Role Of Evil In Macbeth

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There are some people that merely glance at evil and then there are those that become the embodiment of evil. There are many honest, hardworking, and determined women in the world, but there are also some that are liars, evil, and corrupt whose sole achievement is to disgrace womankind. William Shakespeare’s play The Tragedy of Macbeth contains an epitome of the latter. The power-hungry Lady Macbeth plays a potent role in motivating Macbeth, the tragic hero of the story, along with factors such as ambition, and prophesies to murder the king. However, guilt and loss of sanity ultimately lead to Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s demise. Lady Macbeth’s craven nature, morally corrupt personality, and feelings of compunction, depict her as a weak and deceitful …show more content…
Lady Macbeth’s avarice for becoming the queen overtakes her and causes her to lie and take baleful actions. For instance, when Macbeth fails to carry out her murder plan correctly, she tells him that she will smear the blood on the guards because “it must seem their guilt” (II.ii.55). She loses the ability to decipher between right and wrong because has no shame in letting innocent people take the blame for the murder that she plans and she is too weak to deal with the consequences of her own steps. Additionally, when Macbeth states that he will not go on with the murder, she declares, “From this time / Such I account thy love” (I.vii.38-39). By implying that if Macbeth truly loves her, then he would kill Duncan, she compels Macbeth make an egregious sin. Even though her ability to come up with the plan adds element of independence and toughness to her personality, she actually still needs her husband’s help to commit the crime. If her husband is too weak, then she could have just killed Duncan to achieve their goals, but she is not brave enough either. The way Lady Macbeth coerces Macbeth is comparable to the way Eve eats the forbidden fruit and she makes Adam eat it, too. Eve is the reason behind all the problems Adam faces after defying God and eating the fruit. Likewise, the desire of becoming the queen fuels Lady Macbeth to sin and not only does she develop …show more content…
Despite the fact that she tries to be cold-hearted, she is the one who slowly begins to feel contrite for her immoral deeds. Towards the end of the play, she starts sleepwalking and imagines blood on her hands that she cannot wash away. Earlier in the play, when Macbeth tells her no water in the world can clean his bloody hands, she tells him: “My hands are of your color, but I shame / To wear a heart so white” (II.ii.61-62). However, as her guilt catches up to her she is forced into Macbeth’s position and she is not able to live up to her words. This flaw in her character reveals that she is, in fact, very weak mentally. In addition, when Macbeth has hallucinations of Banquo’s ghost showing up to his feast, Lady Macbeth remarks, “these flaws and starts, / Imposers to true fear….Shame itself!(III.iv.63-65). Later on, as she starts sleepwalking and has hallucinations, her guilt makes her fearful instead of feeling ashamed. Eventually, she melts down under the pressure of her guilt so much that she welcomes death. Some of the last words she utters are: “What’s done cannot be undone. ─ To bed, to bed, to bed!”(V.i.57-58). She knows that she will kill herself and that her bed will be like her grave. For a woman who wants to be harsh and heartless, she should not be feeling any regret or remorse for her sins. Also, guilt should definitely not be the reason behind the
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