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Macbeth and Lady Macbeth

I've been struggling with my english lit and lang and have been trying to challenge myself with writing longer and better answer
Any tips or improvements on this answer please?
LM is Lady macbeth btw i just ran out of room

Hiw shakespear portrays LM and macebeths relationship in the whole text

Shakespeare portrays LM's and Macbeth's relationship as quite complex and pationate throughout the whole play however, it is constantly evolving and changing. At first they are depicted as a close couple with a strong and unbreakable bond and love for eachother, although as the play progresses further their relationship starts to deteriorate due to the guilt and their never ending ambition for power and wealth.
Throughout the play, the couple bonds over murder, guilt and a hunger for power. They both feed of each other in order to maintain a position of power

Shakespear portrays LM and Macbeths relationship as one of love and gratitude through the whole play. LM and Macbeth are a loving couple. They share their thoughts, plans, and ambitions. Lady Macbeth is the dominant figure in the relationship, as shown when she persuades Macbeth to kill King Duncan.
"Hie thee hither, That I may pour my spirits in thine ear, And chastise with the valor of my tongue All that impedes thee from the golden round."
In act one scene seven, the marriage is seen to being very strained, in anticipation of the murder they are about to commit. Macbeth starts of the scene with a soliloquy. He lays with both sides of the argument, at first contemplating the possibility that everything goes to plan and he follows Lady Macbeth’s ambition. He then turns to the potentially violent consequences, suggesting that if he and Lady Macbeth resort to murder, as the inventors, it will eventually come back to the however as this play was written at a time where women had no power or rights. So Macbeth wouldn't have realised is that Lady Macbeth would have never been suspected or punished for a crime that she couldn't of commited as she was a women.

Relationship After Duncan's Murder
After the murder of King Duncan, their relationship begins to change and become more of a mutual exchange and Lady Macbeth continues to get Macbeth to kills those who may stand in their way however Macbeth starts to exclude Lady Macbeth from his plans, such as the murder of Banquo, indicating a growing distance between them.
"Be innocent of the knowledge, dearest chuck, Till thou applaud the deed." This is telling us that Macbeth doesn't what Lady Macbeth do even know what his plans are so that she has no knowledge of his crimes
Towards the end of the play, their relationship deteriorates further. Lady Macbeth's guilt over their actions leads to her mental breakdown and eventual suicide. Macbeth, on the other hand, becomes increasingly isolated and paranoid. This is irony it was mostly Macbeth who was thought to feel the most guilty not Lady Macbeth
"Out, damned spot! Out, I say!" This is when Lady Macbeth is sleep walking and washing blood from her hands in her sleep indicating her growing guilt and insanity

In conclusion, Shakespeare presents the relationship between Lady Macbeth and Macbeth as initially close but ultimately destroyed by their shared ambition and guilt which corrupted their minds and relationship

Reply 1

the points you make are quite good but you seem to just be retelling the play, and do very little analysis of the actual quotes themselves. that's a good start because its very clear you have good knowledge of the text, but you need to analyse the language and structure techniques, and then explain what this, along with the actual quote, is trying to say. It might be easier to choose a part of a longer quote that you like.

for example, from your first paragraph:
LM is initially portrayed as the dominant figure within their relationship, as she persuades Macbeth to murder Duncan. She states that she may 'chastise with the valor of my tongue'- the verb 'chastise' suggests that she will scold or reprimand Macbeth if needed, potentially infantilising Macbeth and placing herself in the position of authority. Additionally, the word 'valor' connotes bravery and courage, typically in the sphere of physical or military courage, which are traditionally male dominated areas. By perceiving herself in this way, LM is portrayed as the more 'masculine' figure within their relationship, therefore possessing more authority. This is also seen in Act 1, Scene 7 when....

I haven't done this text in years so please forgive me if I've gotten anything to do with the story wrong.

Reply 2

Original post by lifeofatlas.
the points you make are quite good but you seem to just be retelling the play, and do very little analysis of the actual quotes themselves. that's a good start because its very clear you have good knowledge of the text, but you need to analyse the language and structure techniques, and then explain what this, along with the actual quote, is trying to say. It might be easier to choose a part of a longer quote that you like.
for example, from your first paragraph:
LM is initially portrayed as the dominant figure within their relationship, as she persuades Macbeth to murder Duncan. She states that she may 'chastise with the valor of my tongue'- the verb 'chastise' suggests that she will scold or reprimand Macbeth if needed, potentially infantilising Macbeth and placing herself in the position of authority. Additionally, the word 'valor' connotes bravery and courage, typically in the sphere of physical or military courage, which are traditionally male dominated areas. By perceiving herself in this way, LM is portrayed as the more 'masculine' figure within their relationship, therefore possessing more authority. This is also seen in Act 1, Scene 7 when....
I haven't done this text in years so please forgive me if I've gotten anything to do with the story wrong.


