Macbeth

The characterization of Lord and Lady Macbeth represents a symbolic yin and yang relationship that is completely reversed during the course of the play. In the beginning Lady Macbeth must steel the courage of Macbeth in order to infuse him with the capacity to commit murder. Macbeth, in contrast, wavers with respect to his course of action. By the end of the play, Lady Macbeth will have descended into madness due to remorse and fear over their heinous deeds, while Macbeth becomes consumed with the passionate conviction he can fight and win. In other words, though their particular strengths and weaknesses create a yin and yang balance between the couple, their personalities completely transfer from the beginning to the end of the drama. Nonetheless, this yin and yang balance is maintained.

In the opening scenes of the play, Macbeth’s ambitions are stirred when he is praised for his victories against the traitorous Macdonald. The praise of the king is demonstrated in a practical manner, Macbeth is provided with a new and significant title: Thane of Cawdor. This is a significant advancement for it puts him one step closer to the throne. Macbeth’s ambitions are further fueled by his encounter with three witches on the heath. The witches predict that great rewards will come to Macbeth. The words of the witches play heavily on Macbeth’s mind. He beckons for more information, “Stay, you imperf

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sions the blood of her deeds on her hands, blood she cannot wash off no matter how much energy invested because it is a stain on her conscience that ultimately robs her of the will to endure. She becomes like Macbeth earlier, unable to sleep, a mere ghostly, trance-like image of her former self. Macbeth, in contrast, now becomes the ballast to balance their energy. However, Macbeth’s confidence, unbeknownst to him, is based on his misreading of the portents showed him by the witches. At an earlier stage Macbeth again encounters the three witches. However, at this point the witches show him three portents or apparitions: an armed hand, a bloodied child, and a child crowned with a tree in his hand. These portents are important because Macbeth will be vanquished by a man who disguises his soldiers as a forest as he moves on Dunsinane and Macbeth. However, Macbeth’s interpretation of these portents is highly significant because he misreads them and garners a false sense of confidence in so doing. The first misreading Macbeth makes is when the witches tell him, “Be bloody, bold, and resolute; laugh to scorn/The power of man, for none of woman born/Shall harm Macbeth” (1061). This makes Macbeth confident that he is safe from
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Approximate Word count = 2643
Approximate Pages = 11 (250 words per page)

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