Lady Macbeth is the one responsible for the entire tragedy of Macbeth. She is the main reason for all of the deaths and terrible events that occur throughout the play. Lady Macbeth is will do anything to reach her ultimate goal of becoming queen. She manipulates Macbeth into helping her get to that ultimate goal unwillingly, and by doing this it’s clear that Lady Macbeth is the one responsible for the outcome of the play. Duncan’s death was the result of a very detailed scheme that made the physical action of killing Duncan the easiest part of the plan. Lady Macbeth was the body and mind of this entire plan, and Macbeth was her hands. This means that Lady Macbeth could control everything that the body (and hands) did. In other words, Lady Macbeth designed and controlled the entire plan to kill Duncan. As the hands, Macbeth could try and fight the mind’s desires. Although, in the end, the body would prevail and force the hands to do what it wants. The hands then relate to how Macbeth didn’t want to kill Duncan, but Lady Macbeth was able to overpower Macbeth, and make the two of them work together and follow through with her plan. At that point in the play, Macbeth questioned himself as to whether he really wanted to kill Duncan. After Duncan honored Macbeth with great praise for his actions on the battlefield, Macbeth realized that it would be outrageous to murder an innocent man who had only been good to him.
Lady Macbeth:
“What beast was’t, then, That made you break this enterprise to me? When you durst do it, then you were a man; And to be more than what you were, you would Be so much more the man.” (1.7. 47-51)
This quote explains how Lady Macbeth was able to persuade Macbeth into helping her pursue
her goal of killing Duncan to become queen. She does this by convincing Macbeth that he’s only
doubting their plan now, because he’s afraid of murdering Duncan. This is different from
Macbeth’s real reason for doubting the plan, which was that it was simply irrational to murder a man without reason, especially when that man has been such a generous and gracious king for you. When Lady Macbeth makes certain that Macbeth feels as though he is only abandoning their original plan because he isn’t a real man, and she succeeds in this effort, Macbeth is convinced, and this makes him want to prove Lady Macbeth wrong. The alphamale characteristic of Macbeth makes him feel as though he needs to be brave and prove Lady
Macbeth wrong by finally deciding that they will follow through with their plan to murder
Duncan. Lady Macbeth purposely manipulated Macbeth, knowing how her words would make him react. She controls Macbeth’s mind with the ability to persuade him to look at the situation from a different mind’s perspective. Finally, Lady Macbeth seems to have Macbeth’s head in the right place to be able to help her murder Duncan, as her main step in the plan to become queen.
When it comes to the actual murder, Lady Macbeth sets everything up. She can’t seem to execute her plan by physically stabbing Duncan; this is where her hands (Macbeth) come in. Lady
Macbeth uses Macbeth to help her execute the deed, even though the plan, and reasoning for the plan to take place was completely Lady Macbeth’s doing. The situation was under her control the entire time. Macbeth seems to have a formidable role by Lady Macbeth’s side. However, he is ultimately just a pawn in her intricate plot. As Macbeth and Lady Macbeth move on to take their place as king and queen, Lady
Macbeth is the clear leader. She takes control, and is the only reason that they were able to keep their positions as king and queen as long as they did. With Duncan dead, it’s very important for
them to be able to stay calm and collected through all the hardships that come from the guilt of killing someone. If either of them gives away that they are the killers, they will