The Murder of Duncan in William Shakespeare's Macbeth

The Murder of Duncan in William Shakespeare's Macbeth

I believe Lady Macbeth plays a vital role in the murder of Duncan as

she plans the crime and bullies her husband into perpetrating the

crime. However Macbeth's own ambitions triggered by the witches also

play a vital role.

Even before Lady Macbeth gets involved Macbeth shows hidden ambitions.

We can see this as when the witches tell him he will be the Thane of

Cawdor and wants the witches to tell him more about his future as king

"Stay you imperfect speaker."

He has high ambitions. Also we (the audience) get to hear about

Macbeth's ambitions when Macbeth is informed that he has been given

the Thane of Cawdor he thinks back to the witches' predictions.

"If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me."

When Lady Macbeth reads her husband's letter she is worried that

Macbeth is to kind to take action on the prophecies.

"It is too full o' m' milk of human kindness"

Even before Macbeth returns from battle Lady Macbeth begins to plot

the murder, Lady Macbeth asks the evil spirits to take away her female

sexuality and fill her with evil and no guilt

"Come, you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts! Unsex me here, and

fill me up from the crown to the toe top-full of direst cruelty; make

thick my blood, stop up the access and passage to remorse, that no

compunctious visitings of nature."

When Macbeth returns from battle she begins to bully Macbeth into

committing the murder. She bullies him into the murder by telling him

that she is more of a man than he his and calling him a coward.

"I would, while it was smiling in my face, have pluck'd my nipple from

his boneless gums, and dash'd the brains out."

Lady Macbeth says this to Macbeth to show that she is crueler than he

is as she is trying to bully him into committing the crime Macbeth is

very reluctant to kill Duncan as he says he has been good to him and