A recurring theme throughout Shakespeare’s Macbeth is the struggle for power. Several characters struggle to either free themselves from the power of others or seek to gain power over others. Lady Macbeth is a prominent character that struggles both to free herself from the power of others and seeks to gain power over others. As a woman, Lady Macbeth is seen as a minority in society that holds little to none power. She struggles to free herself from the power that men hold over her, as well as to gain her own power over others through helping Macbeth become the new king. Throughout the play, Lady Macbeth switches gender roles with Macbeth, assumes the responsibility of Macbeth at times as a means to achieve power in a man’s world. Eventually,
…show more content…
She comes to the same conclusion as Macbeth that they need to kill the current king, Duncan, in order to fulfill the prophecy. Upon reading the letter, Lady Macbeth calls upon supernatural forces to to fill her with the cruelty that Macbeth does not possess. Macbeth convinces himself not to commit the murder, but Lady Macbeth interjects in the midst of his reasoning to convince him otherwise. In this situation, she switches gender roles with Macbeth in the sense that she asserts her dominance over him, which makes Macbeth follow through with killing Duncan. Lady Macbeth tells Macbeth, “You shall put / This night’s great business into my dispatch” (1.6.79-80). She doesn’t ask him or even suggest to him that he should give her the power to arrange the plan for the murder; she merely tells him that she will. Taking charge of the preparations for Duncan’s murder shows that Lady Macbeth wants Macbeth to be king as much as he does, and perhaps even more. Lady Macbeth switches gender roles with Macbeth by asserting an air of dominance in the relationship as they decide whether they should kill the king. If only for a moment, she temporarily holds power over Macbeth as she manipulates him into letting her take care of the preparations for the king’s
She comes to the same conclusion as Macbeth that they need to kill the current king, Duncan, in order to fulfill the prophecy. Upon reading the letter, Lady Macbeth calls upon supernatural forces to to fill her with the cruelty that Macbeth does not possess. Macbeth convinces himself not to commit the murder, but Lady Macbeth interjects in the midst of his reasoning to convince him otherwise. In this situation, she switches gender roles with Macbeth in the sense that she asserts her dominance over him, which makes Macbeth follow through with killing Duncan. Lady Macbeth tells Macbeth, “You shall put / This night’s great business into my dispatch” (1.6.79-80). She doesn’t ask him or even suggest to him that he should give her the power to arrange the plan for the murder; she merely tells him that she will. Taking charge of the preparations for Duncan’s murder shows that Lady Macbeth wants Macbeth to be king as much as he does, and perhaps even more. Lady Macbeth switches gender roles with Macbeth by asserting an air of dominance in the relationship as they decide whether they should kill the king. If only for a moment, she temporarily holds power over Macbeth as she manipulates him into letting her take care of the preparations for the king’s