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In this essay I will compare and contrast a poem written by Robert Browning ‘The Laboratory’ with Act 1 Scene 5 of ‘Macbeth’, a play written by William Shakespeare. It will look to address the relationships within each text and focus on the themes of madness and jealousy regarding the two female protagonists.
In both pieces of text we can identify similar characters with the same sinister intentions. Both writers express their character actions alike each other however there is a slight difference personality wise. In Macbeth, Lady Macbeth is portrayed as a dominant female that holds enough power to manipulate her husband into committing actions that would not have otherwise taken place if the choice were left to Macbeth. However, in ‘The Laboratory’ we are shown a troubled woman who is pushed to the brink of madness where she does not attempt to defeat her rivals openly and therefore takes a route of sinister stealth to win her battle.
Both Act 1 Scene 5 of ‘Macbeth’ and ‘The Laboratory’ consist of female characters that are mentally disturbed. Firstly, it is important to consider the root of their mental deterioration. Where, the speaker in the Laboratory appears to be on the verge of mentality with her deathly plot of killing her husband’s lover, it appears that Lady Macbeth ventures on a different route to give her husband a prosperous future. They both have killer motives for love and both share the same desire to reach an objective that seems to benefit them, in either power or self-confidence.
Macbeth’s letter explaining his encounter with the three weird sisters did in no way startle Lady Macbeth, not as a wife or women. Her reaction to the considerate letter straight away sets her in a mindset where she quickly grasps t...
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...s an ‘open relationship’ since the speaker clearly disapproves. This is the reason why an outlook of a jealous stalker as opposed to a cheated wife is a more reasonable approach to consider.
To conclude, William Shakespeare and Robert Browning portray the women in a powerful approach. Both characters in each piece of text resort to plotting murder in their love and affection for their other half. In ‘Macbeth’, Lady Macbeth uses power and personal gain as a motive to kill and in ‘The Laboratory’, the speaker’s passionate hatred and jealousy towards the mistress is a means of committing a grave offence as a result of her bitterness. Although each character has different motives, they both show glimpses of sheer insanity. These two texts evidently diverge away from what seemed to be depicted as the ‘norm’ in their era, where women were seen to be subordinate to men.
Although one only gets a brief glimpse at the life that Lady Macduff and her husband share, it is quite easy to assume just how different they are from the Macbeths. One example is simply fr...
The weird sisters enlighten Macbeth about Duncan 's throne and indirectly inform him about potential conflicts. Antecedently, Macbeth is indifferent about Duncan’s throne,
Secondly Lady Macbeth shows more ambition then Macbeth does in terms of gaining power regarding kingship. When Macbeth does not want to murder Duncan anymore, for he recognizes that he is a kind man, good king and thinks Duncan should remain the king. Lady Macbeth however shows more ambition for power, becomes very upset upon learning how Macbeth feels how he doesn’t want to kill King Duncan anymore, she says “And Live a coward in thine own esteem” (1.7.46) meaning she’s calling him a coward for not wanting to kill Duncan and thereby gaining power. She convinces him to change his mind to want the power of kingship now, which can only be achieved by killing Duncan.
The story of Lady Macbeth throughout Macbeth is one unlike those of its time in its unusually forward-thinking portrayal of a woman with thoughts and actions which would have been considered indecent. This is seen through the representation of her relationship with Macbeth and how they interact. It is also illustrated through Lady Macbeth’s morals and their effect on how she acts and reacts in situations which would weigh heavily on most peoples’ conscious. Her power-hungry attitude is one often reserved for men, especially in this era of literature. All of these factors create a character in Lady Macbeth which is dissimilar to the classic portrayal of women in the seventeenth century.
Lady Macbeth is one of William Shakespeare’s most famous and frightening female characters. As she is Macbeth’s wife, her role is significant in his rise and fall from royalty. She is Macbeth’s other half. During Shakespearean times, women were regarded as weak insignificant beings that were there to give birth and look beautiful. They were not thought to be as intelligent or equal to men. Though in Shakespeare's play, Macbeth, Lady Macbeth is the highest influence in Macbeth’s life. Her role was so large; in fact, that she uses her position to gain power, stay strong enough to support her unstable Lord, and fails miserably while their relationship falls apart. Everything about Lady Macbeth is enough to create the perfect villain because of her ability to manipulate everyone around her. It appears that even she can’t resist the perfect crime.
While in Hamlet and others of Shakespeare's plays we feel that Shakespeare refined upon and brooded over his thoughts, Macbeth seems as if struck out at a heat and imagined from first to last with rapidity and power, and a subtlety of workmanship which has become instructive. The theme of the drama is the gradual ruin through yielding to evil within and evil without, of a man, who, though from the first tainted by base and ambitious thoughts, yet possessed elements in his nature of possible honor and loyalty. (792)
We see how a vigorous Lady Macbeth; initially in association with the witches’ predictions, at-tempts to mirror their disturbance of gender in psychological terms by desiring to "unsex" herself in order to carry out such a powerful action [murder], otherwise, being impossible for a woman to carry out (no offence or sexism is intended when I state this).
William Shakespeare’s Macbeth tells the story of a general who commits a regicide in order to become king. Early in the play, Macbeth is conflicted as to whether or not he wants to kill his kinsman, the king. In the first two acts Macbeth is not portrayed as a ruthless killer; he is a sympathetic character who succumbs to the provocation of his wife and a prophecy foretold by three mysterious witches. In contrast, Lady Macbeth is a manipulative, immoral woman.
