Difference and Similarites in the reaction to Duncan's murder seen in Macbeth and Lady Macbeth

Macbeth is confused as he is arguing with himself on what he should do. He states reasons not to kill Duncan, because Macbeth is his noble kinsmen and the act would bring dishonor. However, he also states reason why he should kill him, because Macbeth will then become king and fulfill the witches ' fortune. Lady Macbeth, who appears in the beginning as the driving force for the murder of King Duncan, also develops internal conflict. At first, Lady Macbeth seems to be a woman of extreme confidence and will. But, as situations become more and more unstable in the play, guilt develops inside her. For instance, she exclaims; "Wash your hands. Put on your nightgown. / Look not so pale. I tell you again, Banquo 's / Burried; he cannot come out on 's grave" (Shakespeare V, ii, 65-67). Lady Macbeth sleepwalks and frets about her evil wrongdoings because she is extremely guilty of her influence on Macbeth to commit the murder. Lady Macbeth reacts emotionally and dwells on her actions as guilt eats at her soul.

Lady Macbeth appears evil, but this is proof of her devotion and drive to assist Macbeth rise to the throne. Macbeth is doubtful about their plan to kill King Duncan; however, Lady Macbeth bombards him with comments that question his courage. She goes as far as telling him his love his worth nothing if he refuses, which proves her to be dominant and controlling using his own weakness against him. His love for her. The fact that she belittles his confidence, insults his abilities, and questions his manhood & ambitions showing how manipulative she can be, but also wise because it worked in her favour. She said to him “Screw your courage to the sticking place” (1.7.60). Because Lady Macbeth manages to drive Macbeth to Duncan’s death, this shows viewers that Lady Macbeths own ambition is the real driving force behind most of Macbeth’s actions, because of his strong dedicated love for her.

In the play Macbeth, ambition, strength, and insanity play major roles in how the characters Macbeth and Lady Macbeth behave and react. Both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth present all 3 of these behaviors at one time or another during the play. However, there behaviors progress in very different ways. While Macbeth gets stronger and more ambitious, Lady Macbeth does the opposite. She starts out strong and ambitious, but becomes weaker and more reserved.

After Duncan’s death you are able to see how the characters involved in the murder almost instantly experience feelings of regret. There is a scene where Macbeth is in shock so greatly after murdering Duncan, that he forgets to leave the murder weapon behind. When confronted by Lady Macbeth(who says he needs to go return the weapons) he says, "I'll go no more: / I am afraid to think what I have done; / Look on't again I dare not"( 2.2 53-55). This allows us to see how Macbeth is pained by what he has done. Macbeth also says he heard a voice say “"Glamis hath murdered sleep, and therefore Cawdor shall sleep no more. Macbeth shall sleep no more."( 2.2 46-48). When Macbeth says this he is saying that he has not only murdered Duncan, but he has murdered sleep. He is saying he won’t be able to sleep after what he has just done because he will regret it forever and it will haunt him. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are interrupted by knocking on the door and as Macbeth and Lady Macbeth walk away he says, “Wake Duncan with thy knocking; I would though couldst."( 2.2 78-79).

In acts 1 and 2 of the play “Macbeth” by Shakespeare, the characters Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are presented to the audience through soliloquies and dialogue between the two. Macbeth is presented as brave, ambitious and guilty in Acts 1 and 2 of the play through the way others describe him, what he says and how he internally feels, and Lady Macbeth is presented as being determined and driven.

It's not until after the murder of King Duncan that Macbeth’s guilt begins to manifest. This is expressed through Macbeth’s obsession with King Duncan's blood staining his hands when Macbeth states:

Shakespeare’s plays and books consist of many emotions such as sadness, anger, joyfulness and curiosity. It is also filled with people who like to prey on innocent human beings, such as Lady Macbeth. Throughout this whole book Lady macbeth is tampering with Macbeth’s manhood, using him like à sock puppet to play with his emotions. Lady Macbeth is à very pessimistic and gloomy person, and this side of her personality often comes out when she is alone with Macbeth. The main emotion of Macbeth anger, anger comes into play when Lady Macbeth wants Macbeth to be à man and kill Duncan so she can become queen. When he becomes king but when he tries to chicken out, she starts to bash him by questioning his manhood and calling him all kinds of cowards. So the question we ask ourselves is how can us women made of innocence and purity possibly commit à crime and fall into the role of à bully.

