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MACBETHESSAY PACK SIX / REVISION

MAY 2013Key Themes and Char acter s

Table of Contents

1. REVISION: MACBETH’S CHARACTER! 3

2. REVISION: LADY MACBETH’S CHARACTER! 16

3. Revision: Lady Macbeth’s Guilt! 21

4. The Theme of Guilt in Macbeth! 24

5. The role of the witches in Macbeth! 29

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1. REVISION: MACBETH’S CHARACTER

Macbeth , the cous in of an o ld , benevolent , and vener able k ing i s introduced

to us as a gener a l o f extr aord inar y prowess , who has covered h imse l f in g lor y by

putt ing down a rebe l l ion and repe l l ing the invas ion of a fore ign army. In h i s

bat t les wi th the invad ing Norweg ians and the i r a l l ies ( led by the t r a i tor, the

‘merc i l e s s MacDonwa ld ’ ) Macbe th i s unequ i voca l and b loody. He d i sp l ay s

extr aord inar y per sona l cour age and th i s cour age i s matched by an aston ish ing

leve l o f v io lence . The f i r s t th ing we hear about h im, wel l before he enter s , i s that

he i s drenched in blood and has s l i t someone open f rom the ‘nave to the chops ’ :

a l l ' s too weak :

For brave Macbeth – we l l he deser ves that name –

Disda in ing for tune , w i th h i s brand ish 'd s tee l ,

Which smoked wi th b loody execut ion ,

L ike va lour ' s min ion car ved out h i s passage

T i l l he faced the s lave ;

Which ne 'er shook hands , nor bade farewe l l to h im,

T i l l he unseam'd h im f rom the nave to the chops ,

And f ix 'd h i s head upon our bat t lements .

In fact , i t qu ick ly becomes apparent that Macbeth ’s soc ia l s tatus comes f rom h is

e f fect iveness as a bloody and v io lent war r ior. Duncan under scores the sense of

respect and admir at ion the aud ience fee l s for th i s br ave so ld ier when he

descr ibes h im as ‘va l iant ’ and ‘wor thy ’ . I f a l l th i s were not enough , the ser geant

cont inues h i s nar r at ive of Macbeth and Banquo’s exp lo i t s , in forming us that they

managed to repe l a counter at tack by the Norweg ian k ing h imse l f . I t would seem

that the day was won by the hard wor k , determinat ion and unf l inch ing cour age of

Macbeth and Banquo. So, how does a man who i s v iewed by ever yone as a hero

fa l l so low as to be descr ibed at the end of the p lay as , var ious ly, a ‘he l l hound ’ ,

‘b lack Macbeth ’ and a ‘ f iend of Scot land ’ ? I t i s th i s tens ion between the potent ia l

for greatness that the audience wi tnesses at the outset of the p lay and

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Shakespeare ’s dep ict ion of Macbeth ’s hor r i fy ing cr imes that makes th i s p lay jus t

so fasc inat ing . In fact , Macbeth ’s honourable and courageous defence of h i s

countr y intens i f ies the fee l ings of sympathy we wi l l l a ter come to fee l for h im.

One of the most interest ing aspects of Macbeth ’s downfa l l i s jus t how

quick ly he fa l l s f rom gr ace . However, i t i s impor tant to remember that the

process beg ins long before we f i r s t meet h im or indeed before he meets the

weird s i s ter s . His encounter wi th the wi tches on the ‘barren ’ and deso late p iece

of land cata lyses and s trengthens h i s s t r ugg le wi th h i s inner demons . But , i t i s so

impor tant to remember that the wi tches are in no way respons ible for the

t r agedy that fo l lows . They are agents of chaos , they are there to tempt , but the i r

power s are obv ious ly l imi ted . Cons ider the d i smiss ive react ion of the sa i lor ’s wi fe

to the wi tch ’s demands and the inab i l i ty o f the wi tches to do more than depr ive

the sa i lor of s leep and ‘ tempest toss ’ h i s sh ip. However, i t i s c lear f rom Macbeth ’s

f i r s t encounter wi th the wi tches that a deeply t roubl ing metaphys ica l l ink ex is ts

between h im and these otherwor ld ly creatures . The f i r s t words spoken by

Macbeth echo the wi tches :

So fou l and fa i r a day I have not seen .

Fur thermore , whi le he i s ‘ rapt ’ by these supernatur a l creatures , Banquo ne i ther

fear s nor cour ts the i r favour. In fact , Banquo descr ibes them as they are .

Accord ing to h im, they look ‘not l ike the inhab i tants o ' the ear th , And yet are on ' t ? ’

He emphas i ses the i r appear ance the i r ‘chappy f inger s ’ and ‘sk inny l ips ’ and the i r

d i s turb ing androgyny. In other words , Banquo recogn ises that these creatures are

demon ic ‘ i n s t rument s o f da rknes s ’ . Macbeth f a i l s to see any o f th i s . He

concentr ates on the t r uth of what they have sa id . He begs them to s tay so that

they may te l l h im more and , fo l lowing the ar r iva l o f Ross and Angus , ind icates to

Banquo that he sees them as hav ing been respons ible for gr ant ing h im the t i t le ,

Thane of Cawdor :

Do you not hope your ch i ldren sha l l be k ings ,

When those that gave the thane of Cawdor to me

Promised no less to them?

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And of cour se , Macbeth i s deaf to Banquo’s warn ing that ‘of tent imes , to w in us to

our harm, The ins t ruments o f darkness te l l us t ruths ’ . So, the wi tches do not contro l

h i s or anyone e l se ’s behav iour in the p lay. They are symbol ic o f ev i l and presc ient

of cr imes which are to come , but they ne i ther encourage nor fac i l i ta te Macbeth ’s

act ions , even i f those act ions are congr uent wi th the chaos they wish to cause .

They are mere ly a powerfu l externa l symbol of the ambit ion that i s a l ready wi th in

Macbeth . Indeed, when he d iscusses the wi tches ’ prophecy wi th Lady Macbeth , i t

i s c lear that the poss ib i l i ty has been d iscussed before . Perhaps the most

fasc inat ing aspect of Macbeth ’s char acter i s that he gr ipped by powerfu l forces

that he may not fu l ly under stand . In other words , i t i s never made c lear to us

where exact ly Macbeth ’s burn ing des i re to become k ing or ig inates . The wi tches

put the suggest ion into the p lay, but as we have just sa id there i s a s t rong h int in

Act I , scene v i i f rom Lady Macbeth that she and her husband have a l ready ta lked

about the matter wel l before the p lay beg ins :

What beast was ' t then/ That made you break th i s enterpr i se to me?" .

The appear ance of the wi tches then can be v iewed, in par t , as a response to

some deep des i re wi th in Macbeth . He has not exact ly summoned them, but they

are responding to h i s dar kest wishes . Ver y qu ick ly, fo l lowing h i s encounter wi th

the wi tches , Macbeth has begun the journey to the hear t of dar kness . The f i r s t

s ign i f i cant ind icat ion that Macbeth i s wi l l ing to turn h i s back on the medieva l

h ier archy that he has so feroc ious ly defended can be seen in h i s react ion to

Malco lm’s invest i ture as ‘Pr ince o f Cumber land ’ . Where Macbeth had prev ious ly

s tated that chance might be su f f i c ient ‘ to crown [h im] k ing , ’ he now dec lares in an

as ide that :

The Pr ince of Cumber land! that i s a s tep

On which I must fa l l down, or e l se o 'er leap ,

For in my way i t l i es . S tar s , h ide your f i res ;

Let not l i ght see my b lack and deep des i res :

The eye wink at the hand ; yet le t that be ,

Which the eye fear s , when i t i s done , to see .

