Lady Macbeth's character is one of complexity; slowly, but
continuously changing throughout the play. What begins as a struggle for power
and a longing to shred her femininity turns Lady Macbeth into what she fears
most - a guilt ridden weakling.
In the beginning ( I, v, 43-54) , we see Lady Macbeth reacting to the
news of her husbands success and King Duncan's visit. This ignites her lust for
power. In the quote '...unsex me here, / And fill me from the crown to the toe
top full/ Of direst cruelty! make thick my blood;.../ Come thick night,/ And
pall thee in the dunnest smoke of hell,/ That my keen knife see not the wound it
makes,' Lady Macbeth talks of wanting all of the cold blooded aspects of '
manliness' so she can kill King Duncan with no remorse - she sees herself as
having these qualities more than her husband, and because of this, in a sense,
wishes to shed her womanhood. We can see this ruthless nature more in depth in
the quote 'I would, while it was smiling in my face,/ Have pluck'd my nipple
from his boneless gums,/ and dash'd the brains out, had I so sworn as you/
Have done to this' (I,vii,56-59) She is obviously a very bitter female,
frequently referring to her role as a woman, both physically and emotionally in
negative ways. In the above quote, Lady Macbeth is commenting on her husband's
lack of gall, stating, that quite frankly, she would make a better man than
he.
Although still a very strong woman, we see the first signs of weakness
in Lady's Macbeth's character in Act II, Scene ii, 12-13. She says, 'Had he
not resembled/ My father as he slept, I had done it.' She is giving an excuse
for not killing Duncan herself. As you can plainly see, this is not the same
Lady Macbeth that would bash a baby's brains in in the beginning of the play.
Throughout the play, Macbeth's character grows stronger as Lady Macbeth's ...