Lady Macbeth Comparison Essay

After reading the play, Macbeth, the similarities and differences between the painting, Ellen Terry as Lady Macbeth, and the play begin to appear, however there are more similarities making the painting accurately expressing the character of Lady Macbeth.

The painting, Ellen Terry as Lady Macbeth, was first created in 1889 by a man named John Singer Sargent. Sargent came up with the idea right after he saw Macbeth on the opening night in 1888. At the first performance of the play, Sargent was stunned by Ellen Terry’s presence that he wanted to do a piece of art. First, he had to influence her and so he did; she posed for a portrait. The painting was created on canvas using oil paints. To this day, it hangs 87 inches tall with a width of 45 inches, in the Tate, an art museum in the City of Westminster, London.

It seems as almost as if she controls what is going to happen. Lady Macbeth demanded Macbeth to kill Duncan, the King of Scotland. In order for Macbeth to be crowned as king, he would have to, but he was very hesitant about the whole situation. Lady Macbeth ordered him to kill, “Had I so sworn as you have done to this,” (1.7.63-64). She tried to manipulate him into thinking that he had promised he would. She had also started to offend him by stating, “When you durst do it, then you were a man,” (1.7.54). Lady Macbeth began to question his manhood. She did not care about his feelings but in fact her own. The first meeting we have with her character was when she was reading a letter. Furthermore, the letter revealed the thought of Macbeth being the King of Scotland. This would not just come to him, but he would have to work for it. She continued to state, “Yet I do fear thy nature” (1.5.15). Lady was concerned that he would have to much fear to complete the tasks that would eventually lead to him being king. She did not like to put her trust in