This speech represents a s ign i f i cant s tep towards the dar kness and chaos that the

wi tches seek to create . He wr i tes to h i s wi fe to in form her of h i s encounter wi th

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the wi tches and in the let ter he eager ly ant ic ipates the future greatness that has

been promised h im. She reads the let ter and i s determined that he wi l l reach h i s

fu l l potent ia l . However, desp i te her goad ing , Lady Macbeth can in no way be

blamed for Macbeth ’s downfa l l . She acts out of a misgu ided sense of loya l ty to

her husband by encourag ing h im to do what she be l ieves i s in both of the i r

interests . And whi le she i s a cata lys t and suppor ter, we must never for get that she

does not make the gr im dec is ion to k i l l the k ind o ld K ing . Fur thermore , Macbeth

never t r ies to lay the blame on her. The dec i s ion i s a lways h i s to make . You should

make i t c lear, in any essay that you wr i te about Macbeth , that he i s a r uth less ly

ambi t ious man who has been overpowered by h i s own dar k des i res . Desp i te h i s

wi fe ’s a t tempts to undermine h i s better consc ience , he makes the dec i s ion to k i l l

Duncan in the complete awareness of the awfu lness of h i s cr ime . I t i s so

impor tant that we remember that when Macbeth f ina l ly makes up h i s mind to k i l l

Duncan , he does so in the fu l l knowledge of the pol i t i ca l , mora l and soc ia l

consequences of k i l l ing a k ing :

He's here in doub le t rus t ;

F i r s t , as I am h is k insman and h i s sub jec t ,

S t rong both aga ins t the deed ; then , as h i s hos t ,

Who shou ld aga ins t h i s murderer shut the door,

Not bear the kn i fe myse l f . Bes ides , th i s Duncan

Hath borne h i s facu l t ies so meek , hath been

So c lear in h i s great o f f i ce , that h i s v i r tues

Wi l l p lead l ike ange l s , t rumpet - tongued , aga ins t

The deep damnat ion of h i s tak ing -o f f ;

And p i ty, l ike a naked new-born babe ,

St r id ing the b las t , or heaven 's cherub im, hor sed

Upon the s ight less cour ier s o f the a i r,

Sha l l b low the horr id deed in ever y eye ,

That tear s sha l l drown the wind . I have no spur

To pr i c k the s ides o f my in tent , but on ly

Vau l t ing ambi t ion , wh ich o 'er leaps i t se l f

And fa l l s on the other.

Reading th i s so l i loquy i t i s obv ious that Macbeth fu l ly gr asps the d i f ference

between r ight and wrong . At th i s po int in the p lay, he i s far f rom be ing an amora l

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monster. He knows that k i l l ing h i s k ing i s a v io la t ion of God’s natur a l order, he i s

aware that i t i s un l ike ly that the people wi l l accept such a v io lat ion and he fee ls

that jus t ice can not be evaded indefin i te ly. Yet , h i s “vau l t ing ambi t ion” i s such that

he dec ides to proceed . Th is i s prec i se ly what makes th i s p lay such a compel l ing

p iece of dr ama. In h igh l ight ing Macbeth ’s c lear-eyed awareness of the d i sastrous

cour se he h i s about to take , Shakespeare revea ls un iver sa l t r uths about the

human condi t ion and cor ros ive e f fects of ev i l .

Macbeth ’s bat t le f ie ld exp lo i t s show us that he has few compunct ions about

k i l l ing . So, th i s i s not what t roubles h im so deeply before the murder. I t i s r ather

h i s c lear awareness that in k i l l ing Duncan he wi l l be v io lat ing ever y r u le that he

has spent h i s career defending . Th is awareness i s accompanied by a deep

under stand ing of what the murder wi l l mean for h im:

But in these cases

We st i l l have judgement here , that we but teach

B loody ins t ruct ions wh ich , be ing taught , re turn

To p lague th ' inventor. Th i s even-handed jus t i ce

Commends th ' ingred ience of our po i soned cha l i ce

To our own l ips .

Although Macbeth i s acute ly aware that by k i l l ing Duncan he wi l l be dr ink ing f rom

a poisoned cha l ice , he dec ides that he wi l l proceed never the less . The problem

for h im i s that h i s imag inat ion fue l led by ambit ion wi l l not let go of the poss ib i l i ty

that he can rea l i se h i s dar kest des i re and become k ing . Th is o f cour se i s ver y

d i f ferent to Banquo. Whi le he , a l so, i s a l so tempted by the wi tches (he would l i ke

to ta lk fur ther about what they sa id) , and , i t seems c lear, l i kes to remember what

they have prophes ied for h im. However, Banquo puts at the f ront of h i s

consc iousness an awareness that i f he should to act in order to hasten the

prophec ies , he wi l l compromise h i s honour. So, the prospect of a roya l l ine of

descendants does not gr ip Banquo's imag inat ion ; i t does not , in a word , obsess

h im, as i t does Macbeth , who cannot put f rom h is mind so eas i ly the v i s ion of

h imse l f as k ing .

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What i s mos t remar kable about the p l ay i s the manner in wh ich

Shakespeare manages to e l i c i t fee l ings of sympathy for Macbeth f rom the

aud ience . Desp i te the ev i l o f h i s act ions , Macbeth does not arouse the d i s tas te

aud iences reser ve for other Shakespear ian v i l l a ins . Th is i s par t ia l ly due to the fact

that he i s not ev i l incarnate , but a human be ing who has s inned . Moreover,

aud iences are as much a f fected by what Macbeth says about h i s act ions as by the

deeds themselves . Macbeth does not commit h i s cr imes eas i ly. As we have seen ,

he knows what he i s do ing i s deeply wrong , and h i s agon is ing re f lect ions show a

man increas ing ly los ing contro l over h i s own mora l dest iny. Once he makes the

dec i s ion to k i l l Duncan Macbeth i s lost to us . A l though , at th i s ear ly s tage in h i s

career as a cr imina l he i s not yet a monster, the murder has a l ready begun to

have d isastrous and immediate e f fects on h i s psyche . The man who once fear less ly

faced overwhelming odds on the batt le f ie ld i s petr i f ied by the n ight ’s events . The

‘knock ing at the south entr y ’ and other wor ld ly vo ices that cr y out and warn h im

that he wi l l ‘s leep no more , ’ ‘appa l ’ and ter r i fy h im. When she reappear s , Lady

Macbeth returns to the fami l i a r ground of emascu lat ing h im, but noth ing wi l l

conv ince h im to return to that room. When h is wi fe leaves , Macbeth employs

powerfu l l anguage to convey the a l l encompass ing nature of h i s gu i l t . He wonder s

whether ‘ a l l g reat Neptune 's ocean wash [Duncan ’s] b lood C lean f rom [h i s ] hand ? ’

Only to conc lude that h i s ‘hand wi l l ra ther | The mul t i tud inous seas incarnad ine , |

Making the green one red ’ . Macbeth i s not on ly a f r a id of what th i s murder means ,

but moreover he i s d i sgusted by what he has done to h imse l f :

To know my deed , ' twere best not know myse l f .

The fear that overwhelms h im on the n ight of the murder i s momentar i ly

suppressed dur ing the events of the fo l lowing morn ing . Here , Macbeth i s dec i s ive

and cer ta in about what i s to be done . The k i l l ing of the chamber la ins i s a c lumsy

but necessar y move . His poor ly acted protestat ions of innocence and shock do

l i t t le to aver t the susp ic ions of the other thanes in gener a l and Macduf f in

par t icu lar. Yet the p lan wor ks , and just as Shakespeare den ies us the s ight of

Duncan ’s murder, he a l so employs e l i s ion in demonstr at ing i t s must d i rect

consequences , Macbeth ’s coronat ion .

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The tr ag ic e lement of Macbeth 's char acter emerges most c lear ly a f ter

Duncan ’s murder. Hav ing v io la ted a l l the most impor tant r u les of soc iety by k i l l ing

h i s K ing , Macbeth at tempts to murder h i s way to peace of mind . However, th i s

means that he wi l l s imply br ing upon h imse l f even greater su f fer ing than the

k i l l ing of Duncan or ig ina l ly caused . The most remar kable qua l i ty that Macbeth

d i sp lays i s h i s c lear-eyed awareness of what i s happening to h im per sona l ly. He

suf fer s hor r ibly throughout , and he ar t icu la tes th i s su f fer ing in the most e loquent

and moving language :

I am in blood

Stepp'd in so far that, should I wade no more,

Returning were as tedious as go o'er :

Strange things I have in head, that will to hand;

Which must be acted ere they may be scann'd.

