At this point the relationship between Lady Macbeth and Macbeth is strong but slowly beginning to deteriorate after their argument over whether to kill Duncan or not. Lady Macbeth decides that Macbeth is going to kill Duncan, by first of all getting the guards drunk, then going in and killing Duncan and finally going out and placing the dagger in one of the guard’s hands. This shows that Lady Macbeth has an evil side to her as well and that Macbeth does not make all the decisions in the relationship.
In act 2 scene 1 Macbeth kills Duncan but in the heat of the moment he doesn’t make the murder quick and pain free, he stabs him numerous times. As Macbeth leaves he forgets to put the dagger in the guard’s hands and keeps it with him. He goes to Lady Macbeth guilt ridden with the dagger still in hand, but she has no guilt whatsoever (at this point). Because of this Lady Macbeth has to put the dagger in the guard’s hands and smear them with blood herself. This shows that Lady Macbeth has started to take control over the ordeal. From this point onwards the relationship begins to deteriorate rapidly.
Macbeth realises that Banquo is his biggest threat to becoming king, because the witches prophesised that Banquo would be father to kings, which Macbeth sees as a threat to his endeavour of claiming the crown. In act 3 scene 1 Macbeth orders three assassins to assassinate Banquo and his son Fleance, they are successful, however Fleance escapes. This is the first decision in the play that Macbeth doesn’t consult with Lady Macbeth first. This ads to the already breaking relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth.
Early in the play Lady Macbeth is the stronger of the two in the relationship while Macbeth deals with his guilty conscience, but as the play goes on we realise that she is only repressing guilty feelings. When her conscience gets the better of her she turns mad with guilt, an example of this from the play would be that she keeps washing her hands, in the hope that she can wash away her feelings of guilt. In act 5 scene 1 she begins to go mad, ‘out, damned spot! Out, i say!’ this quote is relevant because she keeps seeing Duncan’s blood on her hands which represents her guilt for having Macbeth kill him. At this point Macbeth is not supportive towards Lady Macbeth and is more interested in keeping the crown.
Nearing the end of the play Macbeth’s open relationship with Lady Macbeth begins to become more subdued and private. We get the sense that he still has feelings of love for his wife but doesn’t consult with Lady Macbeth anymore. In act 5 scene 5 Macbeth finds out his wife is dead and is told by Seyton, Macbeth begins to ponder on the pointlessness of life in a long speech beginning ‘tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow...’ overall he is talking about how pointless he thinks life is and how it doesn’t mean anything.
Overall the relationship starts strong between Lady Macbeth and Macbeth after the witches prophesies, but the relationship begins to deteriorate after Duncan’s murder, the relationship reaches its lowest point when Lady Macbeth becomes mad with guilt over Duncan’s death. At this point we realise that Macbeth’s relationship with his wife has reached a low point. We find out in act 5 scene 9 that Lady Macbeth has committed suicide which is told by Malcolm, Duncan’s son, and heir to the throne, after Macbeth is killed by Macduff.
Daniel Coetsee
10E- Coursework-Kings School-Grantham