The prominent Shakespearean play, Macbeth raises many conflicting issues about gender concepts of manhood and womanhood. One of the controversial issues has been whether Macbeth is a play that deals with feminism and the rights of women in Elizabethan England or not. In Elizabethan England women had not been given the right of equality. Moreover, the behavior of both males and females was determined through the different characteristics that were assigned to them. With the evolution of the mind, humanity was separated into two types of classes, masculine and feminine. Shakespeare successfully portrays the characteristics of manhood and womanhood as well as a movement towards the equality of women in society. Lady Macbeth’s lord, Macbeth is solely influenced by his “dearest partner of greatness” to commit dreadful murders to obtain the title as the king and the queen. Macbeth, the main character and the tragic hero is continuously reminded of his gender role by his dear wife, Lady Macbeth who leads Macbeth to his downfall. The conflicts of the two gender concepts are psychologically and physically portrayed through the character Macbeth.
During the Elizabethan times men and women were supposed to act in a certain manner and astonishingly it was considered “unnatural” if certain individuals did not behave according to their gender. Since the division of humanity the man has been given dominance over the woman, the weaker one. Masculinity and femininity is not viewed in a “parallel relationship but in a hierarchal relationship” (Kimbrough, 175) which essentially means that masculinity always comes before femininity. According to Shakespeare, gender roles restrict, restrain and deny human growth but the characters of Macbeth are try...
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...l not make him a man. Consequently, when Macbeth refuses to kill King Duncan, Lady Macbeth then aggressively states:
“…When you durst do it, then you were a man;
And, to be more than what you were, you would
Be so much more the man…”
(Macbeth, I.vii.49-51)
In this quotation Lady Macbeth says that, when you do this deed, that is when you are a man and if you go beyond what you promised then you are more the man. When Lady Macbeth says this she is referring to Macbeth as not a man because of his mercy on the king. Lady Macbeth refers to masculinity and psychologically pressures Macbeth to murder Duncan.
Works Cited
http://myclass.peelschools.org/sec/11/55502/Resources/MACBETH%20LENSES/DESTRUCTIVE%20MATERNAL%20POWER%20AND%20ESCAPE%20FROM%20THAT%20POWER%201.pdf
http://myclass.peelschools.org/sec/11/55502/Resources/MACBETH%20LENSES/Macbeth_The_Prisoner_of_Gender.pdf
Women have always been the backbone of human civilization, whether it be in ancient times or even in the modern era. However, they are oppressed and not given the same fundamental, human rights as men, like access to education, leaving this discrimination and sexism to span over prolonged periods of time. Specifically, sexism is seen during the Elizabethan Era of history when William Shakespeare writes his prominent dramatic piece, Macbeth. In Shakespeare’s tragedy, the prevalent theme of sexism is depicted in the play when Lady Macbeth, a character of strength and ambition, is shown as manipulative and inevitably weak when Shakespeare portrays her eventual downfall and suicide. Throughout the world today, the many different forms of sexism
When his wife told him that in order for him to become king, he must kill the current king, King Duncan. King Duncan is a friend of Macbeth who he is very loyal to. Macbeth had to decide whether his loyalty to the king or loyalty to his wife was more important. "Art thou afeard to be the same in thine own act and valor as thou desire? Wouldst thou have that which thou esteem'st the ornament of life, and live a coward in thine own esteem..." (Macbeth 60) In this quote, Lady Macbeth is questioning Macbeth's manhood. She is stating that he is not a man because he won't show the boldness or the bravery to do this
Macbeth rejects conformation to traditional gender roles in its portrayal of Lady Macbeth’s relationship with her husband, her morals and their effect on her actions, and her hunger for power. Her regard for Macbeth is one of low respect and beratement, an uncommon and most likely socially unacceptable attitude for a wife to have towards her spouse at the time. She often ignores morality and acts for the benefit of her husband, and subsequently herself. She is also very power-hungry and lets nothing stand in the way of her success. Lady Macbeth was a character which challenged expectations of women and feminism when it was written in the seventeenth century.
Lady Macbeth is getting very confused that Macbeth is refusing to kill King Duncan and she cannot commit the crime her self because evidently King Duncan resembles too much like her father. She fells that Macbeth is not a man and she ridicules and tries to persuade him to kill King Duncan by saying that he is not a man and that the only way to become a man is to kill the king (regicide).
