Later in the play she acts out the role of accomplished hostess and wife when, at the banquet, Macbeth gives in to his fears, caught up in doubt and dismay. Earlier in the play she used guile when dealing with Duncan, making him believe she welcomed him as king and kinsman. We cannot but note the irony as she speaks to Duncan with such apparent sincerity and respect. Her ability for deception also comes to the fore when she faints at the news of Duncan’s death – a clever move to detract attention at a key and tense moment.
In public she relies on the appearance of normality, of being in control. In private she drops the role, allowing her truly devious ideas full flight. At this time we see her as a vicious and driven woman. We watch in awe as she goes about achieving her aims, using her powers and wiles as a woman to win over her husband.
Almost inevitably, once they find themselves so caught up in evil that they cannot escape, the relationship begins to break up. Macbeth no longer relies on his wife. The strength she once showed has been passed on to him. He is now in control. Her support is no longer necessary. In a sense, she has fulfilled her role and is in danger of being left behind, lonely and neglected, while her husband goes about the business of making war and defending his position.
Lady Macbeth does not appear until later on we see her as an isolated, broken and mentally disturbed woman, no longer a great partner to Macbeth.
Lady Macbeth seems totally devoted to evil. She calls upon the forces of evil to unsex her, taking away the very compassion that is usually associated with the female sex. There is a dreadful destructiveness in her words, a fervor and commitment that is truly frightening.
There is only one aim in life, to achieve the goal of kingship for Macbeth, with her at his side. In the pursuit of this aim it becomes necessary to put aside any semblance of weakness or tenderness. She relies solely on her strength of will, made greater by the forces of evil upon which she calls. She becomes the essence of evil: cruel, heartless, free of the morality of mankind, taking events into her own hands to create her own reality. Yet it is the denial of reality that will finally be her downfall. She is awesome in her commitment, yet pathetic in her belief in herself and the powers of darkness.
From her first appearance we are made aware of the enormity of her desire to succeed at all costs – in spite of her husband’s apparent virtuous and compassionate nature. Lady Macbeth seems inherently evil, but we should consider that the very same device that leads to her husband’s downfall traps her. Macbeth’s letter prompts her dark and evil thoughts. If he had not met the Witches, her ambition might also have lain dormant.
As mentioned, it is necessary for Lady Macbeth to deny reality. She ignores the rules of humanity and organized society, pursuing her own ruthless motives. In the process she reject even her own femininity.
However, there are flaws in her control. Repeatedly Lady Macbeth gives he appearance of being in control but like so much else in the play this comes as a price. Lady Macbeth cannot simply create her own reality, cut off from society and humanity. What we see in the latter part of the play is a woman who must accept the rules of civilized people, the reality that she too is part of humanity, even though it is too late for change.
You might remember that earlier in the play Lady Macbeth was unable to kill the king herself, claiming he looked too much like her father. Not much later she advises her husband. ‘ These deeds must not be thought/ after these ways: so, it will make us mad’. Now this is exactly what we see at the end of the play, a woman driven to madness and eventually self-destruction by her guilt and despair, yet still unwilling to accept reality and her own weakness. There is a marked frailty and vulnerability about her final appearance in the play. We see a woman out of control. Filled with guilt and fear she re-enacts past happenings, her mind wandering from one event to another.
Yet we are moved to pity Lady Macbeth at the end of the play – or is she also too far steeped in blood for us o feel compassion? Whatever the reason being, I agree this remains a complex and fascinating portrait of a strong and powerful woman, with the ability to motivate herself and others. She creates her own selfish world of evil. She at once fascinates and repels me.
English Literature Coursework: ‘Macbeth’
