Why Lady Macbeth is Shakespeare’s Most Treacherous Female Villain
By Diana Moore
Macbeth is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare. It is about crime, insatiability, and guilt. The story revolves around Macbeth, who was described as an honorable, brave, and loyal warrior. He is devoted to Scotland’s king, Duncan. However, the state turned out for the worse when Macbeth decided to kill Duncan.
It all started when Lady Macbeth had the ambition to become a queen because that is the highest post that she could get. The woman knew that the only way for her to reach her goals is to make her husband Macbeth a king. In order to do that, they had to kill Duncan.
Is Lady Macbeth a Villain?
At the beginning of the play, there is no doubt that Lady Macbeth is a very fascinating character. She appears to be driven by evil, and she is described as a ruthless wife. The woman lusts and has an insatiable appetite for power. She uses her influence as a wife and as a woman to manipulate her husband for the bad. Lady Macbeth has a compelling character making her husband aim toward power even though he didn’t have any ambitions to become king in the first place.
With the help of her deceptive and cunning skills, Lady Macbeth reassured the man emphasizing the fact that he should be the heir to the throne. She decided that the best way to get the crown as fast as possible is to eliminate the one who is currently holding it. The woman prayed to the gods to make her more feminine. The reason for this is that people won’t even think about blaming her of the murders as she is too vulnerable. On the other hand, she also wished for the ruthlessness since she realized that she could not control her husband properly if the feelings of guilt often plagued her.
There are other passages in the play that prevent Lady Macbeth from killing King Duncan herself. She said that the king looks too much like her father. She can’t commit the crime because she is not a man, and if only the roles were reversed, then she would have gladly bloodied her hands and not her husband’s. The Macbeth character analysis is a complicated one, and people can understand the protagonist of the story by looking at the driving force behind his actions.
The husband only wants to please his wife. However, when he got too much authority, he was consumed with his lusts for power. Instead of following his wife’s requests, in the end, he decided to act according to his own thinking. He became uncontrollable ignoring everything his wife says.
Where it All Started
Macbeth had his doubts about killing innocent people at the beginning of the story. But because of Lady Macbeth calling him a coward and telling him that he will finally become a man after he does the deed, then the man became unstoppable on his quest for power. He has been driven by his wife’s immoral convictions.
When it comes to the wrongdoings and murder, Lady Macbeth kept convincing her husband that this is only the course of action that they should take. They should be able to do the actions that can be seen as brave and logical in the long run because it is for a great cause. When Macbeth was plagued by guilt over his murder of King Duncan, Lady Macbeth persuaded her husband that no one will know what has happened, and it is for a greater cause.
One of the deceptive parts is cleaning the murder scene. Lady Macbeth also encourages her husband to kill all the innocent servants who might bear witness to the murder. She did not take any chances and decided to slaughter every person who would stand in their way of getting the throne. In one of the scenes, she said that if only the roles were reversed, meaning if only she were a male, she would be the one to murder the king instead of her husband. She also questions her husband’s manly qualities by mocking him that he is not a man when he tried to hesitate to commit the crime.
Like many of Shakespeare’s characters, Lady Macbeth eventually became consumed with guilt. When her husband became king, he became unstoppable. He could do anything to keep the throne, and he would kill innocent men who opposed him. Lady Macbeth realized that her aim to become a queen had been useless. Her husband became greedy, and his thirst for power was unquenchable. In the end, she finally recognized that she also carried the burden of the murders even though she was not the one who did them.
Due to the fact that she was not able to carry the guilt of her conscience, she was seen to be walking through the castle at night. Lady Macbeth was described as a woman who walks with no specific destination in mind and talks to herself. She had episodes of sleepwalking, and her thinking was often described as “unable to take her mind from her bloody hands.” This is the final appearance of Lady Macbeth. She becomes disappointed, and in the end, she commits suicide.
All in all, the deeds described above have made Lady Macbeth the most treacherous female villain. She had been so artful that she made her husband commit the crime, saw nothing bad in killing other people and ruined not only her’s but also her husband’s and King’s lives.