Macbeth :: essays research papers

In Shakespeares tragedy, Macbeth, the characters and the roles they play are searing to its plot and theme, and therefore many of Shakespeares characters are well developed and complex. 2 of these characters are the protagonist, Macbeth, and his wife, brothel keeper Macbeth. They play interesting roles in the tragedy, and over the cover of the play, their relationship adjustments and their roles are essentially switched.     At the beginning of the play, they treat individually other as equals. They have great concern for each other, as illustrated when Macbeth races to tell Lady Macbeth the news about the witches and she immediately begins plotting how to gain for her hubby his desire to be king. At this point, Lady Macbeth is the resolute, strong woman, while Macbeth is portrayed as her indecisive, cowardly husband. He does have ambition, but at this point, his scruples is stronger than that ambition. Lady Macbeth explains this characteristic of her hu sband in Act I, Scene v, when she says, " merely do I fear thy nature it is too full o th take out of human kindness to catch the nearest way."     The next stage of change developing in the characters of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth is in Act II. This is the act in which Macbeth kills King Duncan. Macbeths character change is apparent because it is obvious that he has apt(p) in to his ambition and has murdered the king. He is not entirely changed, though, because he is almost delirious after he has act the crime. He exclaims, " leave behind all great Neptunes ocean wash this blood clean from my overhaul? No this my hand will rather the multitudinous seas incarnadine, making the commons one red." He believes that instead of the ocean cleaning his hands, his hands would gambling the ocean red. Macbeths role has changed somewhat but not entirely, since he has committed the crime but his conscience is still apparent after the murder. Lady Macbeths role similarly changes somewhat in Act II. The reader sees a crack in her strong character when she tells Macbeth in Scene ii of Act II that she would have murdered Duncan herself if he had not resembled her render as he slept. Her boldness is still evident, though, when she calms Macbeth after the murder and believes "a little water clears us of this deed." Unlike the roles of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, their relationship carcass unchanged from Act I to II.