand behind Macbeth and see him to the throne. She is immediately set on her quest for more power. As it reads “Glamis thou art, and Cowador, and shalt be/ What thou art promised (1.5.13-14) This moment is crucial because it is the turning point where Lady Macbeth decides that she might have to kill to fulfill her quest for royalty. Macbeth is doubtful about their plan to kill King Duncan; however, she bombards him with comments that question his courage. She goes as far as telling him his love his worth nothing if he refuses, which proves her to be dominant and controlling using his own weakness against him. His love for her. The fact that she belittles his confidence, insults his abilities, and questions his manhood is so manipulative, but also wise because it worked in her favor. She said to him “Screw your courage to the sticking place” (1.7.60). She was confident that her ridicule could gain her control over her husband. There is no doubt that she manipulates her close relationship to Macbeth to get them both the power they covet.
Firstly, he defeats his enemies. Next he is praised by the other soldiers and King Duncan appoints him as the Thane. For example, if a person desires for a manager title, the person will work hard to earn it, and it is possible that other workers will see this and boost the chief individual’s desire. It is from here that the person might think they deserve the title and look for more power. Similarly, Macbeth must have thought somewhere in his mind to be king. In the book Witches’ Caldron: a study of motive in Shakespeare’s Macbeth Dr. K.C. Mathur says that although the witches did prophesy he would be king and even boosted his desire “They did not create the thought of murder of King Duncan. It was Macbeth’s own latent ambition embodying his power drive and seeking affirmation that invites the witches.” (Witches Caldron, 6) Dr. Mathur also says “Macbeth had acquired this status and it is not surprising that he thinks of achieving higher status by being aggressive and domineering. It is this psychological impulse that is projected in his ambition for the crown and not any criminal instinct or latent evil.” (6) There was a negative environment of witches and the association of Lady Macbeth around Macbeth which influenced him to murder. The environment creates a huge part in the play and if he had a good environment it is possible that he would have remained loyal to King
Banquo is a character that accurately displays loyalty. He was loyal to the king which is seen in the battle that both Macbeth and himself were generals in. The loyalty he displayed to Macbeth never wavered up until his death. They were even together during the witches prophecies that progressively began to corrupt Macbeth. Referring back Act 1, Scene 1 where the three witches state, “Foul is fair, and fair is foul,” the witches have already stated the paradoxical nature of this play. An ideal example for this is how Banquo is the personification of loyalty and Macbeth is the personification for corruption. Banquo also serves as a character foil to Macbeth. Since the beginning of the play Macbeth was very ambitious while Banquo was contempt. Macbeth is the one who blindly trusts what the witches predict while Banquo does not take the steps to further his chances to raise the heirs to the throne. In a way Banquo is Macbeth’s only unsurety to the acts of tyranny and vileness he commits. He could even be called Macbeth’s conscious, this is what makes Banquo’s death so significant. The first small act of betrayal that Macbeth commits towards Banquo was towards the beginning when Duncan was staying at Macbeth’s castle. Banquo made it clear that he did not want to further the witches prophecies and betray the king. Macbeth however, does not listen to his friend and continues with his ambitious
Lady Macbeth's desire for her husband to have power led her to plan Duncan's murder and to manipulate Macbeth into committing the murder. In Act 1 Scene 5 Lady Macbeth calls to evil spirits begging them to make her cruel and free of guilt so that she can do the task that is at hand, killing King Duncan. Many times throughout the plotting of Duncan's murder you see Lady Macbeth having the power in her relationship with her husband which was fairly uncommon at the time they lived. She constantly questions his manhood as a way to control him you can see this in Act 1, Scene 7 when Macbeth is starting to have second thoughts about the murder, “When you durst do it, then you were a man;And, to be more than what you were, you would Be so much more
Lady Macbeth is the first to strategize a way to kill Duncan. As a character foil to Macbeth she juxtaposes their possession of guilt and ruthlessness, which creates irony and excitement to the play. Originally, she is very power hungry and wants to utilize her husband’s position in status to become queen. Macbeth objects to the plan to kill Duncan because he believes Duncan is Macbeth’s kinsman, host, and an overall virtuous ruler (Act. 1 Scene. 7) and thus feels very guilty for taking advantage of Duncan’s trusting quality towards the Macbeth family. She refers to Macbeth as weak and rebukes his manhood (Act 1. Scene 7.) . As the play progresses, Lady Macbeth and Macbeth have a character role reversal of their possession of guilt and ruthlessness. The character foil is extant, however Macbeth’s ruthlessness overcomes his guilt, and Lady Macbeth’s guilt vanquishes her drive for power. In addition to an alteration in character foils, Shakespeare introduces situational irony because now Lady Macbeth succumbs to the weakness Macbeth once possessed and Macbeth is the one who is formidable and ambitious. Macbeth’s ability to transcend his guilt exemplifies his struggle for power and reinforces the theme of evil ambition because Macbeth is able to secure the throne and power only by mass
When we are introduced to Lady Macbeth we see a beautiful woman who is reading a letter detailing her husbands latest success, but also the prophecy that Macbeth was given about him becoming King; and that would therefor make her the queen. While Macbeth does have thoughts of killing the king even asking himself, “If good, why do I yield to that suggestion” his moral compass is steering Macbeth away form such dark intentions. In contrast however Lady Macbeth is excited and even giddy, the king is coming to her home and she was just told that her husband could possibly be King. It’s a if the stars have allied for her.
The struggle for power and control in Macbeth is present from the very beginning, as Shakespeare portrays Lady Macbeth as a ruthless, overpowering woman who dominates her husband and his actions. She makes Macbeth's decisions for him without giving him any say in his own actions, and she orders her husband to do what she determines to be best for him. It is Lady Macbeth who contrives the plan to kill King Duncan, because she knows that Macbeth would never commit such an act on his own without her prodding. She develops the plan and organizes the details while expecting Macbeth to merely follow her orders. This becomes evident when she says to him, "Only look up clear,"(1.5.70) and "leave the rest to me"(1.5.72). She intends to keep him under her control by making decisions for him and not allowing him to think for himself.