Skip to main content

If Macbeth wrote a diary entry, what would he say about how his wife made him feel and how she persuaded him to go through with the murder?

When Macbeth returns home shortly before Duncan arrives, Lady Macbeth is ready to kill Duncan so Macbeth can ascend to the throne. Macbeth is less certain. Duncan is a good king; Macbeth is his loyal subject. Cold-blooded murder could condemn him to hell for all eternity.


Lady Macbeth knows her husband well, though. First she attacks his manhood. When he says, “We will proceed no more in this,” she accuses him of being afraid.


“Art thou...

When Macbeth returns home shortly before Duncan arrives, Lady Macbeth is ready to kill Duncan so Macbeth can ascend to the throne. Macbeth is less certain. Duncan is a good king; Macbeth is his loyal subject. Cold-blooded murder could condemn him to hell for all eternity.


Lady Macbeth knows her husband well, though. First she attacks his manhood. When he says, “We will proceed no more in this,” she accuses him of being afraid.



“Art thou afeard


To be the same in thine own act and valour


As thou are in desire?...Wouldst thou…live a coward in thine own esteem,


Letting ‘I dare not’ wait upon ‘I would…’”



Macbeth argues that he is a courageous man even though he has changed his mind about killing Duncan.


Lady Macbeth then personalizes her attack and accuses him of not loving her in addition to being a coward. “What beast was’t, then,/That made you break this enterprise to me?”


She goes on to claim that she would have smashed her own child’s brains out before she would ever break a promise to Macbeth the way Macbeth is breaking his oath to her.


Macbeth confesses his fear that they will fail, and she eases this fear with her detailed plan. This is the final piece that convinces Macbeth his wife is right. He concludes he will be a better man for having taken action to achieve his goals, even if that action is murder, and the plan is almost foolproof, so he is in little personal danger of getting caught.

Popular posts from this blog

In chapter one of The Great Gatsby, what advice does Nick's father give him? How does this make him a good person to tell this story?

Nick says that his father advised him that, before "criticizing anyone," he "remember that all the people in this world haven't had the same advantages" as Nick.  As a result, Nick claims that he is "inclined to reserve all judgments," presenting himself to the reader as a fair and dispassionate arbiter of character, and thus, a reliable narrator.   The problem is that Nick immediately reveals himself as anything but reliable, as he then launches... Nick says that his father advised him that, before "criticizing anyone," he "remember that all the people in this world haven't had the same advantages" as Nick.  As a result, Nick claims that he is "inclined to reserve all judgments," presenting himself to the reader as a fair and dispassionate arbiter of character, and thus, a reliable narrator.   The problem is that Nick immediately reveals himself as anything but reliable, as he then launches into a discussion of how pe...

How and why does James Gatz become Jay Gatsby? Describe the young Gatsby/Gatz.

James Gatz, a poor Midwestern boy of probable Jewish lineage, becomes Jay Gatsby, a presumed WASP and wealthy socialite, when he moves to New York City and acquires his fortune. It is wealth that has allowed Gatz to transform himself into Gatsby. However, those who know his background (e.g., Daisy and Tom Buchanan) never allow him to forget that he is nouveau riche -- that is, an upstart who has just recently made his fortune,... James Gatz, a poor Midwestern boy of probable Jewish lineage, becomes Jay Gatsby, a presumed WASP and wealthy socialite, when he moves to New York City and acquires his fortune. It is wealth that has allowed Gatz to transform himself into Gatsby. However, those who know his background (e.g., Daisy and Tom Buchanan) never allow him to forget that he is nouveau riche -- that is, an upstart who has just recently made his fortune, whereas they arose from well-to-do families. Gatz became Gatsby through determination and discipline. At the end of the novel, the narr...

Explain and discuss how the definitions of freedom change for the nation, for the freedmen and for southern whites after the Civil War.

After the Civil War, the definition of freedom changed in the nation, as slavery was ended with the 13th Amendment to the Constitution in 1865. The practice of slavery was disallowed, but definition of the freedom that would take its place was a subject of controversy, ongoing debate, and even violence in the decades to come.  For freedmen, freedom often meant reconciling with their families, who were broken up by slavery; choosing which church to... After the Civil War, the definition of freedom changed in the nation, as slavery was ended with the 13th Amendment to the Constitution in 1865. The practice of slavery was disallowed, but definition of the freedom that would take its place was a subject of controversy, ongoing debate, and even violence in the decades to come.  For freedmen, freedom often meant reconciling with their families, who were broken up by slavery; choosing which church to belong to without being ordered to attend religious services (or not to attend) by their mast...