In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, we question, was Lady Macbeth the driving force behind the killing of King Duncan of Scotland? We wonder how Lady Macbeth persuaded her husband, Macbeth, to commit this murder.
Lady Macbeth uses her manipulative techniques to convince Macbeth that to murder is his friend when it comes to stealing the Crown off of Duncan. She hits him right where it hurts the most. She says phrases such as “are you afraid to act the way you desire? Will you take the crown you want so badly, or will you live as a coward, always saying “I can’t” after you say “I want to”? You’re like the poor cat in the old story.” This is important to note as Macbeth is known to be a brave warrior respected by the whole public, however, when his wife who he loves and has a great relationship of equity with (“my dearest partner of greatness,” he had called her (1. 5. ?)) calls him out, his love for his wife takes over, his eagerness and pride to prove to his wife that he is the man she thought of him to be… takes over, considering he has been reduced to nothing but a cat from a valiant warrior in his lover’s eyes. He wants to prove himself now. In the 11th Century (when the play is set), gender roles were important to consider. Macbeth’s masculinity was being tested here. Women were as considered below men. So when a woman was to test whether he made a proper, real man, some part of him could not take it (1.7.40).
In addition, Lady Macbeth herself was rather manipulative and great at getting what she wanted from anyone, no matter what it took. And she took that to her advantage when it came to living a life of royalty. When she mentioned “thou wouldst be great, Art not without ambition, but without The illness should attend it,” we can tell that her ambition is more blind than Macbeth’s. She has goals, however, shes emotionally obsessed with them. Her character is the type who is going to go after what she wants, not wait for things to happen unlike Macbeth, who contemplates the option to wait and let fate play its game. That if it is really meant to be, it will be, as seen in the first scene when Macbeth battles over the idea of killing Duncan or waiting and also during his first soliloquy in scene 7 (1.5.6).
However, what helps Macbeth’s wife to carry out the things she plans and sees for herself is the fact that she perhaps grows from the pain of child loss which helps her be cruel and follow through with tasks without feeling guilt or remorse. However, this fact can only be inferred as it is solely suggested by the text when she mentions “come to my woman’s breasts, And take my milk for gall…” (1.5.37 – 38). Another way Lady Macbeth makes sure that she has the power to do anything that takes to achieve her goals is probably because she feels the need to prove herself in a society where women are not equal to men. This makes me wonder, Macbeth only wanted to be king after having a taste of power by being promoted to Thane of Cawdor, however, the way Lady Macbeth jumped on the opportunity to steal the throne, perhaps she has wanted a royal life for a long time.
To really push Macbeth over the ledge, his wife accuses Macbeth of not being a man of his words and also by questioning the love he has for her. She states “Were you drunk when you seemed so hopeful before? Have you gone to sleep and woken up green and pale in fear of this idea? From now on this is what I’ll think of your love. ” Her tactic here to instigate and emotionally blackmail Macbeth so that he does what she wants started to take a toll on him and actually work (1.7. 36). This connects with what the Witches did to Macbeth. They filled his head with ideas. The witches did not promise anything, they prophecized and showed Macbeth what he truly desired. Lady Macbeth did a similar thing.
Our fruits of future are borne by the seeds of today, so Macbeth’s fate was written the day he became compliant with his wife’s ill designs. Lady Macbeth displays and proves that she truly had the upper hand in terms of power over Macbeth and when it came to decision making.