Character of Lady Macbeth

Question 1

‘Yet I do fear thy nature, / It is too full o’th’milk of human kindness’

Answer 1

Act 1 Scene 5
Lady Macbeth sees kindness as a weakness

Themes: Femininity vs. Masculinity

Question 2

‘Come, you spirits / That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here’

Answer 2

Act 1 Scene 5
Lady Macbeth calls on dark forces
She associates femineity with weakness and wants to be made ruthless

Themes: Femininity vs. Masculinity, Evil, Supernatural

Question 3

‘Make thick my blood, / Stop up th’access and passage to remorse’

Answer 3

Act 1 Scene 5
Lady Macbeth wants to feel no guilt
Ironic foreshadowing as she later breaks down in guilt

Themes: Guilt

Question 4

‘Look like th’innocent flower, / But be the serpent under’t’

Answer 4

Act 1 Scene 5
Lady Macbeth is highly manipulative towards Macbeth but maintains an image of innocence towards others which links to the biblical imagery of temptation

Themes: Appearance vs. Reality, manipulation of power

Question 5

‘Leave all the rest to me’

Answer 5

Act 1 Scene 5
Lady Macbeth holds the dominant role in their relationship
Reverts traditional gender roles

Themes: Femininity vs. Masculinity

Question 6

‘When you durst do it, then you were a man’

Answer 6

Act 1 Scene 7
Lady Macbeth mocks her husbands masculinity to manipulate him to kill Duncan
She equates masculinity with violence and bravery

Theme: Femininity vs. Masculinity, Power, Evil

Question 7

‘I would, while it was smiling in my face, Have plucked my nipple from his boneless gums / And dashed the brains out’

Answer 7

Act 1 Scene 7
Lady Macbeth is presented as a very cruel person
Very shocking image to the audience of the time
Highlights her ambition

Themes: Ambition, Evil

Question 8

‘A little water clears us of this deed’

Answer 8

Act 2 Scene 2
Suggests no reason to worry
Dramatic Irony - LM later becomes obsessed with the ‘blood’ on her hands

Themes: Guilt, Appearance vs. Reality

Question 9

‘My hands are of your colour, but I shame / To wear a heart so white.’

Answer 9

Act 2 Scene 2
Lady Macbeth criticises Macbeth for feeling guilty
She does not show fear - suggest she is heartless

Themes: Evil, Guilt

Question 10

‘Out, damned spot! Out, I say!’

Answer 10

Act 5 Scene 1
Lady Macbeth is sleepwalking imagining blood on her hands
The guilt (which she denied) is all consuming - leading to her downfall in Act 5 Scene 5

Themes: Guilt

Question 11

(Stage Directions) [Dies]

Answer 11

Act 5 Scene 5
Offstage - possible suicide
Marks emotional cost of unchecked ambition and power

Themes: Ambition, Power