I f that means damning h imse l f even fur ther, then so be i t . The fact that he

i s wi l l ing to do anyth ing in order to secure h i s pos i t ion i s f i r s t seen in h i s

t reatment of Banquo. His former f r iend stands as a l i v ing rebuke to the path that

he has taken . Banquo’s “va lour” and “wisdom” ser ve on ly to remind Macbeth of

ever yth ing that he has lost and , as a resu l t , Banquo must d ie :

To be thus i s noth ing ;

But to be safe l y thus . – Our fear s in Banquo

St i c k deep ; and in h i s roya l ty o f nature

Reigns that wh ich wou ld be fear 'd : ' t i s much he dares ;

And, to that daunt less temper o f h i s mind ,

He hath a wisdom that doth gu ide h i s va lour

To act in safety. There i s none but he

Whose be ing I do fear : and , under h im,

My Gen ius i s rebuked ; as , i t i s sa id ,

Mark Antony ' s was by Caesar.

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When Macbeth dec ides to k i l l Banquo, and h i s young son F leance , he crosses a

l ine . Th is act i s not mot ivated by pol i t i ca l ambi t ion , but r ather by fear and an

i r r at iona l des i re to secure h i s future by committ ing murder :

I f ' t be so ,

For Banquo 's i s sue have I f i l ed my mind ;

For them the grac ious Duncan have I murder 'd ;

Put rancour s in the vesse l o f my peace

Only for them; and mine eterna l jewe l

Given to the common enemy of man,

To make them k ings , the seed of Banquo k ings !

Rather than so , come fate in to the l i s t .

Th is need to prevent the Witches ’ prophecy mar ks the beg inn ing of h i s obsess ion

wi th ch i ldren . The s ter i l i ty that Witches represent , conveyed so powerfu l ly by the

the symbol i sm assoc iated wi th them comes to haunt Macbeth . He i s tormented by

the thought that ; the ‘seed of Banquo ’ w i l l be K ings , that he ‘has f i l ed [h i s ] mind ’ ,

that he has | ‘Put rancour s in the vesse l o f [h i s ] peace ’ and that he has g iven h i s

‘eterna l jewe l ’ to the ‘common enemy of man .’ In terest ing ly, he dec ides to h ide h i s

p lans f rom th i s wi fe . A woman whom he once descr ibed as h i s ‘deares t par tner in

greatness ’ i s now expected to be ‘ i nnocent o f the knowledge unt i l [ she] app lauds

the deed ’ . As Macbeth contemplates the k i l l ing of h i s f r iend , we are reminded of

jus t how strong the metaphys ica l l ink between h im and the wi tches i s :

Then be thou jocund : ere the bat hath f lown

His c lo i s ter 'd f l i ght , ere to b lack Hecate ' s summons

The shard-borne beet le w i th h i s drowsy hums

Hath rung n ight ' s yawning pea l , there sha l l be done

A deed of dreadfu l note .

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The rhythm and cadence of th i s speech , together wi th i t s d i s turb ing imager y

reca l l s the wi tches spe l l s and chants :

LADY MACBETH

What 's to be done?

MACBETH

Be innocent o f the knowledge , deares t chuck ,

Ti l l thou app laud the deed . Come , sea l ing n ight ,

Scar f up the tender eye o f p i t i fu l day ;

And wi th thy b loody and inv i s ib le hand

Cance l and tear to p ieces that great bond

Which keeps me pa le ! L ight th ic kens ; and the crow

Makes wing to the rooky wood :

Good th ings o f day beg in to droop and drowse ;

Whi le n ight ' s b lack agents to the i r preys do rouse .

Thou mar ve l l ' s t a t my words : but ho ld thee s t i l l ;

Things bad begun make s t rong themse lves by i l l .

So , pr i thee , go w i th me .

The k i l l ing of Banquo mar ks a dr amat ic change in Macbeth ’s s tate of mind . The

fee l ings of insecur i ty and par anoia that cause h im to fee l ‘cab ined , c r ibbed and

confined ’ , d i ss ipate momentar i ly at the beg inn ing of in Act I I I , scene iv, when he

hear s that Banquo i s dead . However, the news that F leance has escaped shocks

h im and fee l ings of fear and par anoia qu ick ly return . The phys ica l appear ance of

Banquo’s ghost may obv ious ly be supernatur a l in or ig in , but i t can a l so be v iewed

as a ha l luc inat ion born out of gu i l t and fear. Whatever the case , i t i s deeply i ron ic

that a banquet that was des igned ce lebr ate the Macbeths ’ r i se to power should

end in chaos and turmoi l .

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Fol lowing the banquet , Macbeth has changed . He becomes obsessed wi th

the future and announces that he intends to return to the weird s i s ter s in order

to char t a cour se c lear of the insecur i t ies that now dog h im. His encounter wi th

the weird s i s ter s demonstr ates c lear ly jus t how much the man has changed .

Dur ing h i s dar k pr ayer to the n ight , he asked for the forces that kept h im pa le to

be torn to p ieces . His request has been gr anted and he now cares for noth ing :

I con jure you , by that wh ich you profess ,

Howe'er you come to know i t , answer me:

Though you unt ie the winds and le t them fight

Aga ins t the churches ; though the yes ty waves

Confound and swal low nav igat ion up ;

Though b laded corn be lodged and t rees b lown down; Though

cast les topp le on the i r warder s ' heads ; Though pa laces and

pyramids do s lope

The i r heads to the i r foundat ions ; though the t reasure Of nature ' s

germens tumble a l l together,

Even t i l l des t ruct ion s i c ken ; answer me

To what I ask you .

This i s the ant i thes i s o f what a good k ing should be . He i s wi l l ing to destroy h i s

countr y and un leash soc ia l , re l i g ious and economic chaos in order to of f set h i s

own insecur i t ies . Of cour se , Macbeth i s eventua l ly dece ived by the Witches but

he i s never bl inded by them. The assur ances he cr aves , and which the Witches

de l iver, are patent ly r id icu lous . Yet , he chooses to suspend h is judgment just as he

prev ious ly chose to suspend h is consc ience .

Fol lowing th i s encounter wi th the wi tches , we witness the f ina l s tages in

Macbeth ’s downfa l l . The butcher ing of Macduf f ’s fami ly i s an insane act of ev i l

born out of a des i re to do harm for harm’s sake . He commits many other

nameless and unth inkable cr imes ; we learn that “each new day new widows howl 12

and new orphans s t r ike heaven on the face .” In one par t icu lar ly moving passage ,

Ross descr ibes the sca le of the su f fer ing that Macbeth has brought to Scot land :

Alas , poor countr y !

A lmost a f ra id to know i t se l f . I t cannot

Be ca l l 'd our mother, but our grave ; where noth ing ,

But who knows noth ing , i s once seen to smi le ;

Where s ighs and groans and shr ieks that rend the a i r

Are made , not mark 'd ; where v io lent sor row seems

A modern ecs tasy ; the dead man's kne l l

I s there scarce ask 'd for who ; and good men's l i ves

Exp i re before the f lower s in the i r caps ,

Dy ing or ere they s i c ken .

However, as he cont inues to murder h i s way to peace of mind we watch h i s

gr adua l and tr ag ic dehumanisat ion . In the process , he becomes incapable of

fee l ing sens i t ive ly about anyth ing . Impor tant ly, Macbeth i s in te l l i gent enough to

under stand that a l i fe wi thout fee l ing i s s imply not wor th l i v ing :

I have l i ved long enough . My way of l i fe

I s fa l l 'n in to the sere , the ye l low leaf ,

And that wh ich shou ld accompany o ld age ,

As honour, love , obed ience , t roops o f f r iends ,

I must not look to have , but in the i r s tead

Cur ses , not loud but deep , mouth-honour, breath

Which the poor hear t wou ld fa in deny and dare not . (5 .3 .23-29)

Perhaps the greatest ev idence of th i s i s seen when Seyton br ings h im the news of

h i s wi fe ’s death . Macbeth , who once v iewed th i s woman as h i s ‘deares t par tner in

greatness ,’ now fee ls that her death war r ants no fur ther comment than , ‘she

shou ld have d ied hereaf ter ’ . Desp i te the lack of fee l ing in h i s words , he i s however

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brought c loser to under stand ing the utter fut i l i ty o f what he has done . Th is i s

expressed in one of the greatest speeches in a l l o f Eng l i sh l i ter ature :

To-morrow, and to -morrow, and to -morrow,

Creeps in th i s pet ty pace f rom day to day

To the las t sy l lab le o f recorded t ime ,

And a l l our yes terdays have l i ghted foo l s

The way to dusty death . Out , out , br ie f cand le !

