Masculinity In Tamora And Lady Macbeth

Masculinity as Portrayed by Shakespeare in Macbeth Macbeth, one of William Shakespeare’s most famous plays, based on true events in Scottish history, describes the descent into tyranny through which the title character, Macbeth, goes. Throughout this play, Shakespeare promotes the strict gender roles of his society, using the motif of masculinity. By doing so, he implies that to conform to the standards that have always been in place, is far more beneficial than to question these standards in order to support change. Shakespeare depicts Lady Macbeth’s divergence from femininity and strong ambition in a negative light by using metaphors and connotations. She is often assuming traditionally masculine traits, like ambition, to advance in society

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”, this quotes tells the audience that lady macbeth is questioning Macbeth manhood, it remind present audience not only about the present, but this more of the past, due to view changing over time. This quotes reflects both the Elizabethan era, and Jacobean era, due to it still being in the period of time that England was still prioritizing men over women, and due to the fact that they believed that men were more stronger than women, they believed that men should not be ruled by emotion, rather ambition. In act 1 scene 5, “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. Make thick my blood. Stop up th' access and passage to remorse, That no compunctious visitings of nature Shake my fell purpose, nor keep peace between Th' effect and it.

But your beards forbid me to interpret / That you are so.” These women are ugly and evil and have no hesitation to do horrible things. They fight the gender normal, yet they are still the most respected and powerful characters in the play. Lady Macbeth herself is also a great example of this idea. When we are first introduced to her, we can immediately see that she has wild ambition and is not afraid to act on it.

This study will focus on the way in which Shakespeare crafts his play and uses dramatic devices in his portrayal of Lady Macbeth in order to confront the gender stereotypes of the time, femininity and the natural order of society. During the early 17th century there was a substantial fear that if women were liberated from their domestic, maternal roles, the historically patriarchal society would unravel. With prevailing challenges of gender such as “When you durst do it, then you were a man” Shakespeare uses the character of Lady Macbeth to transgress the natural limits concomitant with her sex. In order to be able to answer the research question, it is vital to concretely establish the contemporary gender roles and the context of the play.

[with] direst cruelty”, grants her the ability to act in a way that is considered both ruthless and respected among men, suggesting the difference between the actions of women and men as well as the difference in seriousness taken as a result of action from either gender(1.5.48-50). Without the presence of a stigma relating to gender throughout the play, Lady Macbeth has no reason to declare her disconnect with her feminine identity. However, the idea that gender makes one inferior

Shakespeare, like any other man in the 16th and 17th century, saw ambitious and dominant women as evil and even disturbing or disturbed. From Macbeth, we can see Shakespeare feels women should be challenged and punished because they are trying to change society. Nowadays these ambitious and dominant women are regarded as brave and respected because of their ambition, such as Lady Macbeth’s ambition to become Queen. Shakespeare presents Lady Macbeth as mentally disturbed.

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’.

It is well known that for a large portion of history, society viewed women as inferior creatures, their only value found in housework and child-rearing. It is almost ironic that in a time when only men and boys were allowed to participate in theater, Shakespeare wrote one of the most influential and powerful female characters of all time. In contrast to his society’s view of a woman as submissive, quiet, and subservient, Shakespeare’s Macbeth features a headstrong, power-hungry, cunning wife who serves as the driving force behind the story. There would be no Macbeth without the pivotal character of Lady Macbeth. Without her drive for power, her crafty manipulation, and her confident demeanor, it is quite possible that Macbeth would not have

In William Shakespeare’s tragedy, Macbeth, the protagonist desperately tries to live up to the image of a man that his society portrays. The search for his manhood leads him to violent acts that inevitably get him killed. In this tragedy, male and female roles are constantly discussed and defined. Both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth equate masculinity to violence and aggression. They both believe that in order to be a real man, then a man must perform violent acts when necessary.

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.

Elizabethan culture influences the stereotypical portrayal of gender roles in William Shakespeare's Macbeth. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are characters who challenge and deviate from traditional masculine and feminine traits. The dominant of the two is stereotypically masculine due to one influencing the other's behaviour and place in the play. Macbeth’s deviation from traditional gender roles begins after Lady Macbeth is introduced into the play, and his thirst for power progresses. Macbeth plays an honourable, great warrior and Thane of Glamis, a nobleman of Scotland.

“Come, you spirits, That tend on mortal thoughts,/unsex me here, And fill me from the crown to the toe top-full/ Of dire cruelty” (1.5.41-44). Lady Macbeth is the personification of male dominance, ruthlessness and violence. She hopes that she could take control of all action. She yearns to be a man and her implication is that she is more masculine than Macbeth. Her drive and violent nature is more akin to men and their masculinity.

The women in Macbeth are presented by Shakespeare to be powerful and ambitious which was unlike the typical views during Jacobean times. The playwright portrays Lady Macbeth and the witches to be highly influential to male characters in the play, which again contrasts the contemporary views to that time. Their ambition and power are demonstrated through the perversion of nature. This highlights the evil and immoral side, they possess. Shakespeare, however, presented Lady Macbeth and the witches to be manipulative and cunning, rather than violent like Macbeth was during the play.

By declaring his nature to “too full of the milk of human kindness”, she is stating that he is too feeble as a man to carry out the murder, and is belittling him for not being “masculine” enough to fulfill his ambition of being King. She knows that her husband has great ambition, and believes it to be a negative thing that he tends to carry out his deeds with a sound conscience as to not affect anyone negatively in the process. In her belief, to have a conscience is to fail. With wickedness is the only possible method to carry out the deed, for that is the only state of being Lady Macbeth truly and comfortably carries within her. She resolutely asserts the importance of not straying from the purpose and seeks to counteract her husband’s shortcomings.

As a result of her commands, he agrees to go further with the action in hopes that his wife was right all along. In the Shakespearean era, it was extremely uncommon, almost impossible, for a woman to be of higher standards than a man. Gender equality was not a subject at the time. However, Shakespeare took Lady Macbeth’s character and completely changed the original narrative. She was brought to the audience as a strong, driven, and superior character who did not take a man’s opinion into