Love in Macbeth and the Canterbury Tales Lady Macbeth and Macbeth’s love is just as faulty and fake as the love Palamon and Arcita share for Emily. In the books Macbeth, by William Shakespeare, and The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer, the way that love is described is shallow and meaningless and reflects what love was in the two different time periods. The way the two authors describe the different relationships displays how love was perceived at that time and both examples relate to each other due to the unrealistic and superficial way that the characters express love to each other. The way that Lady Macbeth and Macbeth interact in their relationship makes them seem as if they’re nothing but acquaintances. Neither of them seem to love…show more content… The way Shakespeare describes Lady Macbeth and Macbeths marriage represents more of a beneficial gain relationship. In that time period it was more often that people would marry to solve problems or to strength a situation rather than to marry for true love. In Chaucer's description of love he highlights courtly love based on shallow feelings and physical appearance instead of real emotions. Both examples are not real love, neither relationship represents true feelings or consideration for one another. For example when Lady Macbeth speaks to Macbeth she talks down to him referring to him as, “infirm of purpose!”(23) and useless. She pushes him to make decisions that would lead to her own personal gain. Shakespeare makes her tone flat and emotionless and it expresses how little she truly cares for Macbeth. By the end of their relationship Macbeth no longer cared for Lady Macbeth and didn’t even react when she died. Their relationship has no real feelings and only stands for beneficial gain rather than emotions. Arcita and Palamon on the other hand only want Emily because she is beautiful and Chaucer highlights that point whenever they talk about their love for her. They describe her physical appearance and their desire to have her all to themselves rather than to actually have a real emotional connection with her. They both become incredibly possessive
