The Destruction Of Womanhood In Shakespeare's Macbeth

Macbeth is full of abnormal actions, some of which are particularly confusing. One of the most intriguing confusions pertains to why Lady Macbeth wishes to get rid of her womanhood. It may be to gain further influence over her husband, but it seems that she already has an excessive amount. Without a doubt being a woman can be challenging, but for Lady Macbeth to say, in Act 1, Scene 5, “Come, you spirits / That tend on mortal thoughts, / unsex me here,” seems a little bizarre (47-48). Lady Macbeth may long for Macbeth to become King of Scotland, but there is no reason for her to want to be unsexed in order to obtain more authority over her husband. For instance, when she tells Macbeth he to kill Duncan and he hesitates, she says that if he is a man he will do

Testing a man’s manliness during this time era is an assured way to receive any wish, so that is what Lady Macbeth did so precisely. In fact, Wayne C. Booth notes in Shakespeare for Students, “She twits him for cowardice, plays upon the word “man,” making it seem that he becomes more a man by doing the manly deed.” It is evident that Lady Macbeth already realizes how to maintain control over her husband, so what would the purpose of being unsexed be? She deliberately uses her charm and questioning of Macbeth’s manhood to develop his contrasting feelings into what Lady Macbeth believes. If pursuing additional power is what Lady Macbeth desires, no explanation will ever make sense because she possesses a myriad of competence that directs Macbeth straight toward the path of her ambitions for him to become King of