Lady Macbeth is horrified to hear this, and insults Macbeth and calls him a coward:
Art thou afeard
To be the same in thine own act and valour
As thou art in desire?
(1,7,39b-41a)
Her onslaught between lines 35b and 45a caught Macbeth off guard and he prays for peace ‘prithee, peace.’ However, Lady Macbeth continues to insult him, regardless of Macbeth’s plea. Lady Macbeth shows an iron will in this scene and her choice of words render her as a monster:
Have pluck’d my nipple from his boneless gums,
And dash’d the brains out
(1,7,57-58a)
Macbeth is both persuaded (line 59b) as well impressed (line 72b) by Lady Macbeth’s words and makes up his mind to carry out the murder. This shows that Lady Macbeth has a firm grip on their relationship, and is able to influence Macbeth to do what see feels best.
Act 2, Scene 2 is an important scene, where Macbeth has carried out the murder of Duncan off stage. When Macbeth returns, he is deeply disturbed, and is still carrying the daggers that killed Duncan. Macbeth is distressed by the noises he heard, and there is a moment of mild panic between him and Lady Macbeth (lines 15-20b). The fact that such a great warrior and killer of men – is so lost in terrifying guilt, indicates the full extent of the evil he has committed. He creates numerous metaphors about sleep, and how he killed it- ‘Macbeth has murdered sleep’ (2, 2, 36a). Lady Macbeth is surprised by the manner of Macbeth ‘What do you mean’ (2, 2, 40b), and mentions to Macbeth that he should wash his hands with water, to clear away the blood. She then takes the daggers from Macbeth and takes them back to the king’s grooms. In this scene, we can see that the relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth has ‘cooled off’ to some extent. No longer are they calling each other ‘love’ and ‘partner’, but now Lady Macbeth refers Macbeth as her ‘husband’.
In Act 2, Scene 3, the murder of Duncan is revealed, and Macbeth, in his ‘fury’, kills the grooms. Macbeth is digging himself in to a deeper hole when he declares that it is difficult for a man to refrain from murdering the murderers as Duncan lay dead (lines 109 – 119a). Seeing the situation that Macbeth is in, Lady Macbeth faints. This could be explained in two completely different ways. First, she could have genuinely fainted as the killing of the grooms takes her completely by surprise, and she faints. This could denote that Macbeth acts independently, unlike before, when Lady Macbeth was the driving force behind all the acts, which could mean that Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are drifting apart in terms of their relationship. Secondly, she could have done a ‘fake’ faint, as Macbeth was getting into more and more trouble, and could not answer the questions posed by Macduff.
Both these reasons could point to the fact that Macbeth was acting independently, contrasting with when Lady Macbeth was the driving force behind his actions. The irony of the whole situation is that Lady Macbeth does care for her husband, and fainted to get him out of trouble.
Act 3, Scene 2 reveals that Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are moving further apart than before.
Now, Lady Macbeth has to have an appointment to see Macbeth:
Say to the king, I would attend his leisure for a few words.
(3,2,3-4)
When Macbeth enters, Lady Macbeth greets him as ‘My Lord’, which is not as loving as before, when she greets Macbeth with words like ‘my husband’, or ‘my love’. We also know that Macbeth has been consulting less with Lady Macbeth after he has been proclaimed the King of Scotland, as she says ‘why do you keep alone’ (3,2,8b). Macbeth is worried about what he has done, so Lady Macbeth tries to calm him down. There is still love between the two, and Macbeth shows a great deal of affection for Lady Macbeth by calling her ‘dearest chuck’. But this is just to keep her away from his plans to murder Banquo and Fleance. Unlike before when Lady Macbeth planned the murder of Duncan, Macbeth is planning to carry out this murder on his own, without consulting Lady Macbeth.
Overall, in this scene, it is clear that Macbeth is acting more independently, without Lady Macbeth having a say in his actions. They see each other less, as this might be due to the duties Macbeth has to do being a king. Things are not looking good for their relationship, but they still have some affection for each other.