A prominent theme in William Shakespeare’s novel Macbeth is the idea of universal masculinity. Throughout the play, Shakespeare utilizes male gender stereotypes to present conflicting views on the definition of manhood. Macbeth tells the reader about a man who allows both societal pressures inflicted upon him by his wife and his intense ambition to drag Macbeth into a spiral of committing obscene acts of violence. Characters often associate being a man with courage, cruelty and power. This pervading caricature of a “man” is evident to the reader throughout the play. Lady Macbeth, for instance, goads Macbeth about his masculinity to the point of murder. Additionally, Malcolm and Macduff’s rigid discussion on revenge reveals a defined notion of “true” masculinity. Perhaps the culmination of rigid gender stereotypes is evident in Macbeth's pondering of the legitimacy of the hired murderers' manhood. Clearly, Shakespeare upholds male gender stereotypes throughout Macbeth.
Characters in Macbeth frequently dwell on issues of gender. Lady Macbeth manipulates her husband by questioning his manhood, wishes that she herself could be ?unsexed,? and does not contradict Macbeth when he says that a woman like her should give birth only to boys. In the same manner that Lady Macbeth goads her husband on to murder, Mac...
Gender roles in Macbeths society automatically expect men to be physically and emotionally stronger than women, however, lady Macbeth plays as a juxtaposition to Macbeth; encapsulating the emasculating woman prototype. She wants to abandon all her feminine qualities as she recognises that the characteristics she wants are not acceptable for females. She asks the spirits to "unsex" (1.5 46) her and to fill her "from the crown to the toe, top-full/ Of direst cruelty" (1.5 46). It is in gaining these ‘masculine’ characteristics in Lady Macbeth ultimately attacks Macbeths biggest insecurity- his masculinity. Lady Macbeth is more ambitious and power hungry than Macbeth, and uses him as a vice for her own power conquests. It is at times when he doubts what is right and wrong for his own ambition, that Lady Macbeth uses her power of manipulation to call his manhood into question. At first, Macbeth suggests that killing the King would make him less a man and would cause him too loose his humanity, however, he changes his mind as Lady Macbeth proposes that a real man keeps promises and acts on his ambitions: "When you durst do it, then you were a man;/ And, to be more than what you were, you would/ Be so much more the man" (1.7 54-56). Macbeth therefore murders Duncan to prove that he would be defeated neither by his fear
On the other hand, Lady Macbeth views on manhood are much different from her husband's and the other characters in the play. Unlike Macbeth, Lady Macbeth envisions a man to be opportunist, cruel and ruthless instead of honorable and loyal. When she receives the letter from Macbeth and learns of her chance to be queen, she prays that the spirits "that tend on mortal thoughts [would] unsex [her]", and that she will be "fill[ed] from the crown to the toe of direst cruelty", so that she would have the strength to murder Duncan. Believing the spirits would "unsex" her, she hopes that she wouldn't be bothered by a woman's kindness or remorse and thus would become a cruel killer, like a man.
“When you first do it, then you were a man, And to be more than what you were, you would, be so much more the man” (I. VII, 54-56). After struggling with the thought of killing Duncan, Macbeth is reprimanded by Lady Macbeth for his lack of courage. She informs him that killing the king will make him a man, insinuating that he isn’t a man if he doesn’t go through with the murder. This develops Lady Macbeth as a merciless, nasty, and selfish woman. She will say, or do anything to get what she desires, even if it means harming others.
Macbeth tells himself to act like a man in the following lines: “Prithee, peace! / I dare do all that may become a man; / Who dares do more is none” (I, vii, 45-47). This quote by Macbeth shows how he wants to be a man by killing King Duncan, but he does not think this would be an act of righteousness. Macbeth is in a controversy with himself in this situation. If he does not kill the king then his wife, Lady Macbeth, will not think he is a man, but if he does kill the king then he will betray his leader’s trust in him. Betrayal would not be seen as an act of manliness. Jarold Ramsey explains the situation in the following sentence: “And, striking more ruthlessly at him, she scornfully implies that his very sexuality will be called into question in her eyes if he refuses the regicide” (288). This quote by Jarold Ramsey explains how Macbeth’s manliness will be determined in the eyes of Lady Macbeth when he makes his decision on whether or not he will kill the king. Lady Macbeth shows her desire of being queen in the following lines: “What beast was’t then / That made you break this enterprise to me? /When you durst do it, then you were a man” (I, vii, 47-49). This quote shows how she wants Macbeth to kill the king. In this situation Macbeth tells himself to be a man and kill the king to please Lady Macbeth. Maria Howell exp...
