In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth undergo an inverse character development that contrasts each one’s strengths and weaknesses. Early on in the play, Macbeth is shown as a weak man; however, he slowly becomes mad with power, killing anyone who he believes is a threat to his crown.
Early on in the play it is apparent that he portrays the stereotypical female role, as he is weak and is not willing to harm another in order to gain power for himself. After being insulted by his wife for being so weak, his personality begins to change, leading to his excessive amount of ambition and his eventual downfall. In contrast, Lady Macbeth begins the play as a very strong-willed woman who exhibits stereotypically male characteristics. She is extremely power hungry and is willing to harm anyone standing in her path to royalty, but unlike Macbeth she does not get stronger as the play progresses; instead she shifts into the conventional role of a woman, exhibiting signs of fear and weakness.
Since both of these characters’ behaviors contradict each other throughout the play, they contribute to the theme of antithesis that reoccurs numerous times throughout the play. They are conversely related, as they are never in the same mindset as one another. While Lady Macbeth is strong and powerful, Macbeth is shows signs of weakness, but when Macbeth begins his mad drive for power, Lady Macbeth is often left in a state of fear, not knowing what Macbeth plans to do. Although he starts off the play as a weak-minded, yet honorable soldier, Macbeth transforms into a power hungry tyrant who only wants what is best for himself due to his overwhelming ambitions; conversely, Lady Macbeth appears as a power hungry woman from the onset of the play, but as it progresses she slides back into the traditional role of a female, leading to her eventual suicide.
Macbeth begins the play as an honorable soldier with little ambition for any lifestyle greater than his current role as the Thane of Glamis, yet by the end of the play, he has transformed into a murderous tyrant led by his overwhelming ambitions for kingship. Before Macbeth is even seen on stage, Shakespeare portrays him as a great war hero that is respected by everyone that knows him. However, after being confronted by the weird women and hearing the prophecy that he will be king his ambitions begin to grow. Despite the fact that he is intrigued by the idea of potentially becoming king, he is not strong enough to do anything to ensure his position on his own. His wife, Lady Macbeth, realizes that she must force him to act on his hopes, saying,
“Yet I do fear thy nature;/ It is too full o’ the milk of human kindness/ to catch the nearest way” (I.v.13-15).
At this point in the play Macbeth is still a weak character and portrays the stereotypical role that a woman would traditionally serve. He is fearful and will not seize power without the prompting of his wife. He attempts to back out of killing Duncan, the current King, but due to his weak nature Lady Macbeth is able to easily manipulate him into carrying out the murder by insulting his manhood, saying,
“When you durst do it, then you were a man” (I.vii.49). Because of her chiding Macbeth agrees to the murder and carries it out soon after. After murdering his friend and king, Macbeth immediately goes into a state of shock, further showing his weakness. He says, “Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood/ Clean from my hand?” (II.ii.60-61).
In his current state, he does not carry out the murder according to plan, as he brings the dagger out with him. When confronted by his wife, he refuses to return to the room that the murder occurred in, even if it means that they get caught, because in his weak state, he is unable to bear to see what he has done. Later in the play Macbeth’s feelings begin to change; he shifts into a strong, self-centered person who is willing to harm anyone else that is a hazard to his crown. Macbeth recalls Banquo’s prophesy and begins to worry, as Banquo’s children are supposed to become kings. Since everything else that the weird women had previously predicted had come true, Macbeth has no doubt that this prediction will come true as well. In order to prevent this, Macbeth takes it upon himself, this time without the assistance of his wife, to plot the assassination of Banquo and his son Fleance. When his wife questions his, he responds,
“Be innocent of the knowledge, dearest chuck,/ Till though applaud the deed” (III.iii.45-46).
At this point in the play, Macbeth has begun his transformation into a murderous tyrant, killing anyone who may be a potential threat to him. Later in the play, Macbeth learns that Macduff doubts his innocence, and again sees this as a potential threat to his crown. He plans to kill Macduff, but his assassins are informed that he has left the country to visit Malcolm, Duncan’s eldest son and the rightful heir to the throne. Since they are not able to murder Macduff, they brutally murder both his wife and all of his children. Macbeth’s personality has changed completely from how it originally was. He is no longer a fearful man that is manipulated by his wife, but instead his ambition has caused him to become made with power, doing whatever he deems necessary. He no longer plays the stereotypically female role, but is now the dominant male figure in the play.
