Violence And Masculinity In Macbeth

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. In the passage, Lady Macbeth says, “Come to my woman’s breasts / And take my milk for gal, you murd’ring ministers” (1.5.54-55). Lady Macbeth is telling the murdering demons to go to her female breasts and turn her milk in acid. She wants to change the female part of her into something destructive. With removing her female aspects she is able to commit the murderous acts because only men can deal with the violence. Also, she states, “Make thick my blood. / stop up th’ access and passage to remorse, / that no compunctious visitings of nature” (1.5.50-52). Lady Macbeth is saying to thicken her blood and clog her veins so she won’t feel remorse, and so that no human compassion can stop her evil plan or prevent her from accomplishing it. This continues the theme because she wants to get rid of human feelings. Typically women are viewed as more emotional than men. Lady Macbeth chooses to put her natural

She only can do this after she feels she has gotten rid of her female attributes. This can be attributed to the constraints of society at this time. Also, it can be attributed to the way that she feels about being not fearless enough to kill. She says, “Come, you spirits / That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, / And fill me from the crown to the toe top-full / Of direst cruelty” (1.5.47-50). Lady Macbeth is calling to the spirits to assist her murderous ideations and to do that make her less of a women and more like man which will then fill her with deadly cruelty. This supports how she feels, about needing to be manly to commit these horrible