L i fe ' s but a wa lk ing shadow, a poor p layer

That s t ruts and f re ts h i s hour upon the s tage

And then i s heard no more : i t i s a ta le

To ld by an id io t , fu l l o f sound and fur y,

S ign i f y ing noth ing . (Act 4 .3)

In th i s dar k , n ih i l i s t i c and s tr ange ly beaut i fu l speech Macbeth sums up the

empt iness under ly ing human ex is tence . At the same t ime , he captures the awfu l

waste of human potent ia l in h i s own l i fe . Ian Johnston be l ieves that :

‘Th i s f am o u s s p e e c h a ck n ow l e d g e s f u l l y t h e em p t y m o ck e r y h i s

l i f e h a s b e c om e . On c e a g a i n , t h e r e m a r k a b l e q u a l i t y o f t h i s

p a s s a g e i s M a c b e t h ' s r e f u s a l t o e v a d e t h e r e a l i t y o f t h e w o r l d h e

h a s c r e a t e d f o r h i m s e l f . H i s l i f e h a s b e c om e a n i n s a n e f a r c e , n o t

b e c a u s e h e n o l o n g e r h a s a n y p ow e r o r p h y s i c a l s e c u r i t y ( h e h a s

b o t h a n d , a s h e r ema r k s e a r l i e r , c o u l d e a s i l y w i t h s t a n d t h e s i e g e ) ,

b u t b e c a u s e h e h a s c e a s e d t o c a r e a b o u t a n y t h i n g , e v e n a b o u t h i s

w i f e . H e h a s l e a r n e d t o o l a t e t h e t r u t h o f wh a t h e u n d e r s t o o d w o u l d

h a p p e n i f h e g a v e i n t o h i s d e s i r e s a n d k i l l e d Du n c a n . I t ' s n o t

s u r p r i s i n g t h a t i mm e d i a t e l y a f t e r t h i s s p e e c h , o n c e h e h e a r s a b o u t

14

t h e m o v i n g w o o d , h e d e c i d e s t o e n d i t a l l i n a f i n a l b a t t l e , n o t

b e c a u s e h e h a s a n y d e s i r e t o w i n b u t b e c a u s e wa n t s t o t ak e c h a r g e o f

t h e f i n a l e v e n t , h i s ow n d e a t h . T h e l i f e h e h a s c r e a t e d f o r h i m s e l f

l e a v e s h i m w i t h n o t h i n g e l s e t o d o ’ .

Th is speech i s centr a l to susta in ing our sympathy for Macbeth . Remember that an

under stand ing of the nature of the t r ag ic hero has been centr a l to many Leav ing

Cer t i f i cate quest ions in the past . In the dy ing moments of the p lay, we see

g l impses of the great war r ior that deser ved our admir at ion ear ly in act one . He

faces Macduf f now fu l ly aware that the Witches are ‘ j ugg l ing f iends ’ who have

‘pa l ter[ed] w i th h im in a doub le sense ’ . Yet , desp i te th i s knowledge he chooses to

face Macduf f in open combat . I t i s the c lear-eyed awareness of the fut i l i ty o f h i s

l i fe coupled wi th h i s gr im acceptance of h i s fa te that goes a great way to

restor ing Macbeth in our eyes .

15

2. REVISION: LADY MACBETH’S CHARACTER

With ver y few except ions , no char acter in any of Shakespeare 's p lays

undergoes such a r ad ica l devolut ion as that which t r ans forms Lady Macbeth f rom

a near ly superhuman char acter in the f i r s t Act of “Macbeth” into a s leep-walk ing ,

ner vous parody of the confident woman she once was , by the s tar t o f Act V.

When we f i r s t see Lady Macbeth on s tage , she i s a commanding char acter. She

conveys her intent ion to rea l i se her dar k ambit ions in language that i s as

unfor gettable as i t i s f r ighten ing :

The raven h imse l f i s hoar se

  That croaks the fata l ent rance of Duncan

    Under my bat t lements . Come , you sp i r i t s

      That tend on mor ta l thoughts , unsex me here ,

  And f i l l me f rom the crown to the toe top- fu l l

  Of d i res t c rue l ty ! make th ic k my b lood ;

      Stop up the access and passage to remor se ,

  That no compunct ious v i s i t ings o f nature

      Shake my fe l l purpose , nor keep peace between

      The ef fec t and i t ! Come to my woman's breasts ,

      And take my mi lk for ga l l , you murd ' r ing min i s ter s ,

      Wherever in your s ight less substances

      You wai t on nature ' s misch ie f ! Come , th ic k n ight ,

      And pa l l thee in the dunnest smoke of he l l ,

      That my keen kn i fe see not the wound i t makes ,

      Nor heaven peep through the b lanket o f the dark ,

      To cr y "Hold , ho ld !"

But , a f ter her inef fect ive e f for ts to contro l Macbeth 's react ion to the Ghost of

Banquo in Act I I I , scene iv. , Lady Macbeth v i r tua l ly d i sappear s f rom the p lay. We 16

hear of her aga in at the s tar t o f Act V when a doctor and one of her lad ies in

wa i t ing d i scuss her insomnia , but th i s hard ly prepares us for the ghost ly f i gure

who next appear s . As Lady Macbeth enter s s leepwalk ing , ut ter ing words that are

laden with gu i l t and a pathet ic long ing for the comfor t of her absent husband we

are reminded of the just how cor ros ive the e f fects of ev i l are . Even before

Macbeth i s to ld by Seyton that Lady Macbeth i s dead (Act V, scene iv) , we

recogn ise that she i s no longer her se l f . She has become mere ly a shadow, a l i v ing

ghost , haunted by the memor ies of the n ight that changed her l i fe forever.

We fi r s t see Lady Macbeth in Act I , scene v, a lone and read ing a let ter f rom

her husband that speaks about h i s meet ing wi th the weird s i s ter s and the i r

prophecy that he wi l l become Scot land's k ing . Lady Macbeth i ssues no response

to Macbeth 's account of events . She focuses instead on the prospects for

Macbeth 's act ing to fu l f i l the pred ict ion and conc ludes that he may be “ too fu l l o f

the mi lk o f human k indness” to car r y out the requ i red deed of k i l l ing Duncan . Her

determinat ion to remove any obstac le that prevents h im f rom rea l i s ing h i s

ambit ion and potent ia l i s captured in her unfor gettable summons to h im:

"Hie thee h i ther, | That I might pour my sp i r i t s in th ine ear, | And

chast i se w i th the va lour o f my tongue | A l l that impedes three f rom the

go lden round , | Which fate and metaphys ica l a id doth seem | To have

thee crown'd wi tha l " ( I , v. , l l .25-29) .

Even at th i s ear ly s tage in her engagement wi th ev i l , her des i res seem congr uent

wi th the unstated a ims of the weird s i s ter s , but Lady Macbeth 's invocat ion i s far

more powerfu l and d is turb ing in i t s language than the inar t icu late (but cunn ing)

s tatements of the wi tches . However, Shakespeare prov ides us wi th a number of

subt le c lues to an under ly ing vu lner ab i l i ty in her char acter. Learn ing that K ing

Duncan i s coming to the i r cast le and thereby prov id ing an oppor tun i ty to k i l l h im,

she f inds i t necessar y to ca l l upon “sp i r i t s” to “unsex” her ;

"And f i l l me , f rom the crown to the toe , top- fu l l | Of d i res t c rue l ty ! Make th ic k

my b lood ; | S top up the access and passage to remor se , | That no

compunct ious v i s i t ings o f nature | Shake my fe l l purpose nor keep peace

between | The ef fec t and i t " ( I , v , l l .46-51) .

