Macbeth Feminist Analysis
Macbeth:
An Essay on Feminism and Death Throughout the reign of William Shakespeare’s tragedy Macbeth, the modern world has come to question how certain themes are presented by the playwright to his audience. This had arisen due to the representation of the author’s opinions on his surroundings during the play’s creation. As it is common knowledge that misogyny was an essential part of medieval living, one can assume that these principals have effected that of Shakespeare’s. However, upon the analysis of the tragedy, it appears he may have set up a circumstance in which to test the misogynistic mold which had surrounded society. While living in a world which encouraged the matching of gender roles, it is evident that Shakespeare created the …show more content…
In particular, it seems the characters who ultimately are met by death are the ones who go out of their way to conform to these standards. He first introduces this idea as character Lady Macbeth dreads on her husband’s lack of masculinity. She enters the scene reviewing a letter written by the thane, announcing his new title: Thane of Cawdor. The lady takes this as an opportunity of action, and throughout the monologue decides that the death of Duncan is the path to monarchy. While her speech is progressive to the plot, it also raises conflict, as she repeatedly bashes her husband and his lack of inner strength. In Ramsey’s article, he describes “…aggressive, daring, bold, resolute, even in the face of death” (Ramsey,177) as characteristics of manliness in the play. This triggers a series of attempts from Macbeth to pursue absolute manliness, essentially fulfilling his wife’s perception of male gender roles that may be his downfall. Ramsey summarizes this: “…he gives Lady Macbeth the cue she needs to begin radical translation of his code of manliness that will lead to his ruin”. This again can be seen as he becomes more aggressive, taking actions such as ordering the murder of Banquo and the family of Macduff. Shakespeare explicitly reveals to his audience that the defeat of his protagonist is due to misogynistic roles in his
An Essay on Feminism and Death Throughout the reign of William Shakespeare’s tragedy Macbeth, the modern world has come to question how certain themes are presented by the playwright to his audience. This had arisen due to the representation of the author’s opinions on his surroundings during the play’s creation. As it is common knowledge that misogyny was an essential part of medieval living, one can assume that these principals have effected that of Shakespeare’s. However, upon the analysis of the tragedy, it appears he may have set up a circumstance in which to test the misogynistic mold which had surrounded society. While living in a world which encouraged the matching of gender roles, it is evident that Shakespeare created the …show more content…
In particular, it seems the characters who ultimately are met by death are the ones who go out of their way to conform to these standards. He first introduces this idea as character Lady Macbeth dreads on her husband’s lack of masculinity. She enters the scene reviewing a letter written by the thane, announcing his new title: Thane of Cawdor. The lady takes this as an opportunity of action, and throughout the monologue decides that the death of Duncan is the path to monarchy. While her speech is progressive to the plot, it also raises conflict, as she repeatedly bashes her husband and his lack of inner strength. In Ramsey’s article, he describes “…aggressive, daring, bold, resolute, even in the face of death” (Ramsey,177) as characteristics of manliness in the play. This triggers a series of attempts from Macbeth to pursue absolute manliness, essentially fulfilling his wife’s perception of male gender roles that may be his downfall. Ramsey summarizes this: “…he gives Lady Macbeth the cue she needs to begin radical translation of his code of manliness that will lead to his ruin”. This again can be seen as he becomes more aggressive, taking actions such as ordering the murder of Banquo and the family of Macduff. Shakespeare explicitly reveals to his audience that the defeat of his protagonist is due to misogynistic roles in his