Throughout Macbeth, Shakespeare dramatically shows what can happen when our common gender roles are broken. He shows the power that people can have over others when they aren’t acting the way they’re expected to.
Judith Butler’s concept of gender performativity suggests that there is a distinction between “sex, as a biological facticity, and gender, as the cultural interpretation or signification of that facticity” (Butler, 522). Performing certain actions that society associates with a specific gender marks you as that gender. In this way, gender is socially constructed. Alfar defines the societal expectation of women as the “constant and unquestioning feminine compliance with the desires of the masculine” (114). Considering Macbeth from a modern perspective and taking this distinction into account, it is necessary to determine if the play is concerned with sex or with gender. Before the action of the play even begins, the audience is warned that “Fair is foul, and foul is fair” (1.1.11). The first scene of the play casts the world of Macbeth as a land where everything is opposite or disordered. This line at the very start of the play cautions audiences to not take the play at face value because things are not always as they appear to be. Because of this, “all the binaries become complicated, divisions blurred. Thus the binary nature of gender identities, male/female, is eliminated” (Reaves 14). In the world of Macbeth, the typical gender constructions are manipulated and atypical. If the play does not deal with sex, the qualities of Lady Macbeth cannot be applied to all women but rather, representative of society’s construction of gender, “the patriarch, and the limited, restrictive roles of women” (Reaves 11). Within this reading of Lady Macbeth, Shakespeare’s examination and questioning of gender construction allows modern day readers to recognize the enduring relevance of
Throughout history women have fought for the same rights of men. In the time of William Shakespeare they were seen in society as weak and vulnerable. They were seen to be good, caring and not as powerful as men. Men were the superior and ruled the land. Shakespeare has taken the stereotypical image of the women of the time and turned it on its head in ‘Macbeth’. Lady Macbeth is shown as a very powerful, strong woman. She has an evil about her that Shakespeare has used to make ‘Macbeth’ a supernatural play. Women were seen to be good and not as powerful as men, in ‘Macbeth’ Lady Macbeth is the dominate character and commands and persuades Macbeth to commit the murders and crimes that he does.
After receiving prophecies from the witches about his future to come, he is forced into an ambition-fuelled madness. As previously mentioned, Macbeth was persuaded to kill King Duncan by his wife due to his debatable manliness. This presented Macbeth’s need to prove to his wife he was manly by being valiant and strong and partaking in violent acts. He responds to his wife’s forceful directives by telling her, “Please stop! I dare do all that may become a man;/ Who dares do more is none” (1.7.46-47). This quote indicates how Macbeth believes a “real” man would not murder, and only due to Lady Macbeth explicitly attempting to manipulate him into action, does he succumb to do so. Macbeth endeavours the heinous crime of murdering the King, all owing to Lady Macbeth’s commands. On more than one occasion Macbeth is seen becoming mad, being overtaken by guilt and concern, highlighting that his manhood does not in fact give him any power, but only draws attention to his lack thereof. The inferiority he has within his relationship, also makes evident that Lady Macbeth’s pressure causes the transpiration of Macbeth’s powerful future. It is clear that Macbeth’s power was affected by his gender, as seen through his desperate need to prove his masculinity. Without the questioning of his manhood, Macbeth would have still been the
Shakespeare’s famous play, Macbeth, is the story of a man named Macbeth who kills the present king of Scotland, Duncan, in order to become the king, and the aftermath of that event. Within Macbeth, very few female characters are introduced. The first female characters are the three witches, who prophecize the whole play, and then Lady Macbeth, the wife of Macbeth and the most prominent female character in the play. Both the witches and Lady Macbeth lead Macbeth to kill Duncan, but once he does, they find themselves unable to live with the consequences. Shakespeare purposefully wrote the main female characters in this derogatory way so as to assert the idea that women cause ambition, ambition is bad, and therefore, women are bad, but then shows that once the women cause bad things to happen, they can’t deal with them. In Macbeth, Shakespeare documents his belief that women are not only deceitful and cause deadly ambition, but cannot withstand the ramifications of that ambition once they come to pass.