In the play of “Macbeth”, Shakespeare gradually and effectively deepens our understanding of the themes and most importantly the relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. The main theme of Macbeth is ambition, and how it compels the main characters to pursue it. The antagonists of the play are the three witches, who symbolise the theme appearance and reality. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s relation is an irony throughout the play, as most of their relation is based on greed and power. This is different from most of Shakespeare’s other plays, which are mostly based on romance and trust. There is also guilt that leads Macbeth and Lady Macbeth to the final consequences of the play. As the progresses, the constant changes in Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are exposed.
As Shakespeare’s tragic tale of ambition unfolds, the two central characters, Lady Macbeth and the title character Macbeth, undergo a dramatic shift of dominance in their relationship. In the beginning of the play the couple act as a team, plotting the death of Duncan to further their mutual bloodthirsty ambition. Lady Macbeth soon shows her power over Macbeth when she questions her husband’s manhood and devotion to her when he gets cold feet. As Macbeth’s confidence slowly grows and the witches proclaim positive futures for him he begins to separate himself from his wife, planning Banquo’s assassination without telling her, and no longer being susceptible to her insults. By the end of the play the roles have completely switched and Lady Macbeth spirals into guilt-fueled insanity as Macbeth prepares to battle to keep his throne. This essay will explore the relationship between Macbeth and his wife, paying particular attention to the scenes previously mentioned.
Both MacBeth and Lady MacBeth react differently from seeing so much blood and killing innocent men, women, and children. Lady MacBeth, in the fifth act, has become overwhelmed with guilt that she has gone insane. "Out, dammed spot! Out, I say! One- two- why then tis’ time to do ’t. Hell is murky.- Fie, my lord, fie, a soldier, and afeard? What need we fear who knows it, when none can call our power to account? Yet who would have thought the old man to have so much blood in him?" Lady MacBeth is in fear that someone would accuse MacBeth and herself for the murder of Duncan. She is tries to get rid of the evidence, the blood that has stained her hands, that could hold her guilty for the death of Duncan.
We start to see Lady Macbeth’s actions have a huge impact on Macbeth’s character as he transforms from a decent being to an overly bitter creature. The cause of his alteration is due to the fact that Lady Macbeth is constantly excreting heartless information into his mind. "Art thou afeard to be the same in thine own act and valour as thou art in desire?" (I;vii;39-41) "And, to be more than what you were, you would be so much more the man." (I;vii;50-51) Lady Macbeth uses these quotes to push her husband beyond limits and is therefore responsible for his dramatic change in attitude. She is constantly feeding his thoughts with negative comments and later on Macbeth realizes that he has another side to him. As he moves along to discover the concealed side of him, Macbeth falls in love with himself and begins to be drawn towards his evil desires. Because Lady Macbeth was the main cause of his new hidden discovery, she is fully responsible for opening up the door and letting the darkness in. This results in Macbeth committing both murders.
When Macbeth returns home she tells him of their plan. He is worried and she sees this. She tells him, “Only look up clear. To alter favor is to fear. Leave all the rest to me.” (Act 1 Scene 7 Lines 69-71). She plans the murder of Duncan while Macbeth tries to decide whether or not to go through with it. She seems to have gotten the strength to go through with. This shows a cruelty that women were not supposed to have in this time period. Women were seen as the fairer sex and not capable of thinking up such terrible schemes. The character of Lady Macbeth goes against the view of women.
Lady Macbeth’s atypical and complex character directly challenged the archetypal principles and beliefs of the Jacobean era which as a result, drew major fascination through the ages. Lady Macbeth was Shakespeare’s device to not only stimulate audience’s emotions, but to also provide historical context and elicit dominant themes which reflected Jacobean society. Her ambiguous character and remarkable influences in the play raised a lot of controversy and fascination amongst both modern and Jacobean audiences. She can either be seen as linked to the witches in a feminist bid to overthrow the balance of power, or as a representation of the evil side of Macbeth. Nevertheless, it was her distinct characteristics and actions which ultimately catalysed the chain of conflicts of the play. Again, this reinforces her important role in the play.
A.C. Bradley’s interpretation of Macbeth finds him human, conflicted, and comparable to his wife, Lady Macbeth, in many respects. They share a common ambition and a common conscience sensitive enough to feel the effects of their ambition. But the story, Bradley contends, is built upon the traits that set them apart. He focuses mainly on Macbeth. Macbeth is a character of two battling halves: his reason, or ambition, and his “imagination.” Bradley attributes the hysterical nature of Macbeth’s visions, the dagger, the specter of Banquo, and other ghosts, to his wild imagination. He “acts badly” (Bradley, 136) and loses his composure whenever his imagination triumphs over his practical side; however, Bradley also asserts that Macbeth’s imagination is “the best of him, something usually deeper and higher than his conscious thoughts” (133). Macbeth is therefore unable to make use of the “better” imagination with which he was endowed and instead only appears “firm, self-controlled and practical” when he is “hateful” (136). A product of these clashing sides, Macbeth’s murder of Duncan is borne of his inability to properly acknowledge the conclusions drawn by his imagination. In his soliloquies and in...