Lady Macbeth also displays a dynamic character development due to her ambition for royalty; however, unlike Macbeth, she shifts from the dominant figure in the play to a woman so weak she can no longer continue with he life. At the very beginning of the play, Lady Macbeth is the strong, dominant figure in the relationship. She plays the stereotypical role of a male character and wishes she was able to have the opportunity to gain power like a men, saying,
“Come, you spirits/ That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here,/ And fill me from the crown to the toe top-full/ Of direst cruelty!” (I.v.38-40).
As soon as the idea that her husband Macbeth could potentially become king, she immediately takes the lead role in plotting against Duncan. She manipulates her husband into doing whatever is necessary in order to achieve power for herself. She feels no regret for the murder of Duncan, saying,
“A little water clears us of this deed./ How easy is it then!” (II.ii.67-68).
At this point in the play she is clearly the stronger figure in the relationship. Soon after though, she begins her transformation into the traditional female role. Macbeth plans the murder of Banquo and his son, leaving her completely out of it and does not even tell her any part of the plan. She sees that Macbeth’s ambitions are growing too quickly and she begins to fear what he is capable of. Further into the play, after Macbeth murders Lady Macduff and the Macduff children, she grows even more fearful and is forced into a guilt driven madness due to all of the treacherous acts that both she and her husband have committed. She begins sleepwalking, while saying aloud,
“Out, damned spot! Out, I saw!- One; two. Why,/ then ’tis time to do’t- Hell is murky! Fie, my lord, fie!…/ Yet who would have thought the old man/ to have had so much blood in him?” (V.i.30-34).
She transforms into the weaker figure in the relationship and her weakness ultimately leads to her suicide.
The development of the characters of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth change inversely; while one of them gets stronger, the other gets weaker due to the events that occur. Throughout the entire play, there is never more than one dominant figure in the relationship. At first Lady Macbeth is the strong character, manipulating any situation to her advantage. She desperately wants the power of a man, but as a woman she is will never be able to obtain it by herself. At the same time, Macbeth is seen on the other end of the spectrum. Instead of being strong willed like his wife, he is extremely cowardly and will not act on any ambitions he has. As the play progresses, Lady Macbeth begins to take on the role as a fearful woman, like Macbeth had previously portrayed. She gets worried about those that may find out about how they rose to power, saying,
“Naught’s had, all’s spent,/ Where our desire is got without content./ ‘Tis safer to be that which we destroy/ Than by destruction dwell in doubtful joy” (III.ii.4-7).
Even though Macbeth also has the same thoughts, he takes a different approach in his reaction to them, saying,
“To be thus is nothing,/ But to be safely thus.-Our fears in Banquo/ Stick deep; and in his royalty of nature/ Reigns that which would be feared” (III.i.48-50).
He plans to kill all that stand in his way, rather than fear them. Unlike his previous murders, he is now willing to take action without the prompting of his wife. His ambition continues to grow, while at the same time Lady Macbeth’s weakens. Macbeth goes so far as to kill Macduff’s children without regret. At the same time, these murders drive Lady Macbeth so mad that the only option she can find is suicide. Her personality is the complete opposite of her husbands and their roles have completely shifted from how they began.
The complex converse development of the characters of Macbeth and Lady is apparent all throughout the play; Macbeth gains strength and becomes mad with power, while Lady Macbeth is depicted as a power hungry woman who turns weak and becomes mad with guilt. Had Macbeth simply continued living his life as the Thane of Cawdor and Glamis, he would not have transformed into a terrible tyrant. He murdered friends, trusted no one, and was unhappy even after becoming the king because of the means he had used to seize power. He never felt safe and was constantly worried about the weird women’s prophecies. If Lady Macbeth had never found out about the weird women’s predictions, she would not have pushed Macbeth into royalty and she would not have had to bear the extreme amount of guilt from her and her husband’s actions. The ambitions of both characters led to their ultimate downfalls, they became greedy and lost everything they once had.