17

Whi le the speech resembles Macbeth 's "s tar s h ide your f i res " speech in the pr ior

scene , i t i s most memorable for the ins ights i t prov ides us into her char acter. In

par t icu lar, we not ice that Lady Macbeth fa i l s to cons ider that "compunct ious

v i s i tngs o f nature " might return to haunt her a f ter the cr ime has been committed ,

and that fur thermore her f r ighten ing subl imat ion of who she i s wi l l a l ter her

natur a l bond with Macbeth . F ina l ly, we should of cour se ask our se lves why i t i s

she needs to suppress her femin ine s ide in order to car r y out th i s cr ime .

After Lady Macbeth has ceremonia l ly dr a ined a l l femin ine k indness f rom her

sp i r i t , Macbeth enter s , and she te l l s h im that Duncan must be "prov ided for , " the

innuendo be ing that he must be murdered . He puts her of f , say ing that they sha l l

speak about the matter la ter, but s ign i f i cant ly Lady Macbeth does not use the

word murder , re fer r ing to i t ins tead as " th i s enterpr i se . " S ince she has a l ready

spoken openly about the p lot k i l l Duncan wi th her husband , some mora l

inh ib i t ion must be prevent ing Lady Macbeth f rom from actua l ly say ing the word

murder.

Of cour se , th ings do not go as p lanned . Not on ly does Macbeth fa i l to

car r y out her instr uct ions concern ing the p lacement of the murder dagger s , the

blame does not fa l l upon Duncan's guards but upon Malco lm and Dona lba in , the

k ing 's two sons , who have f led the scene . At the midpoint of the p lay, in Act I I I ,

scene i i , Lady Macbeth wor r ies a loud , asks a ser vant whether Banquo i s gone

f rom the cast le , and then sends h im with a message for K ing Macbeth . For the

f i r s t t ime in the p lay Lady Macbeth h ints at the extent of what the murder has

cost them,say ing in a so l i loquy :

"Nought ' s had , a l l ' s spent

Where our des i re i s go wi thout content ;

'T i s safer to be that wh ich we dest roy

18

Than by dest ruct ion dwe l l in doubt fu l joy " ( I I I , i i . , l l .4 -7) . When

Macbeth enter s , she chast i ses h im for leav ing her a lone and then adv ises h im to

"s leek over " h i s " rugged looks , " and be "br ight and jov ia l " a t banquet . ( I I I , i i . l l .

27-28) . He f i r s t adv i ses her to do the same and then says that she should remain

ignorant of h i s p lans to d i spose of Banquo and F leance . In the banquet scene

i t se l f , Lady Macbeth i s unable to re in in her husband's gu i l ty hor ror at see ing

Banquo's ghost , and a l though she i s under incred ible pressure her handl ing of the

guests does leave much to be des i red .

Lady Macbeth i s absent for most of the la t ter par t p lay and her reappear ance at

the opening of Act V i s foreshadowed by the wor r ied comments of her doctor

and one of her gent lewomen. As she enter s s i lent ly, the two re fer to her

behav iour as i f she no longer ex is ted . They note her compuls ive hab i t o f wash ing

her hands , and , cons i s tent wi th th i s d iagnos i s , the f i r s t words that she speaks are

"a spot . " We soon rea l i se that in her own mind , Lady Macbeth 's hands are unc lean

and that she s imply cannot command an imag ined "damn'd spot " to d i sappear.

Complete ly obl iv ious to those around her, she t r ans fer s th i s symptom of gu i l t to

Macbeth , say ing "Wash your hands , put on your n ightgown, look not so pa le . I te l l

you yet aga in , Banquo 's bur ied ; he cannot come out on ' s grave " (V, i . , l l .62-64) .

Macbeth , o f cour se , i s not present , for he has gone to the batt le f ie ld , but in her

f ina l speech , Lady Macbeth 's des i re for con juga l par tner sh ip comes for th , as she

says to her imag ined husband , "To bed , to bed , there ' s knock ing at the gate . Come ,

come , come , come , g i ve me your hand . What ' s done cannot be undone . To bed , to

bed , to bed " (V, i . , l l .66-68) . In Act V, scene i i i , Macbeth commands the doctor to

cure h i s wi fe , but the doctor wise ly rep l ies , "There in the pat ient must min i s ter to

h imse l f " (V, i i i , l .45) , and shor t ly thereaf ter Macbeth i s to ld of h i s wi fe ' s death ,

presumably as a resu l t o f su ic ide .

Look ing back , a f ter the murder of the K ing , Macbeth wi thdr aws f rom h is

mar i ta l re la t ionsh ip to Lady Macbeth and no longer re l ies upon h is wi fe ' s capac i ty

to interpret events for h im. He keeps h i s p lans to have Banquo and F leance k i l led

f rom her, say ing to h i s one-t ime par tner, "Be innocent o f the knowledge , deares t

chuck | T i l l thou app laud the deed " ( I I I , i i , l l .50-51) . By the banquet scene of Act I I I ,

19

Lady Macbeth i s no longer par t o f her husband's wor ld , he no longer needs her

as a spur to ambit ion . Depr ived of her funct ion in d i rect ing Macbeth 's act ions ,

Lady Macbeth i s le f t a lone and i so lated . Long before Macbeth conc ludes that “ l i fe

i s a ta le to ld by an id io t” , Lady Macbeth , no longer a wi fe nor even a natur a l

woman, has entered into a twi l i ght rea lm in which there i s no act ive ro le for her

to per form nor any means through which gu i l t can be ext ingu ished .

20

3. REVISION: LADY MACBETH’S GUILT

Lady Macbeth i s one of Shakespeare 's moat fasc inat ing creat ions . Her name

has become synonymous wi th ev i l yet , on c loser examinat ion , one i s dr awn to the

conc lus ion that there i s more of the woman and wi fe than of the wi tch about her.

The reader f i r s t meets Lady Macbeth as she reads the news of the wi tches ’

sa lutat ions and prophec ies . With a gr im determinat ion she reso lves to make the

promises of the black s i s ter s come tr ue . I t i s interest ing to note , however, that

she i s mot ivated to overcome her husband ’s hes i tant nature :

Glamis thou ar t , and Cawdor ; and sha l t be

What thou ar t promis ’d : ye t do I fear thy nature ;

I t i s too fu l l o f the mi lk o f human k indness

To catch the neares t way : thou wou lds t be great ;

Ar t not w i thout ambi t ion ; but w i thout

The i l lness shou ld at tend i t . (Act I , sc . v)

Rea l i s ing that she i s to be the pr ime mover of the p lot to murder Duncan , Lady

Macbeth intones a d i s turb ing pr ayer :

Come , you sp i r i t s

That tend on mor ta l thoughts , unsex me here ;

And f i l l me , f rom the crown to the top , top- fu l l

Of d i res t c rue l ty ! make th ic k my b lood ,

Stop up the access and passage to remor se ,

That no compunct ious v i s i t ings o f nature –

Shake my fe l l purpose , nor keep peace between

The ef fec t and i t ! (Act I , Sc . v)

This pr ayer uses spec i f i c images which suggest that Lady Macbeth i s not a co ld ly

ca lcu lat ing predator. She wishes to be unsexed, to be g iven f reedom from any

semblance of femin ine gent i l i ty ; she renounces compunct ion and remor se , r ather

de l icate terms which suggest a thought fu l , consc ient ious nature . In other words ,

Lady Macbeth i s not go ing to a l low her se l f to be d i ssuaded by those taunts of

consc ience which t rouble her husband dur ing the ear ly s tages of the i r p lot t ing .