That's what I keep getting told to add into my answers as its one of the things I struggle with alot, thankyou ill definitely try to add a bit more on structure and language :smile:)

Reply 3

Original post by theatrical-disgr
That's what I keep getting told to add into my answers as its one of the things I struggle with alot, thankyou ill definitely try to add a bit more on structure and language :smile:)

no worries! feel free to dm me if you need any help lol

Reply 4

Original post by lifeofatlas.
no worries! feel free to dm me if you need any help lol


Thankyou :smile: might have to haha

Reply 5

Original post by theatrical-disgr
I've been struggling with my english lit and lang and have been trying to challenge myself with writing longer and better answer
Any tips or improvements on this answer please?
LM is Lady macbeth btw i just ran out of room
Hiw shakespear portrays LM and macebeths relationship in the whole text
Shakespeare portrays LM's and Macbeth's relationship as quite complex and pationate throughout the whole play however, it is constantly evolving and changing. At first they are depicted as a close couple with a strong and unbreakable bond and love for eachother, although as the play progresses further their relationship starts to deteriorate due to the guilt and their never ending ambition for power and wealth.
Throughout the play, the couple bonds over murder, guilt and a hunger for power. They both feed of each other in order to maintain a position of power
Shakespear portrays LM and Macbeths relationship as one of love and gratitude through the whole play. LM and Macbeth are a loving couple. They share their thoughts, plans, and ambitions. Lady Macbeth is the dominant figure in the relationship, as shown when she persuades Macbeth to kill King Duncan.
"Hie thee hither, That I may pour my spirits in thine ear, And chastise with the valor of my tongue All that impedes thee from the golden round."
In act one scene seven, the marriage is seen to being very strained, in anticipation of the murder they are about to commit. Macbeth starts of the scene with a soliloquy. He lays with both sides of the argument, at first contemplating the possibility that everything goes to plan and he follows Lady Macbeth’s ambition. He then turns to the potentially violent consequences, suggesting that if he and Lady Macbeth resort to murder, as the inventors, it will eventually come back to the however as this play was written at a time where women had no power or rights. So Macbeth wouldn't have realised is that Lady Macbeth would have never been suspected or punished for a crime that she couldn't of commited as she was a women.
Relationship After Duncan's Murder
After the murder of King Duncan, their relationship begins to change and become more of a mutual exchange and Lady Macbeth continues to get Macbeth to kills those who may stand in their way however Macbeth starts to exclude Lady Macbeth from his plans, such as the murder of Banquo, indicating a growing distance between them.
"Be innocent of the knowledge, dearest chuck, Till thou applaud the deed." This is telling us that Macbeth doesn't what Lady Macbeth do even know what his plans are so that she has no knowledge of his crimes
Towards the end of the play, their relationship deteriorates further. Lady Macbeth's guilt over their actions leads to her mental breakdown and eventual suicide. Macbeth, on the other hand, becomes increasingly isolated and paranoid. This is irony it was mostly Macbeth who was thought to feel the most guilty not Lady Macbeth
"Out, damned spot! Out, I say!" This is when Lady Macbeth is sleep walking and washing blood from her hands in her sleep indicating her growing guilt and insanity
In conclusion, Shakespeare presents the relationship between Lady Macbeth and Macbeth as initially close but ultimately destroyed by their shared ambition and guilt which corrupted their minds and relationship

Hi! I agree with @lifeofatlas. that you need to analyse your quotations, however I also think that you should work on structuring and planning your arguments better, as currently it seems as though you wrote this without a clear plan. I can't really follow your thought process as you seem to jump from one point to another without explanation.
To improve, I would recommend making thought-out plans before writing, with around 3 main points that you structure you paragraphs around, and stick to one main point for each paragraph. The points that are in here are good but they're just very muddled. A way to organise them could be:
Paragraph 1. Lady Macbeth and Macbeth's relationship is at first seemingly happy. you do start with this point but you don't prove it with any quotes or analysis and just immediately jump to their relationship being strained. you have to make sure you back up each point you've made before moving to the next. in this example, you could have used the quote "dearest partner of greatness" to show that they are equals and happy.
Paragraph 2. relationship becomes strained as lady m manipulates Macbeth, convincing him to kill Duncan. you could use your quote here, as well as a quote showing that lady m is implying that Macbeth would not be a man/masculine if he doesn't kill Duncan
paragraph 3. they grow further apart as they gain more power and their guilt begins to take hold of them. here you could use your point about Macbeth not telling lady m about his plans, and her eventual suicide.

The knowledge of the play, the quotes, and the context are there they just need to be organised a little better. Hope this helps let me know if you need me to clarify anything

Reply 6

Original post by nikiiiiiii
Hi! I agree with @lifeofatlas. that you need to analyse your quotations, however I also think that you should work on structuring and planning your arguments better, as currently it seems as though you wrote this without a clear plan. I can't really follow your thought process as you seem to jump from one point to another without explanation.
To improve, I would recommend making thought-out plans before writing, with around 3 main points that you structure you paragraphs around, and stick to one main point for each paragraph. The points that are in here are good but they're just very muddled. A way to organise them could be:
Paragraph 1. Lady Macbeth and Macbeth's relationship is at first seemingly happy. you do start with this point but you don't prove it with any quotes or analysis and just immediately jump to their relationship being strained. you have to make sure you back up each point you've made before moving to the next. in this example, you could have used the quote "dearest partner of greatness" to show that they are equals and happy.
Paragraph 2. relationship becomes strained as lady m manipulates Macbeth, convincing him to kill Duncan. you could use your quote here, as well as a quote showing that lady m is implying that Macbeth would not be a man/masculine if he doesn't kill Duncan
paragraph 3. they grow further apart as they gain more power and their guilt begins to take hold of them. here you could use your point about Macbeth not telling lady m about his plans, and her eventual suicide.
The knowledge of the play, the quotes, and the context are there they just need to be organised a little better. Hope this helps let me know if you need me to clarify anything


Thankyou, I only had a 20 minute limit so Its definitely rushed, I'll definitely try and have a bit more of a plan next time :smile:

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