Lady Macbeth Flashcards
“[enters with a taper]” Guilt
Lady Macbeth (Act 5)
As a taper provides light, this is emblematic of how Lady Macbeth is seeking light, hope and solace in her eternal mental darkness.
In Christian symbolism, light often represents hope and divine guidance. Thus, her [entering] with it can be seen desperate grasping for solace (comfort) and perhaps even a subconscious plea for God’s redemption from the sins that torment her.
Her need for light is the antithesis to her earlier presentation in Act 1 where she calls upon the night, wanting darkness to help fuel her violent and malevolent plans: “come thick night”.
The motif of darkness and light reinforces how Lady Macbeth’s depraved and dark want for violence consequently cause her desperation to see the light and seek redemption.
Critic D.J Enright brands Lady Macbeth as a “sprinter of evil” as her descent to madness is rapid as her climb to tyranny (cruel leader) - she is quickly transitioned from being a barbaric woman to a carcass of insanity.
“A little water clears us of this deed” Ambition and Guilt
Lady Macbeth (Act 2)
Litotes/ under exaggeration is used : Lady Macbeth’s omnipotent ambitions blind her to the profound mental turmoil Macbeth is experiencing.
Her callousness/ cruelness becomes apparent as she employs Litotes, such as the understatement “a little” not only to trivialise (make it seem less important) the act of the murder but also to emasculate Macbeth, encouraging him further along his murderous path.
Euphemism: she employs euphemism (substituting a phrase or word with something less harsh or blunt) to characterise regicide as a mere “deed”.
This highlights a paradoxical (conflicting) aspect of her character as despite her ambitions to shed feminine traits and embrace tyrannical brutality, she struggles to articulate the gravity of the heinous act.
This foreshadows her descent into a melodramatic state of insanity in Act 5, where she grapples with an inability to fully grasp the enormity of the sins committed.
“Come you spirits…. unsex me here” “Pour my spirits” Supernatural
Lady Macbeth (Act 1)
By employing the imperative phrases like “come you,” she demonstrates a commanding familiarity with the ominous supernatural realm.
Unhesitant and determined, she calls upon dark external forces without hesitation, seeking liberation from the societal constraints imposed by her femininity.
Her androgynous (male and female) nature would be perceived to be supernatural in the Jacobean era as the gender roles were rigid and any break in this would show she is possessed by a supernatural role.
The syntax (word order) of “spirits” preceding “unsex” underscores her conviction that supernatural intervention is imperative for her desire to be successfully “unsexed”.
The deliberate arrangement of these terms in her speech illuminates the dependence she places on the supernatural, revealing how this is a necessity for transcending societal norms.
Her recognition on her dependence on the supernatural realm reflects a social awareness that liberation from the societal constraints imposed on her femininity necessitates an engagement with forces beyond the natural order.
“Dash’d the brains out” Violence and Appearance vs Reality and Gender
Lady Macbeth (Act 1)
The plosive on “dash’d” creates a brutal sound, mirroring her brutal rejection of motherly instincts.
Her proclivity (tendency) for violence takes precedence over motherhood, leading to her unapologetic willingness to extinguish human life in the relentless pursuit of unchecked violent ambition.
The deliberate contrast/juxtaposition between the forceful verb “dash’d” and the delicate nature of brains serves as a poignant symbol reflecting Lady Macbeth’s character.
Despite her seemingly fragile exterior, she harbours a strong desire to instigate violence and chaos.
Notably, her choice of targeting the vulnerable “brains” of infants signifies a recognition of both the paramount importance and extreme fragility of human existance. Yet this is ironic, as the very organ she seeks to disrupt in her unborn child - the seat of morality and reason - becomes the locus (particullar place something occurs) of her own downfall.
“Make thick my blood, stop up th’ access and passage to remorse” Ambition and Gender
Lady Macbeth (Act 1)
The imperative/command “make thick my blood” illustrates how she commands for emotional restraint and a callous/cruel indifference. Recognising that her aspirations for tyranny require a detachment from femininity and the accompanying emotions, Lady Macbeth seeks to rid herself of these elements to pave a way for her ruthless ambitions.
A femme fatale is a seductive and manipulative woman who can lure men into danger or sin and it is a common trope within literature and poetry. She is thus a femme fatale as she is not only manipulative but rejects her womanhood and motherhood (which is a typical trope/idea of femme fatale).
