Before in the previous scenes it was Macbeth himself who was afraid that he would never sleep again because of own his guilty conscience. Macbeth had killed King Duncan while he was sleeping and came to realise he had also killed any possibility that he could fall asleep in Act two, scene two when he says "Sleep no more Macbeth does murder sleep."
Another action that is a sign of change in Lady Macbeth’s character is that she begins to insist on having a light by her at all times. "She has light by her continually, 'tis her command" says the Gentlewomen to the Doctor to explain Lady Macbeths lit candle.
Lady Macbeth insists the light is by her all the time because in a previous act and scene darkness was her ally (Act One, scene five, “come, thick night” “nor heaven peep through the blanket of the dark to cry, hold, hold”) to assist her in her evil deed of killing of King Duncan, but now she perceives darkness as a conspirator, who she does not want to know.
Whilst she is in a sleepwalking state Lady Macbeth re-enacts washing her hands clean of the murdered kings blood and whilst doing this she says, "Out dammed spot out I say!” This is another action that is proof of a change in her state of mind. The washing action is because in a previous act she doesn’t think Macbeth will be strong enough to kill the king and goes to assist Macbeth to kill him and gets the kings blood all over her hands.
She remembers getting King Duncan's blood on her hands and when sleepwalking says, "all the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand. Oh, Oh, Oh" then she shows that the once controlling and confident women has turned into a women with a very guilty conscience because she then says "a little water will clear us of this deed".
When I compare Act five, scene one with the earlier scenes I can also notice a dramatic change in the way that Lady Macbeth speaks.
This is due to her increasing guilt and "perturbation in nature." Before the murder her speech's were longer and much more constructive, but now her speeches have become jumbled, her ideas are incomplete and she even speaks in rhymes like a small child, for instance "The Thane of Fife had a Wife."
Lady Macbeth's order of speech also becomes jumbled up after the king’s murder, she repeats her self many times and talks about events as if they had happened a long time after they had taken place.
For instance, she talks about taking the daggers, which she hid for Macbeth to kill King Duncan, after reassuring Macbeth, but in the real order of events she takes the daggers from Macbeth first and then reassures him.
After the murder there is also a notable change in Lady Macbeth's words, she no longer speaks in long-worded speeches and controlling authority, and no longer try's to persuade Macbeth to do something and she starts to speak in blank verse.
Whilst she is washing her hands her words change, they become more doubtful in what she is doing, this is one of the first signs of weakness and a guilty conscience.
By examining the Shakespeare’s play "Macbeth," I have concluded that huge emotional and dramatic change has taken place in Lady Macbeths state of mind by the words she uses and the manner in which she speaks.
In the previous scenes, she was a very dominant and controlling character and talked Macbeth into murdering the king while he slept. She has turned into a very sick and unstable woman, her unconscious mind revealing her guilty conscience to the gentlewoman and doctor while she sleepwalks.
