The portrayal of female characters as one-dimensional and lacking nuance is almost inescapable, even today, but Shakespeare’s Macbeth is a play that breaks this pattern. Contrary to what an audience in the 1600s might have believed, Lady Macbeth is portrayed as a weak, insecure character who lacks a strong sense of self. Her actions throughout the play revolve around the men in her life; particularly her husband, Macbeth. She makes decisions based on his desires, or her need to defend him. From the very first act, Lady Macbeth’s intentions are misunderstood by other characters and the audience; she is not aware of (and, therefore, not responsible for) Macbeth’s killing spree after the murder of Duncan; and by Act 5, it is clear that Lady Macbeth has been pretending to be someone completely different up until that point.
Lady Macbeth’s behaviour throughout most of the play does not reflect her true feelings, and she acts in a way that she thinks is ideal for Macbeth. Despite common interpretations that paint her as a cold-hearted villain, the way she behaves later in the play says otherwise. “I would, while it was smiling in my face, have plucked my nipple from his boneless gums and dashed the brains out, had I so sworn as you have done to this.” (1, 7, 56) Although it is easy to assume that she is making a threat, her actions in later acts provide more context. She describes this act of violence in an attempt to seem less sympathetic or compassionate. It is clear that she believes she can only be taken seriously by Macbeth and persuade him to listen to her if she appears stronger and more stereotypically “masculine”. When telling her husband exactly how she would kill the hypothetical baby, she specifies, “while it was smiling in my face,” to emphasize the fact that she would have “dashed the brains out” even if he had trusted her to care for him and had done no wrong. This arguably ruthless mentality is very different from the one we see her having near the end of the play, which shows that she isn’t acting like her true self in this scene. Instead, she is trying to seem more powerful and ruthless than she really is. Additionally, women during this time period were expected to be quiet and obedient, which is very different from how Lady Macbeth is addressing Macbeth in this scene. Although she appears to be protesting gender roles, she is still only behaving this way because of her husband and her desire to please him. At this moment, as she is trying to convince him to do whatever it takes to get what he wants, it is clear that she is still selflessly doing what she thinks is best for him and not herself. In a later line, she uses the metaphor “Screw your courage to the sticking-place” (1, 7, 60), Lady Macbeth uses this phrase as a way to encourage Macbeth to be brave. She understands how badly he wants the throne and sees that he has doubts about his ability to carry out his plan. This is another use of stronger language from Lady Macbeth that has been wrongfully interpreted as sinister. Furthermore, the fact that this is a dialogue and not an aside or a soliloquy proves that it is likely she is hiding her true feelings, and saying what she thinks her husband wants to hear. Moreover, the fact that she is dominating the dialogue adds to the powerful persona she is trying to emulate. Taking charge of the conversation makes her appear more commanding and assertive to Macbeth, making him more inclined to listen to her.
Many place the blame of Macbeth’s murders on Lady Macbeth due to her involvement with the first. However, after the killing of Duncan, Lady Macbeth is completely unaware that Macbeth is becoming corrupt, signifying her lack of involvement in his decrease in morality.
Lady Macbeth: What’s to be done?
Macbeth: Be innocent of the knowledge, dearest chuck. (3, 2, 46)
At this moment, she is oblivious to Macbeth’s plans, unable to prevent the deaths of Banquo and Fleance. Macbeth’s use of the word “innocent” is extremely significant in this context. He is withholding information from Lady Macbeth and encouraging her to remain ignorant of his new plan to kill Banquo. Perhaps Macbeth knows his morality has lessened since the murder of Duncan and wants to shield his wife from having the same thing happen to her. However, he chooses to do this in an extremely belittling way. Macbeth uses the idiom “dearest chuck” as a term of endearment, but it could be argued that in this moment he is patronizing her, implying that he no longer views her as his equal, but instead as his inferior. A comparison can be made between this moment and the one in Act 2 Scene 3, in which Macduff says to her: “O gentle lady, ‘tis not for you to hear what I can speak: the repetition in a woman’s ear, would murder as it fell” (2, 3, 79) He thinks Lady Macbeth will drop dead upon simply hearing talk of murder, due to her gender. Although Lady Macbeth is involved in the assassination of King Duncan, from that point onward, Macbeth begins to take matters into his own hands and feels less guilty murdering people. It is clear in this scene, based on the way he addresses Lady Macbeth, he is no longer relying on her to convince him to take control; he has no trouble taking lives to get what he wants. Macbeth is dominating the dialogue, unlike in previous scenes, when Lady Macbeth speaks more. This is used to demonstrate how unknowing she is of his plans and how, because of this, he is in control of the situation. It can be argued that Lady Macbeth’s self-accusation later in the play is partly caused by her enabling Macbeth’s violence (or, in this case, being unaware of it). Macbeth plays into the gender roles for both men and women during this time, as Macbeth uses a patronizing idiom to refer to her. Although Lady Macbeth has not fit the stereotype of the “traditional 1600s wife” thus far in the play, Macbeth addresses her the same degrading way any man would speak to his wife at the time. This directly contradicts his language in previous scenes, in which he praises her for being “masculine”. For instance, in the first act, he tells her: “Bring forth men-children only, for thy undaunted mettle should compose nothing but males.” (1, 7, 73) This change in the way he speaks to her is perhaps another sign of his loss of morality and subsequent downfall, but it could be argued that it is also a turning point for Lady Macbeth. She was praised by him for acting fierce and cunning, and it is possible that her own change in behaviour from this point onward can be partly attributed to the change in the way he speaks to her.
