Both of the Macbeths are ambitious, but Lady Macbeth lacks the strength to deal with all the consequences of her ambition. In Act 1, sc. 5, when Lady Macbeth reads her husbands incredulous letter about the witches and their prophecies, she immediately knows that she wants to kill Duncan. She doubts, however, that her husband has the drive to do the deed. She goads him into killing Duncan by telling him he's not a man in her eyes unless he does this act. She knows her husband wants to please her she uses that against him. Macbeth never does anything like that to Lady Macbeth, however. In fact, he shields her by not telling her, even, of his intent to have Banquo killed, Act 3, sc. 2. By the beginning of Act 5, Lady Macbeth has gone mad from guilt and in Act 5, sc. 5, she dies, presumably by suicide. She did not have the strength that she doubted her husband possessed earlier. Macbeth, on the other hand, has become determined to ride out the consequences to their natural conclusion. In the last act, Macbeth is seen as a tyrant, but a valiant tyrant who has not given up the fight. In the last scene of the play when Macbeth and Macduff meet up again, Macbeth says he does not want to fight Macduff because he's killed enough of his family already. When Macduff tells Macbeth of his birth and Macbeth knows he was tricked by the witches, he still does not give up the fight. He is stronger than his wife.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
What is the main function of the fool in "King Lear"? What is the secondly function?
The fool as a character is confusing, but part of this is the difference between the 1600s and today, as well as the difference in place. If...
-
Ann Beattie, an American Author, captures little moments of truth and significance in upper-middle-class American life usually occurring in ...
-
Jem and Scout find the medal in the knot hole of the tree on the Radley property. They ask Atticus about it, and he explains that it's ...
-
Jimmy is an angry young man because of personal tragedy and the social era. He also blames his personal tragedy on the social era. Jimmy'...
No comments:
Post a Comment