Image Of Manhood In Macbeth

What is the image of manhood presented in MACBETH? Shakespeare, through his characters, communicate various distinctive conceivable perspectives regarding the matter, and through all these one may sort to locate his actual conviction on the subject. As the activity in the play starts to warm up because of the looming homicide of Duncan, the main Mention of masculinity is made, as scrutinizing Macbeth. Lady Macbeth continues with a baiting of Macbeth in his psychological distress about whether or not to kill the ruler, blaming him for being for not being manly.

Lady Macbeth proceeds with a badgering of Macbeth in his mental anguish over whether or not to murder the king, accusing him of being a coward. Macbeth’s response directly cites manhood:

I dare do all that may become a man.

Who dares do more is none. (Act 1, Scene 7, lines 46-48)

This quotation may give a hint to Shakespeare’s leaning on the direction on manhood; later definition of manhood given by Macbeth may be faulty in his drunken-with-ambition state, but here, he is still a relatively rational human being. Shakespeare’s wording of this interpretation in him might be one to trust, as Macbeth still retains at this point some semblance of being a good man. But Lady Macbeth’s definition of manhood is far different:

When you durst do it, then you were a man;

(Act 1, Scene 7, lines 49-51)

In this, the reader sees a contrasting view to Macbeth’s view that a man does all that becomes him--Lady Macbeth’s view that a man is only a man when he dares to do the dangerous. This view is more of a representation of the popular view of the time, representing the majority in the domineering nature of Lady Macbeth. Shakespeare portrays this viewpoint as something spoken in a passion and for that reason much less