Examples Of Masculinity In Macbeth

Paper 1

In Shakespeare's Macbeth Lady Macbeth is one of the most dominant characters in the play. She is the wife of Protagonist Macbeth. In many parts of the play she characterizes herself as a manipulative ambitious woman who will do anything for power. Lady Macbeth uses her masculinity as a way to get what she wants. As a female she wants to become stronger like a man so that she can commit all the acts of violence she would like to. Throughout the play we realize that Lady Macbeth lives vicariously through Macbeth. She uses her words and his masculinity, which is very important to Macbeth, to get inside his head and make him become the vicious killer he is by the end of the play. As the play goes on Lady Macbeth starts to feel more guilt

She calls him out on his masculinity when he is hesitant to Kill King Duncan. ”When you dared to do it, that’s when you were a man. And if you go one step further by doing what you dared to do before, you’ll be that much more the man,” (1,6 49-50). She questions his manhood to persuade him to kill KIng Duncan. Lady Macbeth wants Macbeth to kill King Duncan so that she will gain so much power, but she is not willing to commit the crimes herself. In act three scene four when Macbeth is frightened by seeing the ghost of Banquo Lady Macbeth compares his fear to “ would well become a woman’s story at a winter’s fire, Authorized by her grandma.” (3,4 66-69).Also comparing him to a woman and using grandam also compares Macbeth to being so frail that he would be scared speaking with a grandam. Macbeth also realizes that Lady Macbeth is very powerful like a man.”Bring forth men-children only compose Nothing but males.”( 1,7 72-74). Macbeth is so focused on proving his own masculinity to understand that his wife is the one persuading and manipulating him. While Lady Macbeth believes that she is powerful she uses her gender as a excuse and Macbeth's masculinity as a way to acquire her