I ron ica l ly, however, a f ter the murder, i t i s the seeming ly s tee ly-natured wi fe who

beg ins to cap i tu la te to the f i r s t ons laughts of an uneasy consc ience : 21

These deeds must not be thought

Af ter these ways ; so , i t w i l l make us mad. (Act I I , Sc . i )

From the haunt ing s imi lar i ty between the s leep ing Duncan and her own father,

Lady Macbeth moves in a s teady progress ion to those fate fu l moments of insan i ty

which lead to her death . Along the way, as i s ev ident in the above quotat ion , she

f i r s t fear s madness , and then exper iences the empt iness of the i r t r iumph and a

pa lpable gu i l t :

Naught ’s had , a l l ' s spent ,

Where our des i re i s got w i thout content :

'T i s safer to be that wh ich we dest roy,

Than , by dest ruct ion , dwe l l in doubt fu l joy . (Act I I I , Sc , i i )

In the banquet scene , where Macbeth i s haunted by the ghost of the murdered

Banquo, Shakespeare fur ther advances Lady Macbeth 's co l lapse . Cons i s tent wi th

ear l ier behav iour, she sk i l fu l ly saves her husband's honour by d i smiss ing the

company before the s t r icken Macbeth i s car r ied fur ther into what she perce ives

as a ha l luc inat ion . She has a lways been on h i s s ide , s t rong ly coach ing and coax ing

h im. But a f ter the depar ture of the guests , i t i s ev ident that she has changed . Her

t i r ade of the f i r s t act where she per suaded her husband to cons ider Duncan's

murder f inds no par a l le l here—and i t cer ta in ly ca l l s for a caut ionar y rebuke .

Ins tead of scornfu l anger, Lady Macbeth speaks in br ie f sentences to her husband

words which suggest res ignat ion r ather than cast igat ion . I t i s a deeply thought

provok ing and touch ing moment in the t r agedy.

The unfor tunate woman makes her next appear ance in the las t act of the

p lay. Dr iven by a consc ience that would t r y to usurp i t s own gent le nature , Lady

Macbeth wander s through the cast le in her s leep, re l iv ing the hor ror of Duncan's

murder. Her f ina l l ines in the scene suggest both that hor ror and the p i t iable

spectre of a woman who wanted too much for the man she loved :

Wash your hands , put on your n ightgown; look not so pa le—I te l l you yet aga in ,

Banquo 's bur ied ; he cannot come out on ' s grave . . To bed , to bed ; there ' s knock ing at

the gate : come , come , come , come , g i ve me your hand : what ’s done cannot be undone :

to bed , to bed , to bed . (Act V, Sc . i )

The sharpness of the s t ronger woman contr asted wi th the brooding ter ror of the

v ic t imised consc ience makes these moments some of the most memorable in the 22

play. The reader i s reminded of the ambit ious woman who scof fed at her

husband's br aver y in order to prod h im into act ion ; i t i s Lady Macbeth who had

to take contro l o f the s i tuat ion at the peak of i t s danger, i t i s the wi fe who had to

lead her husband with threats and encouragement through the murderous r i tua l .

And, at the same t ime , Shakespeare i s present ing a mar ve l lous ly touch ing p ic ture

of a woman who has been destroyed by her dar ing d i s r upt ion of her own

sens i t ive nature . She i s the one who must be led away now; she i s the s t r icken ,

weaker member.

Dur ing the cour se of the t r agedy, both protagonis ts change complete ly.

Macbeth grows f rom a reasonable , loya l nobleman to a tyr ann ica l ly murderous

despot . He abandons mora l i ty a f ter weigh ing up a l l the consequences . Lady

Macbeth , on the other hand , p lunges d i rect ly into the f r ay. She bold ly pr ays not to

let her own good inst incts blunt , even for one moment , the f ierce determinat ion

she must mainta in in order to ach ieve her des i red ends . Only gr adua l ly does

human nature asser t i t se l f in her char acter. And when i t does , the burden of gu i l t

proves too much for her mind . She becomes the mora l rec luse whi le her husband

cont inues h i s s t r ugg le for conquest and power.

Viewed in th i s l i ght , the char acter of Lady Macbeth becomes more

under standable end cer ta in ly much more conv inc ing . Her cr ue l ty seems born of

the desper at ion of the moment r ather than a bas ic e lement wi th in her nature . In

t imes of cr i s i s , someone must a lways be s t rong ; she i s that one . Unfor tunate ly, her

s t rength ach ieves a t r ag ic d imens ion .

One other point which i s ver y impor tant to bear in mind i s the re la t ionsh ip

between husband and wi fe . I t i s , a f ter a l l , the corner stone of the t r agedy. As the

events of the p lay unfo ld , Macbeth and h i s wi fe are swept apar t by the

consequences of the i r act ion . She becomes gu i l t - r idden and inact ive whi le he

at tempts to murder h i s way to some peace of mind . Ear l ier in the p lay, however, i t

was not l i ke th i s . They loved each other and respected the i r mar r iage vows . The

tr agedy of Macbeth i s great ly enhanced by the rea l i sat ion that , for a l l pr act ica l

purposes , love brought d i shonour and death to both . The i r l i ves as lov ing par tner s

in the ear ly par t o f the p lay reminds us of the essent ia l humani ty, and therefore ,

fa l l ib i l i ty o f Macbeth and of cour se Lady Macbeth .

23

4. THE THEME OF GUILT IN MACBETH

Through the exper iences of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth , Shakespeare

demonstr ates that se l f -destr uct ive gu i l t cannot be assuaged by recour se to act ion

nor by even the most determined ef for t to s i lence the pangs of consc ience . In the

cour se of the t r agedy, Macbeth repeated ly mis interprets the gu i l t that he su f fer s

as be ing s imply a spec imen of fear. Consequent ly, h i s char acter i s t ic way of dea l ing

wi th h i s gu i l t i s to face i t d i rect ly by committ ing s t i l l more misdeeds , and th i s , o f

cour se , on ly causes fur ther pa in . Lady Macbeth , on the other hand , i s fu l ly aware

of the bas ic d i f ference between fear and gu i l t , and she at tempts to prec lude the

onset of the la t ter by f i r s t deny ing her own sense of consc ience and then by

focus ing her at tent ion upon the management of Macbeth 's gu i l t . These acts o f

interna l repress ion do not wor k , and , once her husband has depar ted to the f ie ld

of combat and she i s le f t a lone , Lady Macbeth assumes the ver y mani festat ions of

gu i l t that have been assoc iated wi th Macbeth . Yet in “Macbeth” , we are furn i shed

with sever a l examples of how remor se can be addressed , most notably in

Macduf f ' s response to the s laughter of h i s wi fe and ch i ldren . Therefore , whi le

Shakespeare show us that fee l ings of gu i l t can un leash se l f -destr uct ive dr ives , he

a l so teaches us that i t i s the way in which we cope with gu i l t which i s

determinat ive of i t s u l t imate e f fects .

A war r ior by vocat ion , Macbeth i s accustomed to overcoming se l f -doubts

by confront ing h i s fear s wi th sword in hand . When thoughts of s lay ing Duncan to

obta in the crown f i r s t enter h i s mind , Macbeth 's concern i s that they not be

detected . Hence , he proc la ims , "Star s , h ide your f i res | Let not l i ght see my b lack

and deep des i res , " ( I , v, 11 .58-59) , and , when on the cusp of cr ime , he aga in ca l l s

on nature to mask h i s mot ives , entreat ing the ear th , "Hear not my s teps wh ich way

they wa lk " ( I I , i , 11 .65-66) . As a man of act ion , Macbeth i s conv inced that i f on ly

he can h ide h i s cr ime and fur ther the prophecy g iven to h im by the wi tches , h i s

fee l ings of gu i l t wi l l natur a l ly d i ss ipate . Th is be l ie f under l ies h i s react ion to the

murderer ' s news that F leance has escaped the fate which Macbeth p lanned for

h im. When he rea l i ses that the p lan has fa i led , Macbeth laments : "Then comes my

24

f i t aga in . I had e l se been per fec t ; Whole as the marb le " ( I I I , i v, 11 .25-26) . For

Macbeth , the reason that the ghost of Banquo appear s at the feast , then , i s that

the loose end of F leance's remain ing a l i ve has le f t h im "cab ined , c r ibbed , confined ,

bound in to sauc y doubts and fear s " ( I I I , i v, 11 .30-31) . F ina l ly, in h i s encounter wi th

Malco lm, Macbeth uses the cr utch of the pred ict ion that no man born of woman

can harm h im to buck le h i s cour age , because as long as that i s t r ue , "The mind I

sway by and the hear t I bear | Sha l l never sag wi th doubt nor shake wi th fear " (V, i i ,

11 .9-10) . I t i s not coward ice , but the operat ion of gu i l t that dr ives Macbeth

toward h i s t r ag ic end . Af ter a l l , he has d i sp layed a lmost superhuman courage on

the f ie ld of bat t le . But Macbeth remains bl ind to th i s , and comes to be l ieve that

the menta l tor ture he i s exper ienc ing i s rooted in some externa l threat .