Act 3, Scene 4, has references to the supernatural, one of the main themes of Macbeth. Macbeth has been earlier informed that Banquo has been killed, but Fleance escaped. As he stands up, making a speech praising Banquo, Banquo’s ghost takes the only remaining chair. Only Macbeth can see the ghost and he is terrified – only Lady Macbeth’s quick thinking covers up for the fact that Macbeth is beginning to reveal his guilt, where she tells the guests that Macbeth often acts this way:
Sit, worthy friends: my lord is often thus
(3,4,53)
Aside, she confronts Macbeth, where she questions his manhood ‘are/you a man’ (3,4,58b-59a) and chides him ‘Fie, for shame’ (3,4,74b). The ghost disappears, and Macbeth is calm again. But, when the ghost re-appears, Macbeth is terrified and shouts, ‘Avaunt! And quit my sight!’. Soon, it gets so bad, that Lady Macbeth has to ask all guests to leave.
In the following conversation, Macbeth reveals to Lady Macbeth what he has done, which he had kept as a secret before. Macbeth, we note, no longer talks of the we – himself and his partner of greatness, but of himself alone:
For mine own good
All causes shall give away
(3,4,135b-136a)
Things are deteriorating in the relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Macbeth is keeping more and more secrets, and Lady Macbeth feels isolated. No longer are they talking to each other except only at matters of great importance. There is still some affection, when Macbeth reveals what he has done when he became a King, to Lady Macbeth. Their relationship has almost become almost formal, not a loving one.
This is also the last scene in which Macbeth and Lady Macbeth appear together. It could be that from now on, they mind their own business, or Macbeth is too busy to speak to Lady Macbeth.
After a long break, Act 5, Scene 1 is the next scene relevant to the relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, even though Macbeth is not present in this scene. Lady Macbeth is wracked by guilty conscience and is suffering mentally as well. She has somehow found out what Macbeth has been doing behind her back, like the killing of Macduff’s family:
The Thane of Fife had a wife
(5,1,41a)
It seems that Macbeth does not care about what Lady Macbeth is suffering from, as he is not to be found in this scene. It seems that their relationship has totally broken down, and they do not care for each other, even at times of great mental anguish. It seems that Macbeth has turned so evil that he does not care for the well-being of his wife.
Act 5, Scene 5 is the last scene relevant to the relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Macbeth has been given the news that Lady Macbeth is dead by his squire, Seyton. Lady Macbeth commits suicide, but this is not shown on stage. Macbeth’s speech is very important, and the first two lines have significant information about the relationship they had:
She should have died hereafter;
There would have been a time for such a word.
(5,5,17-18)
These two lines have two different meanings. Firstly, she should have died at a convenient time later on, when the battle was over, a time which would have suited all. This shows that Macbeth still loves her, he would have spent some time with her, time permitting before her death. The second meaning is not as friendly. It implies that she would have died anyway, and the death of his wife has not caused him any harm, not even given him a shock. This means that Macbeth has turned so evil that he is devoid of any emotions.
Throughout the play, the relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth changes considerably. From the start, when they were a team, and Lady Macbeth was heralded ‘My dearest partner of greatness’ (1,5,10b).Their relationship change when Macbeth becomes the king. No longer Lady Macbeth calls him ‘husband’ or ‘love’, but ‘my lord’. Their relationship deteriorates to a point where Macbeth couldn’t spare the time to look after her when she was sick in her mind, and showed no emotion when she committed suicide.
Finally, it is important to note that Shakespeare seems to draw the characters of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth very much as a linked and complimentary pair: when Macbeth is weak and indecisive, Lady Macbeth is strong and vibrant; when Macbeth is heartless and determined, Lady Macbeth is tormented and disintegrating. Their fates are inextricably joined, but Lady Macbeth’s role and character support Macbeth’s destiny; while Macbeth is too preoccupied with his own role to support her.
