Free Essay on Macbeth - The Guilt of Lady Macbeth

Throughout The Tragedy of Macbeth, the character Macbeth creates his own downfall. Although he first appears as a courageous and brave soldier, he quickly turns into a murderous tyrant. This transformation can be blamed primarily on himself, along with the influence of the three witches and Lady Macbeth. The three witches foretell Macbeth’s future, which leads him to believe that he is truly invincible. Lady Macbeth manipulates her husband, causing him to make decisions he would not have done on his own. Despite these influences, Macbeth is ultimately responsible for his own actions that lead to his downfall.

Deceitful Lady Macbeth Lady Macbeth’s wicked character has an extreme impact towards her husband. Lady Macbeth is responsible for influencing her husband to commit both crimes; she unleashes the dark side of him and motivates him to become an evil and horrendous man. In various parts throughout the story we find that Lady Macbeth strives beyond limits to be converted into a bitter and sour women. The audience is revolted by her horrific actions and although she may seem repugnant, she is an extremely talented actor. In her role, having a deceitful and convincing character is important 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 guilt that causes the delusional state in both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth begins with the questioning of Macbeth’s ambition and capacity to obtain what he wants. Lady Macbeth first sells out her position by following the words of the weird sisters that predict that Macbeth will become king. After allowing the prophecy overcome her, Lady Macbeth convinces herself that she will do anything to make sure that the prediction is followed out. She states, " Hie thee hither, that I may pour my spirits in thine ear, and chastise with the valor of my tongue which fate and metaphysical aid doth seem to have thee crowned withal." Macbeth’s ineptness in remaining loyal to his self is evident when Lady Macbeth attacks his ego by negotiating with him that the murder will make him a better man, “When you durst do it, ten you were a man; And to be more than what you were, you would be so much more the man.” Thus, Lady Macbeth is as responsible for the death because she was the one that convinced Macbeth to continue the plan to execute King Duncan. Also passion and greed govern their souls and their common sense, they forget that the world does not revolve around them and what they wish to accomplish. The murders, which would to any sane person seem grotesque becomes a normal thing to them as if nothing more than washing ones hands. Macbeth is originally courageous and a godlike figure with great success in the battlefield who descends to scum by the end of the play.

Responsibility, Confidence, and Courage In everyday society, there are movie stars, celebrities, athletes and powerful figureheads that are looked up to. In every generation people experience downfalls due to individual choices, personal conflict, and family problems, . These people develop a tragic flaw that usually leads to their ruin. In William Shakespeare's, The Tragedy of Macbeth, Macbeth, the main character develops a tragic flaw, and ends up experiencing a downfall.

In the beginning of the play Lady Macbeth has the opportunity to kill Duncan herself, but refuses to do it. Although she grows impatient with her husband and does not have confidence in his ability to commit the murder, she is not the one who carries out the crime. “If the king hadn‘t looked like my father while he slept, I would have done it myself.” (2.2.14-15) These words spoken by Lady Macbeth are clear; she could not kill the king because Duncan reminded her of her father. This gives a perceptible trace of good within her because her excuse for not being able to murder Duncan is baseless. She could never have done it; her compassionate and sentimental side took over. One could argue that Lady Macbeth manages to manipulate her husband with remarkable effectiveness to kill the king. She overrides all his objections and morals. She repeatedly questions his manhood in order to make Macbeth feel that he must kill Duncan. Her remarkable strength of persistence does induce her husband's actions until the crimes have been perpetrated, but in the end Macbeth is the one who decided to proceed with th...

Throughout the play Macbeth, by William Shakespeare, the reasoning of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth is completely subverted and undermined by their insatiable ambition.  Macbeth was at first reasonable enough to keep his ambition in check, however it eventually became to strong for even Macbeth and therefor over powered him.  To the contrary, Lady Macbeth was overcome by her ambition from the very beginning.  Reasoning was abandoned after the decision to kill Duncan was made.  At that point we see no serious questioning of the motives of the three witches when they told their cunning and misleading predictions.  Macbeth even went as far as to ask for their advise a second time - this second time would of course lead to his downfall.  The decision to kill Duncan also signified the last serious attempt at moral contemplation on the part of Macbeth.  Throughout the novel we see that the Macbeth's ambition completely subverted their reasoning abilities and eventually lead to their downfall.

Lady Macbeth is an extremely ambitious woman and wants more than anything for her husband, Macbeth, to be the next King of Scotland. When King Duncan announces that his son, Malcolm, is to be the next King, Duncan’s murder is planned. Lady Macbeth’s crucial role in the play is to persuade Macbeth to carry out the murder of Duncan. In the beginning she is ambitious, controlling and strong. However as the plot concludes there is an extreme change in her character and personality which surprises the audience. Lady Macbeth’s guilt eventually becomes too much for her to handle which leads to her death.

The Role of Guilt in Macbeth Guilt plays a strong role in motivating Macbeth, and causes Lady Macbeth to be driven over the edge of sanity - to her death. Throughout the story, there are many different types of guilty feelings that play a role in Macbeth’s fatal decisions and bring Lady Macbeth to commit suicide. Although there are many instances that show the power guilt has played on the main characters, there are three examples that show this the best. One is, just after the murder of the great King, Duncan. Guilt overcomes Macbeth where he can no longer think straight.

At the outset of the play, Macbeths encounters the witches who predict he will become “Thane of Cowdor” and that he too, will one day be king. Nevertheless, the witches do not oblige Macbeth to ultimately commit his actions. However, they do place within Macbeth a sense of wonder and optimism. The three witches intruded upon a part of man, which that he is gullible. Macbeth being gullible caused his wonder and brought forth a feeling of possibility. This is evident, when Macbeth tells his wife of what he has experienced. Upon revealing what was told to him, Lady Macbeth further on, appeals to Macbeth to take action when King Duncan comes to visit. Lady Macbeth urges her husband to fulfill his obligation and kill King Duncan. However, it is apparent that Macbeth is hesitant of such action and is at first unwilling to go forth with the plan. Once again Lady Macbeth alludes to the witches vision and with that, lusts upon the possible gains. The plan is executed and Macbeth becomes King. upon the vacancy of the throne. The witches’ vision is obtained, through the natural human sense of possibility and lust.

The Character Traits of Macbeth William Shakespeare's play Macbeth shows us that cheating will not get you were you want to go. Macbeth was written in the 16th century England during the Elizabethan period, because of this the story has a complex plot and many themes that the people in the Elizabethan period would enjoy. The character Macbeth has many traits that Shakespeare used to develop Macbeth throughout the play and even how the character Macbeth advances the theme of the play. Macbeth is put together with many character traits. He is a very complex character.