I t i s th i s mis interpretat ion of gu i l t as fear which expla ins why Macbeth

takes contro l fo l lowing the murder of the k ing . The scheme to d ispatch wi th

Duncan i s spawned by Lady Macbeth , and that she i s on ly able to en l i s t her

husband's par t ic ipat ion in the murder by imply ing that he i s a coward . Macbeth

counter s th i s char ge by k i l l ing Duncan once he has screwed up h i s cour age , and ,

thereaf ter, he takes the lead ing par t in orchestr at ing s t i l l more cr imes , inc lud ing

the use of h i re l ings to assass inate Banquo and , la ter, the fami ly of Macduf f . Indeed,

hav ing proven h i s mett le to h imse l f by s lay ing Duncan , Macbeth de l iber ate ly keeps

h i s intent ion to complete the cr ime by order ing the deaths of Banquo and

F leance f rom h is wi fe , te l l ing her, "Be innocent o f the knowledge , deares t chuck | T i l l

thou app laud the deed " ( I I I , i i , 11 .50-51) . I t i s s ign i f i cant that immediate ly a f ter h i s

v i s ion of Banquo's ghost , Macbeth 's mind i s dr awn to the externa l problem of

Macdu f f ' s susp ic ions . Hear ing tha t Macdu f f has le f t for Eng land , Macbeth

propounds that , "From th i s moment | The ver y f i r s t l ings o f my hear t sha l l be | The

f i r s t l ings o f my hand " ( IV, i , 165-67) . As the p lay unfo lds , Macbeth remains under

the impress ion that what bother s h im i s not the psycholog ica l impact of h i s past

cr imes , but h i s fa i lure to conduct s t i l l more carnage , that i s , h i s inab i l i ty to

gr apple wi th fear and do what must be done to vanquish the power i t has on h im.

In contr ast to her husband , Lady Macbeth knows wel l in advance of

Duncan's murder that her par t ic ipat ion in the cr ime wi l l expose her to the

r avages of gu i l t . She con jures supernatur a l forces to change her by s i lenc ing her

humani ty :

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Come you sp i r i t s

That tend on mor ta l thoughts , unsex me here ,

And f i l l me , f rom the crown to the toe , top- fu l l

Of d i res t c rue l ty ! Make th ic k my b lood ;

Stop up the access and passage to remor se ,

That no compunct ious v i s i t ings o f nature

Shake my fe l l purpose nor keep peace between

The ef fec t and i t ( I , v , 11 .44-51) .

Whi le Lady Macbeth implores the sp i r i t s to re l ieve her of those pangs of gu i l t

which might prevent her f rom par t ic ipat ing in the murder, she does not extend

the "spe l l " beyond the commiss ion of the cr ime . Lady Macbeth be l ieves that the

prospect ive remor se which she faces i s an obstac le to the p lot which she has

hatched to ga in the throne , but she does not cons ider the poss ib i l i ty that gu i l t

might destroy her a f ter Duncan has been murdered . We can see th i s when she

her se l f contemplates s tabb ing Duncan in h i s s leep, but i s unable to do so because

he resembles her fa ther.

With Duncan's death , the potent ia l ly negat ive e f fects of gu i l t are den ied by

Lady Macbeth , for, a f ter a l l , in her concept ion , gu i l t i s on ly a problem insofar as i t

s tands as a bar r ier to rea l i s ing her des i res . Hav ing den ied the a f ter-e f fects of

gu i l t , Lady Macbeth 's subconsc ious method for coping wi th i t i s to concentr ate on

the symptoms of gu i l t which ar i se in her husband . In the wake of h i s cr ime ,

Macbeth hear s that interna l vo ice which commands h im to "s leep no more " ( I I , i i ,

11 .50-51) . Rest ive to the end , Macbeth 's insomnia i s noted by h i s wi fe , and she

at tempt to expla in the more v iv id and hor r i fy ing exper iences that he undergoes ,

such as see ing Banquo's spectr a l e f f i gy at the feast , by re fer r ing to natur a l causes ,

te l l ing her husband that h i s v i s ion s tems f rom the fact that he lacks " the season of

a l l 'natures , s leep " ( I I I , i v, 1 .73) . In the scene which occur s immediate ly a f ter

Duncan's death , Lady Macbeth order s her husband to get some water "and wash

th i s f i l thy w i tness f rom your hand " ( I I , i i , 11 .61-62) . He re jects her suggest ion ,

cr y ing out , "What hands are here . Hal they p luck out mine eyes ! | Wi l l a l l g reat

Neptune 's ocean wash th i s b lood | C lean f rom my hand ? " ( I I , i i , 11 .77-79) . She , in

turn , ins i s t s that the te l l - ta le s igns of h i s cr ime cannot be seen by other s , that "a

l i t t le water c lear s us o f th i s deed " ( I I , i i , 1 .85) . For Lady Macbeth , then , the means

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through which she responds to her gu i l t i s to concentr ate on her husband's

i r r at iona l behav iour.

The innate l imi tat ions of Lady Macbeth 's way of manag ing her own gu i l t by

bols ter ing Macbeth become p la in in the p lay ' s f ina l act . As the gent leman in forms

the doctor who has been ca l led to cure her insomnia , Lady Macbeth on ly beg ins

to s leepwalk and to compuls ive ly wash her hands when Macbeth i s no longer

present . Indeed, as the doctor and the gent leman obser ve her act ions , Lady

Macbeth seems caught in the rout ine of assur ing Macbeth that he has no cause

for fear, as she speaks the l ines : "Wash your hands , put on your n ight gown | Look

not so pa le . I te l l you yet aga in | Banquo 's bur ied . He cannot come out on ' s

grave " (V, i , 11 .56-57) . At th i s po int , Lady Macbeth has so suppressed her own

fee l ings of gu i l t that she can on ly address them ind i rect ly, resor t ing to an

imag ined ef for t to ca lm her husband . The problem, of cour se , i s that Macbeth i s

not there to d iver t her at tent ion f rom her own sense of gu i l t , and she must

therefore confront fee l ings she has suppressed for most of the p lay.

Although both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth su f fer ter r ibly f rom the torment

of gu i l t , throughout the p lay we are presented wi th char acter s who exper ience

gu i l t but do manage to dea l wi th i t e f fect ive ly. The f i r s t o f these i s the Thane of

Cawdor. On the execut ion block , Macbeth 's predecessor takes act ive measures to

a l lev ia te h i s sou l o f the gu i l t o f rebe l l ion . Duncan i s in formed, "That ver y f rank ly

he confessed h i s t reasons | Implored your h ighness ' pardon , and set for th a deep

repentance " ( I , i v, 11 .5-7) . The insur gent Thane , then , acknowledges h i s cr ime , begs

the for g iveness of h i s k ing , and expresses h i s regret . But the most impor tant

example of how gu i l t can be overcome i s that of Macduf f . Appr i sed that h i s fami ly

has been k i l led by Macbeth 's henchmen, Macduf f i s ur ged by Malco lm to "d ispute

i t l ike a man " ( IV, i i i , 11 .257) . He agrees on the need to exact vengeance upon

Macbeth , but te l l s the pr ince , " I sha l l do so | But I must a l so fee l i t as a man " ( IV,

i i i , 11 .258-259) . Macduf f then remonstr ates wi th h imse l f , acknowledg ing that he

has been "s in fu l " in the sense that h i s innocent wi fe and ch i ldren were s la in for

h i s oppos i t ion to Macbeth . Yet once th i s gu i l t i s openly acknowledged , Macduf f i s

able to move toward the f ina l confrontat ion wi th Macbeth in a de l iber ate and

h igh ly focused manner, re fus ing to s t r ike down the re luctant so ld ier s in Macbeth 's

force and seek ing h i s revenge on Macbeth a lone . 27

In Macbeth , Shakespeare reminds us that gu i l t i s the inev i table consequence of

ev i l , and warns us of the awfu l consequences of an uneasy consc ience . At the

same t ime , in Macduf f and in other f i gures in the p lay, Shakespeare shows us that

gu i l t can be overcome when i t i s recogn ised as such . P la in ly, ne i ther Macbeth nor

Lady Macbeth r i ses to th i s task . Macbeth at tempts to subst i tute fear for gu i l t and

to dea l wi th i t through act ion , whi le h i s wi fe acknowledges the debi l i ta t ing e f fect

of gu i l t she constr ic ts i t in to a deter rent , us ing the management of her husband's

gu i l t as a means for d iver t ing her at tent ion away f rom her own sense of shame .

