Macbeth and Lady Macbeth coping mechanisms
I think by now you guys have noticed that I really enjoy to explore the relationship between Lady Macbeth and Macbeth throughout the play. Throughout the final act of the play, I noticed that the members of this couple have different ways of coping with guilt. By now, Macbeth has gone into a murderous rage. He has killed Banquo and Macduff's family in an attempt to maintain his crown. Now that he knows that England's soldiers are coming, he attempts to prepare for his inevitable defeat by continuously requesting someone to fetch his armor and prepare him for battle long before the enemy arrives. He calls out angrily at his servants and noblemen and commands the doctor to cure his wife who has been suffering from sleepwalking.
Lady Macbeth has driven herself crazy trying to hide the sin she committed. She never blows out her candlelight and while sleepwalking washes her hands of King Duncan's blood. These two reactions represent the different ways guilt can take over a person as these two characters spiral out of control before finding peace in their inevitable deaths.
Lady Macbeth has driven herself crazy trying to hide the sin she committed. She never blows out her candlelight and while sleepwalking washes her hands of King Duncan's blood. These two reactions represent the different ways guilt can take over a person as these two characters spiral out of control before finding peace in their inevitable deaths.
I think it is interesting that Macbeth felt more guilt regarding the death of Banquo even though he didn't personally commit that murder. Lady Macbeth felt more guilt about the death of Duncan, probably because she was personally involved and literally had his blood on her hands. This shows that the crimes affected the two characters in very different ways and possibly led to their different reactions. You can also notice as the play progresses that Macbeth and his wife drift apart as he gets angrier and she isolates herself. Although it was only for the sake of scheming, they communicated a lot more in the beginning.
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