Masculinity has been a heated debated topic over the past years. Not just america or europe, but our whole society. Men tend to think that entering manhood is a good thing, but most don’t know it can be just as detrimental to our society. Men have certain characteristic when it concerns to masculinity and when doing so it can have a range of effects. So, how do men identify themselves masculine and how do they define themselves that way?
Lady Macbeth plots to usurp King Duncan so Macbeth can ascend to the throne take his place. After inviting Duncan to their castle, Lady Macbeth creates a plan for Macbeth to execute Duncan in his sleep. As demonstrated in this quote, “That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, And fill me from the crown to the toe top-full Of direst cruelty. Make thick my blood. Come to my woman's breasts And take my milk for gall, you murdering ministers, Wherever in your sightless substances ”(Macbeth, 1.5 47-56).
Shakespeare Selected Plays Imtiaz Jbareen 204495170 A Close Reading of Macbeth Shakespeare’s brilliance lies within subtle details. Therefore, a close reading of his plays, including Macbeth, presents an insight into the structure of the play. Once this is accomplished, one reaches an understanding of the play and characters through their speeches. This paper discusses Act 2 Scene 1, Macbeth’s soliloquy.
Shakespeare has always been progressive for his time so while Macbeth being suggestible and naive at the beginning of the play was very different for its time. At the beginning of the play Macbeth and Lady Macbeth had been opposites of each other and of the gender roles at the time,women were seen as submissive and to carry out their husband’s orders while men were seen as dominant and violent. Both Lady Macbeth and Macbeth saw masculinity as violent,aggressive, and courageous. Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, Macduff, and Porter all represented different levels and types of masculinity that reflect their society and our society today. There is evidence in the play that suggests that the reason why Macbeth even killed Banquo to begin with was because
Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare, is a play that mainly focuses on one common theme of insanity. Macbeth gradually becomes plagued by intense guilt as his desire for power drives him to attain his goals by any means necessary, including committing murder. He kills Duncan in cold blood in order to become King, has Banquo killed by three murderers because he wishes to maintain his position as King, and finally, he has Macduff’s family slaughtered. Each of these occurrences takes place because of Macbeth’s will to be King, or they are a result of his guilt. Nonetheless, they are all completed of his free will, which is what causes him to deteriorate mentally.
(An Analysis of the Theme Manhood Throughout Macbeth) What defines a man's manhood is different throughout many cultures. Some cultures define a man buy his wealth and property, by his success. Other cultures define manhood by how well a man fights, his strength and/or courage. This definition of manhood can be found in multiple cultures, including the setting in which Shakespeare wrote Macbeth. But there is a whole other side to what defines a man’s manhood that isn't physical at all, but mental.
It’s no surprise, that Shakespeare’s Macbeth was clearly constructed as a rebellion against femininity roles of the time. During the Elizabethan era, women were raised to believe they were inferior to men since men obtained desired masculine qualities such as strength, and loyalty, whereas women were viewed as figures of hospitality (1; 6; 28-31). Obviously, not being tempted by the luxury of subservient women, William Shakespeare rebuked this twisted belief, applying that women deserve more respect than their kitchen tables.
Men are perceived by society as the brave ones; the ones who do what must be done in times of need. Throughout Shakespeare's ‘Macbeth’, valiant actions are made in the notion that it's the manly thing to do . Consequently, Macbeth murders king Duncan as he deems it a necessary crime he must do as a man in order to fulfill his ambitions. During the Elizabethan era, anything that was brave, courageous, or took ambition was deemed a manly act. If you were a female, doing something that took strength would be seen as nonviable.
There is a strong correlation between violence and masculinity. In the play, Macbeth by Shakespeare, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth constantly battle the challenges of manhood. This can be supported by Lady Macbeth and her “unsex me speech” (Act 1.5.47-61). During the play Macbeth, characters tend to dwell on issues of gender and their roles in society.
Manhood (The Analysis of Manhood In The Play Macbeth Acts 1-4) Have you ever been questioned about your manhood? Many people are, and this causes them to do things that they may not want to do. Showing off to a girl, or even a guy showing his friends that he is manly, may also play a part in this. Showing people you level of manhood may end badly, but it may also be good in the end.
Those who are weak often manipulate others to do the things they cannot. Shakespeare's Tragedy of Macbeth describes two characters’ desire for power, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Throughout the play, Lady Macbeth displays many facets to her personality. She is such a diverse and complicated character that it is hard to know if she is truly evil or weak. However, no matter how strong and evil Lady Macbeth appears to be to others, her weakness is clearly apparent when she is alone.
but is then cast aside by her husband at the end. Shakespeare thus presents masculinity in both a positive and negative light. In Act 1, Shakespeare presents Macbeth with admired masculine qualities countered with Lady Macbeth criticising his idiosyncrasies. Lady Macbeth’s definition of a man is disparate to others’.
There are some quotes in the play that really demonstrate how Lady Macbeth questioned Macbeth’s Manhood. There is a part where Lady Macbeth says In Act 1 scene 7 "When you durst do it, then you were a man; And to be more than what you were, you would be so much more the man." In this quote it demonstrates to us how Lady Macbeth questioned Macbeth’s Manhood in order to convince him to do things that would demonstrate that he actually is a “man” and according to Lady Macbeth doing what in this case was murdering King Duncan would make Macbeth much more than a man. In conclusion and in my opinion Manhood is one of the biggest factors in the play.
In this time a man’s masculinity was all that he had and for someone to question it would have almost forced the man to prove himself. In the twenty first century this same idea of being a masculine man still exist. If someone questions a man’s masculinity they most often seek to prove them wrong or prove that they are hyper masculine. In reality Macbeth had no choice to be aggressive because aggression and violence are what identified someone as being a true man, without these traits Macbeth would have been demasculinized. His pride, self-worth, and ambition would not allow that to happen, therefore, to prove himself as a man he killed his friends to meet his own self desires and ended up paying the price for his ambitious
Lady Macbeth is power hungry for the throne and she will do anything to achieve her goal. Her pleasure of having the thought of killing Duncan is revealed. These murderous thoughts that run through her mind shows how desperate she is to acquire power. Although it is the beginning of the play, her dark ambitions sets a dark tone for her character in the play. This coincidentally adds to the assurance of Macbeth’s prophecy which is that Macbeth will become king, but King Duncan is still alive.