Macbeth set off to the foyer of the castle to find his wife. She dressed in a fancy outfit for the funeral. Soon the two would be off to Banquo's celebration of life. "I am sorry for my behavior earlier" Macbeth spoke. Lady Macbeth simply nodded, " People may suspect you of the crime but I trust that it was not you". The two departed from the castle and gathered into the carriage. Prepared for the event that awaited them.

Lady Macbeth gives Macbeth the first push to kill Duncan, and she wants to be ruthless, feel no remorse so that she and her husband will successfully kill Duncan. She desires to “stop up th’ access and passage to remorse” (Shakespeare 1.5.51) so that she will not feel bad about the murder. She persuades Macbeth to kill Duncan, but he struggles afterward when he does not follow the plan and forgets to put back the daggers he cannot face the evil act he has committed. Lady Macbeth is satisfied after Macbeth is king, but that is not enough for him any longer. Eventually the killings take a toll on Macbeth’s mental state, and the guilt he begins to feel is unbearable. Macbeth kills Duncan and then says “this is a sorry sight”

MACBETH: The world would be a better if we didn't have to worry about the things we have committed. The peace of the dead is better than living with torture of the mind. Duncan will sleep forever in that grave of his. Nothing can touch him now.

However, Lady Macbeth’s conscious shines through as she is not able to kill a poor vulnerable man who looks like her father. She is thrown off guard be her reaction to Duncan’s face. She does not expect to feel any remorse toward the old man but she does. After Macbeth kills Duncan, Lady Macbeth regains her cruel nature and quickly takes the dagger from him to frame the guards, “Give me the daggers. The sleeping and the dead/ Are but as pictures. ‘Tis the eye of childhood/ That fears a painted devil. If he do bleed, / I’ll gild the faces of the grooms withal, / For it must seem their guilt.”(68-72). Lady Macbeth shows no remorse or respect for the dead. Lady Macbeth cannot let her remorse control her because she knows that the only way to bring about the prophecy is to frame the guards. Lady Macbeth unsuccessfully attempts to block out the horrendous deeds she commits. The compassion Lady Macbeth shows for Duncan proves that the spirits did not remove her soul or kill her conscious, which will be her Achilles heel and lead to her death.

An important aspect of Macbeth's portrayal is that he shows extreme remorse after the killing of Duncan, and attempts to avoid killing Macduff due to the guilt he feels for all the other murders he has committed. While his wife feels just a little water will "cleanse" them from the deed, Macbeth's own answer to his question "Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this / blood clean from my hand?" is a resounding no. Macbeth realizes the severity of his act and guilt, and this is central in evoking a sense of sympathy from the audience. Macbeth knows that he has done wrong; most can attempt to feel some sympathy or forgiveness for someone who knows they have done wrong and suffers constantly for

Lady Macbeth’s character often separates from the unsexed character she wishes to be. When the death of Duncan is announced, Lady Macbeth faints in order to stop Macbeth from indicting himself with the murder. This attempt to help her husband is very noble, but her attempt again proves her to be feminine. Fainting is a very feminine act, and makes her look weak. In general, Lady Macbeth shows

Following Macbeth's murder of Duncan, Macbeth becomes frightened and unsure of himself. He begins to regret his actions and realises that this will remain on his conscience until his own death.

But he wasn't the only one feeling guilty. Once everyone hears that King Duncan is murdered, Macbeth kills the chamberlains with rage. Lady Macbeth start to sleepwalk because she overcomes with the actions she has caused in killing the King. She washes her hands over and over because the blood won't come off her hands but it's really just her mind thinking that. She later commits suicide because of the crime she did. Macbeth didn't seem very bothered on her suicide. He says ‘She sound have died