Lady Macbeth’s sleepwalking in Act 5 allows the audience to see how she deals with the guilt of the murders, which is very different from the nonchalant way she acts in front of Macbeth during the previous acts. It becomes clear the extent to which she hides and pretends earlier in the play for the sake of not worrying or endangering him. While talking in her sleep, she says: “All the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand.” (5, 1, 42) This is perhaps the first time the audience is exposed to Lady Macbeth’s true, vulnerable self. Contrary to how she is portrayed in the first few acts, Lady Macbeth appears to not only take responsibility for the murder of King Duncan, but also for Macbeth’s other murders. She takes it upon herself to claim all responsibility, perhaps in an attempt to absolve Macbeth of guilt. While the murders are taking place, the audience doesn’t get as much insight into how she is feeling, but one could assume that the guilt has always been there. It is likely that she hides her guilt from Macbeth in earlier acts (and in this one) to avoid making him even more worried. This is just another instance in which Lady Macbeth makes a sacrifice for the good of her husband and cleverly manages to keep him from having to face any consequences. Later during this scene, while believing she is speaking to her husband, Lady Macbeth urges him: “wash your hands” (5, 1, 52), despite having just hallucinated spots of blood on her own skin, which appeared impossible for her to wash away. This provides more understanding for the audience, allowing one to infer that Lady Macbeth might feel more guilt than she seems to in earlier acts. While mentally reliving the night of the first murder, she uses a hyperbole to make the point that no matter how hard she tries to clean them, her hands will never be “clean” of guilt. This exaggeration is similar to the phrase Macbeth uses in Act 2 Scene 2: “Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood clean from my hand?” (2, 2, 58) This line makes it clear that she has been hiding how much remorse she truly feels throughout most of the play. Lady Macbeth spends Act 5 hallucinating and talking to herself in a form of soliloquy. This is one of the first times the audience sees Lady Macbeth’s true feelings since the murders, and it is the first time she outwardly displays an obvious sense of shame. This scene allows the audience to see a glimpse of Lady Macbeth’s regret when she is able to be vulnerable. Her hallucinations are regarded as a religious problem, as opposed to a medical or psychological one. This is partly due to a lack of mental health awareness, as well as a disregard for women’s well-being at the time. With advances in modern research and feminism, we can understand that her breakdown may have been a result of an anxiety disorder. For example, the act of washing one’s hands repeatedly to achieve moral “cleanliness” is a behaviour associated with people who suffer from obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). This phenomenon has since often been referred to among psychologists as the Lady Macbeth Effect. What is likely a mental illness that goes undiagnosed could be one reason why she is so afraid to be honest and vulnerable about her emotions, and why she continues to protect Macbeth, no matter the impacts on herself.
In conclusion, it is evident that Lady Macbeth does not possess high self-esteem, and is a more nuanced character than she may appear to be. Starting in Act 1, Lady Macbeth takes plays the part of the clever, dominant wife who breaks apart from gender roles; in Act 3, she is oblivious to Macbeth’s plan to kill Banquo and Fleance; and in Act 5, the audience sees Lady Macbeth’s true self (when she isn’t pretending or changing herself for other characters) for the first time. Lady Macbeth remains a notable and culturally significant character due to the layers of her story and personality; she spends most of the play looking like the serpent but being the innocent flower under it.
Works Cited
“Damned Spot: Guilt, Scrubbing, and More Guilt – Association for Psychological Science – APS.” Association for Psychological Science, 26 March 2013, https://www.psychologicalscience.org/news/were-only-human/damned-spot-guilt-scrubbing-and-more-guilt.html. Accessed 8 March 2024.
Shakespeare, William. Macbeth. Spark Publishing, 2003.
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