Both of these cour ses prove d isastrous , and , in many respects the depth of

t r agedy which Macbeth and Lady Macbeth undergo stems not on ly f rom the i r

cr imes a lone , but f rom the i r inab i l i ty to accept the gu i l t that i s the inev i table

consequence of those cr imes .

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5. THE ROLE OF THE WITCHES IN MACBETH

Shakespeare ’s ‘Macbeth ’ i s a complex and fasc inat ing p lay which explores ,

among other th ings , the inter act ion between good and ev i l , and the d i spar i ty

between appear ance and rea l i ty. The witches p lay a centr a l ro le in deve lop ing

these themes . Fur thermore , they represent Shakespeare ’s v i s ion of ev i l and add

cons ider ably to the dr ama of the p lay.

F i r s t and foremost , Shakespeare uses the wi tches to present us wi th h i s

v i s ion of ev i l . The three are ug ly and androgynous , as descr ibed by Banquo: “you

shou ld be women, and yet your beards forb id me to in terpret that you are so .” The i r

‘ sk inny l ips ’ and ‘choppy f inger s ’ are unfemin ine and d isp leas ing . The locat ion of

the wi tches f i r s t appear ance i s a l so wor th not ing . The fact that these creatures

are introduced to us on a ‘b las ted heath ’ i s suggest ive of bar ren and in fer t i le ev i l

that they represent . Shakespeare i s e f fect ive ly te l l ing us that ev i l i s aber r ant and

at odds wi th nature . The witches are l inked throughout the p lay to a rever s ion in

the natur a l order. Wherever nature has been v io lated , ev i l and by extens ion the

wi tches , are a lways c lose at hand . Shakespeare uses the wi tches to h igh l ight the

fact that any breach in the natur a l order inv i tes wickedness , mora l cor r upt ion and

chaos . The wi tches have the ab i l i ty to contro l the weather, and when they do, i t i s

inev i tably to create dar kness , chaos and destr uct ion . The tempest brewed by the

wi tches to threaten the capta in of the T iger, and the c loak ing Scot land in

perpetua l dar kness fo l lowing the murder of Duncan are just two examples of the

l ink Shakespeare creates between ev i l and inter ference wi th nature .

Fur thermore , the wi tches demonstr ate Shakespeare ’s idea that ev i l i s not

constr a ined by phys ica l bar r ier s . They do not seem to be constr a ined by e i ther

t ime or p lace . When the wi tches are p lott ing the i r impending meet ing wi th

Macbeth in the f i r s t scene , they ask “When wi l l we three meet aga in” . The p lace , i t

seems i s i r re levant . I t i s the t iming of the meet ing that interests the wi tches . 29

What ’s more , these weird s i s ter s have the ab i l i ty to congregate anywhere , and

appear to van ish into th in a i r whenever they p lease . Though they seem ‘corporea l ’ ,

they ‘melt ’ in to the a i r when they have f in i shed prophes i s ing about Banquo’s and

Macbeth ’s futures . We get the impress ion that the wi tches operate on a d i f ferent

p la in of be ing than we humans do. At the end of the f i r s t scene , they are ca l led

away by Greymalk in and Paddock , the i r fami l i a r s . The audience cannot hear th i s

supernatur a l summons , but the wi tches , represent ing ev i l , are in tune wi th an

ent i re networ k of thoughts and intang ible forces beyond mor ta l recogn i t ion .

Shakespeare uses the wi tches to represent the etherea l and metaphys ica l nature

of ev i l in ‘Macbeth ’ .

Apar t f rom phys ica l ly represent ing Shakespeare ’s v i s ion of ev i l , the wi tches

a l so he lp to demonstr ate the inter act ion between forces of good and ev i l ,

espec ia l ly wi th in people . Both Banquo and Macbeth are promised great th ings and

roya l futures by the wi tches in Act 1 . We see , however, that the prophec ies have

d i f ferent e f fects on the two char acter s . Banquo i s at f i r s t a t t r acted by “what

seems so fa i r” in the wi tches ’ prophecy, whi le Macbeth i s s tar t led by and even

seems to fear the i r words . As the p lay deve lops , we come to rea l i se that the

reason for th i s i s that Macbeth harbour s a wi l l ingness to ignore h i s consc ience

and fo l low the ev i l path h inted at in the prophecy, Banquo, though tempted by

the dar ker s ide of h i s sp i r i t , appear s to have a more deve loped sense of mora l i ty,

and cannot imag ine act ing on the temptat ion . Shakespeare shows us , through the

react ions of d i f ferent char acter s to the wi tches , that we our se lves choose

whether to do r ight or wrong . Good and ev i l are in a l l o f us , and we each dec ide

which cour se to take .

S imi lar ly, the wi tches have an impor tant par t to p lay in the deve lopment of

the other key theme of “Macbeth” , that of the incons i s tency between appear ance

and rea l i ty. The i r dupl ic i tous speech i s one of the char acter i s t i c t r a i t s o f the

wi tches . They “ l i e l ike t ruth” to Macbeth in the i r prophec ies . A l though , what they

say i s , in fact , t r ue – Macbeth i s not vanquished unt i l Great B i r nam wood goes to

h igh Duns inane h i l l , and he i s not harmed by one born natur a l ly o f woman – the

word ing has been care fu l ly constr ucted to obscure rea l i ty. Through l ines such as

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“ fa i r i s fou l , and fou l i s fa i r” , the wi tches revea l much to the aud ience about ev i l ’s

ro le in d i s tor t ing t r uth .

As wel l as the i r ro le in he lp ing to fur ther our under stand ing of the key

themes in ‘Macbeth ’ , the weird s i s ter s a l so ser ve a dr amat ic purpose in the p lay.

In the opening scene , for ins tance , we are p lunged d i rect ly into the hear t o f the

act ion . The s tage d i rect ions ind icate that these scene takes p lace amidst ‘ thunder

and l i ghtn ing ’ , the language i s ur gent , and the rhythm dr amat ic . The “hur l y -bur l y”

atmosphere created by the wi tches ’ conver sat ion gr abs the aud ience ’s at tent ion

immediate ly. The i r appear ances tend to be shor t- l i ved and r ich wi th gor y images

of d i smembered creatures . Th is adds an e lement of sur rea l i sm to ‘Macbeth ’ mak ing

the scenes wi th the wi tches exc i t ing and interest ing .

The witches p lay a var iety of ro les in ‘Macbeth ’ f rom the themat ic to the

dr amat ic . They g ive the not ion of ev i l a phys ica l face , and a l low us to see more

c lear ly i t s mean ing wi th in the context of the p lay. They a l so fur ther the idea of

“ fa l se face” h id ing “what the fa l se hear t doth know” , as wel l as a l lowing

Shakespeare to engage the aud ience in exc i t ing , sur rea l scenes and d ia logue .

Without the wi tches , ‘Macbeth ’ would have been a ver y d i f ferent p lay, as i t i s

c lear they have a centr a l ro le in mak ing the dr ama what i t i s .

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