The Relationship of the Macbeths

“…had he not believed fear to be the most evil and life-draining of all emotions…” (Spurgeon 156) One can even say it is present in the absence of love. It is overtly prominent in the play Macbeth. Because of fear the personalities of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth changed. The relationship that they shared was destroyed by the fear that consumed them. They once loved and trusted each other, but they became paranoid leading them in different directions. This behavior eventually led to their destruction. To understand how their behavior changes first their fear must be understood.

A once kind hearted man Macbeth becomes a killer. Lady Macbeth used to be confident and now she is going insane. The fear that consumed them was always behind, always lurking. When they killed Duncan they began to let it out more and more. They thought they washed their hands of the deed, but in reality they just further covered them with blood. Macbeth wore a title that was stolen; it did not fit. Lady Macbeth thought she asked god to help her swallow her feelings, but they stayed right where they had always been. She was not heartless enough to be able to participate in a murder and neither was Macbeth.

In the beginning of the play Macbeth writes a letter to Lady Macbeth informing her of the prophecy of the witches. She immediately gets the idea that they must kill Duncan. Macbeth is a little more reluctant to do something so terrible. He knew Duncan and respected him. He was not fond of the idea of killing him. This is the point in the relationship when Lady Macbeth has more of a say in the actions of her husband. He decides he does not want to kill the king, but Lady Macbeth makes it a point to persuade him. She tells him that he must. They are commit...

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... to him just to weaken him.

Macbeth and his wife begin the play with a strong relationship. They conspire to kill Duncan and suddenly their relationship changes. It is no longer the loving trusting institution it once was. It becomes nothing. Just two people who took part in a crime. They each slowly change. Lady Macbeth loses her mind and commits suicide. Macbeth no longer feels and dies because of his complete trust in witches. The fear behind all of the changes is what destroys their relationship, and ultimately brings an end to them.

Works Cited

Shakespeare, William, Louis B. Wright, and Virginia A. LaMar. The Folger Library General Reader's Shakespeare. New York: Washington Square. Print.

Spurgeon, Caroline F. E. "Evidence in the Images of Shakespeare's Though." Shakespeare's Imagery, and What It Tells Us,. New York: Macmillan, 1935. 155-57. Print.