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Lady Macbeth (Ambitious ("Shalt be / What thou art"-Lady Macbeth…
Lady Macbeth
Ambitious
She can only be Queen if he becomes King so when he hesitates she displays enough ambition for both of them.
Once she has worked out a plan, nothing will turn her from that course until her ambition is fulfilled.
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Conscience-stricken
Lady Macbeth seems to go from being someone with no conscience at all to someone who is overwhelmed by feelings of guilt.
"Out, damned spot! Out, I say! "-Lady Macbeth
As the guilt-stricken Lady Macbeth sleepwalks, she remembers all the evil things she and her husband have done and tries to wash imaginary blood from her hands
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Cunning
To the outside world, Lady Macbeth seems like the ideal supportive wife but this is part of her ability to be deceptive.
When Macbeth expresses doubts, she uses every trick she can think of to make sure he carries out their plan to murder Duncan.
"All our service, / In every point twice done and then done double"-Lady Macbeth
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Summary
Lady Macbeth is even more ambitious and ruthless than her husband. As soon as an opportunity to gain power presents itself, she has a plan in mind. She uses her influence to persuade Macbeth that they are taking the right course of action and even takes part in the crime herself.
For a while she is able to suppress her actions but eventually she becomes unable to deal with the guilt of what she has done. She becomes unable to sleep, and mentally unstable, eventually dying in tragic circumstances.
Context
In both Shakespeare's time and in the time when the play takes place, women had a much lower status than would be the case today.
Lady Macbeth appears to be a much more feisty character with ambitions and desires of her own; these are characteristics that could imply a lack of femininity.
Original performances of the play the part of Lady Macbeth would have been played by a man and this would have helped to emphasise the character's masculine qualities.
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