MACBETH GOTHIC ESSAY FOR UTRECHT

“Some say he’s mad; others, that lesser hate him,
Do call it valiant fury” (Caithness: Act V, Scene II)
Consider Macbeth as a gothic protagonist in the light of this comment

ANNELI ALIAGA

Macbeth’s dimensional personality, steeped in the agonising internal conflicts and debatable sanity that stages his moral corruption, depict the archetypal gothic protagonist of a play written before the creation of the genre. As typically seen in a conventional gothic text, Shakespeare presents the protagonist’s progression from ambition to a transgressive state of madness. Yet, as Caithness points out in Act V, Scene II, a possible impression of Macbeth could be as an overtly ambitious noble character that ruthlessly and impulsively does what he must to battle an impending fate. At greater breadth however, we cannot fully appreciate Macbeth as a gothic protagonist within the confines of either being in a state of “mad[ness]” or for demonstrating “valiant fury”; a celebrated gothic trait of our eponymous protagonist is that he shares the cloak of duality and complexity expected of a typical gothic principle. Therefore, Macbeth’s irrational madness and ambitious drive are merely contributing factors to the intricate and conflicting nature one would expect of any gothic protagonist.

‘Macbeth’ reveals glimpses of the gothic concept of madness and sickness through the manifested deterioration of the protagonist’s mental wellbeing. It goes without saying that Macbeth’s certainty of being an invincible force, his hallucinations and sleepless nights would strongly indicate a disturbance of his sanity. Moreover, for a play steeped in the contextual social paranoia of the time, the physical illness and trace of “madness” will have most noticeably been associated with having a connection to malevolent supernatural forces. In his soliloquy in Act II, Scene I, upon seeing a levitating dagger, Macbeth questions whether it is in fact a “dagger of the mind”, citing the possibility of his “heat-oppressed brain” being the factor behind this vision. Another example of Macbeth’s association with supernatural elements in the play, thus highlighting an indication of mental instability, is demonstrated with the apparition of Banquo’s ghost during the banquet scene. As Macbeth proceeds to speak to the illusionary figure of Banquo, his apparent insanity becomes blindingly obvious to those around him: “Gentlemen, rise, his highness is not well.” Arguably, it would perhaps be fairer to state that the ghost is a manifestation of Macbeth’s own guilt as opposed to an outright madness which possesses him. Steering away from a sick-related detection of “madness” in the protagonist, another interpretation of Macbeth’s madness could derive from his irrational nature and train of thought. Descriptions of Macbeth’s tyrannical and ruthless reign are suggested through his reputation as “black Macbeth” and as a “Hell-hound”. His all-consuming passion of a bloodthirsty ambition seems to spiral out of control when we discover that he plans to kill Banquo and slaughter McDuff’s family. For a person with a rational conscience, it is difficult to come to grasp with such evil doings which inevitably leads many to believe that Macbeth must have been mentally unstable to murder so unnecessarily. Macbeth’s “madness”, moreover, is often expressed through Shakespeare’s use of figurative language. Macbeth cries “full of scorpions is my mind” -suggesting some form of poison or taint on a sane mind- and Lady Macbeth tells the audience that she will “pour [her] spirits in thine ear”. Here, Lady Macbeth reveals her intentions of distorting Macbeth’s mind of all “human kindness”. This highlights the mental turmoil and echoes the chaos that Macbeth is facing as a gothic protagonist. Supporting this, Macbeth’s inability to articulate the word “murder” and thus use the euphemism “bloody business” show his shameful detachment of the remains of his conscience and the evil-doings of his mind. Our protagonist cannot come to terms with his perverse-functioning mind. It could be said that he simply feels ashamed and guilty but alternatively, he has steered away so far from human morality that he has become completely ignorant to reality. This inhumane isolation in itself truly presents signs of madness and thus reinforces Macbeth as having the typical connotations of a gothic protagonist.

Similarly to many protagonists of the genre, who possess a credible position on the social hierarchy, Macbeth is principally described as “noble”, “brave” and as a “valiant cousin”. His proud beginnings and commendable reputations are thus explicitly implied especially with his role as a warrior. Shakespeare deliberately sets up the structure of the play so that Macbeth is presented as “worthy” and heroic before he is actually introduced to the play; the playwright’s use of adjectives such as “brave” and “noble” completely juxtapose to the language used to describe him later where demonic imagery such as referring him to “something wicked” associates him with inherent evil. His “bravery” on the battle field seemingly stems and is attained from a naturally violent instinct that Macbeth demonstrates: he runs his sword “from his nave t’the chops”. Here, Macbeth’s “butchery”, described by Malcolm, is portrayed as valiant which may lead to the view that Macbeth is not “mad” and is fully aware of his potentiality of brutality. Therefore, one could argue that the root of Macbeth’s actions and decisions are infused by his “valiant fury” from the moment he hears the supernatural prophecies. The impression that Macbeth offers, from his actions on the battlefield, are that of a self-unaware uncontrollable violence. This is strongly linked to the mould of a typical gothic protagonist whose blind eye towards their human limitations often lead to their downfall. This is a contrasting view to the belief that Macbeth’s inevitable “fury” stems from the femme fatal-esque influence of Lady Macbeth or from the ominous supernatural prophecies. The all-consuming passion or ambition that a character strives to attain is a frequent indicator in a gothic text. Many critics would argue that his “fur[ious]” motivation is one that Macbeth has not harbored himself but that Lady Macbeth has inflicted on him. She uses demeaning rhetorical language such as “Are you a man?” and “I would be ashamed to wear a heart so white” to taunt Macbeth’s masculinity and undermine his manhood. Thus Lady Macbeth’s power could potentially instigate Macbeth’s impulsive and uncontrolled murderous approach which he encounters on a journey of self-discovery of his manhood. This belief allows us to stray from the idea that Macbeth is in fact a potent gothic protagonist and that perhaps the femme fatal-esque character possesses more gothic characteristics. Additionally, another possible explanation for Caithness’ description of Macbeth as a “valiant[ly] fur[ious]” character could be the Scottish noblemen’s lack of knowledge of Macbeth’s darkest supernatural influences. For those around the tyrannical king that are not aware of his connection to the witches’ prophecies, it would seem natural to assume that in a perfectly sane and rational state of mind, the king is simply acting upon ambitious drive.

Caithness’ quotation does not sufficiently outline the overall characterisation of a gothic principle in literature because, as seen with gothic protagonists such as Frankenstein and Heathcliff, what wholly fulfils the role is a complex journey of emotions and traits: Macbeth’s being that of the self-discovery of manhood culminating in a compulsive and irrational thirst for ambition. Therefore, the suggestion that our protagonist must either be “mad” or “valiant[ly] fur[ious]” undermines to complicated nature of an archetypal gothic protagonist. The transgressive and interweaving emotional shift in Macbeth’s character throughout the course of the play heavily implies that his inherent fury for ambition is what leads to his “madness”. Accordingly, one must see the combination and overlapping of his traits as the most heavily gothic aspect of our protagonist.