Green 1

Gabrielle Green

English 326

Research paper

13 October 2016

Socially Constructed and Enforced Gender Expectations of Lady Macbeth

The concept and perception of gender has changed radically from Shakespeares time to

now, yet the perceptions of women and the limitations placed on them remain shockingly

similar. William Shakespeares shortest tragedy, Macbeth, addresses gender concerns and the

role of women in power positions. The play was written for King James VI of Scotland and I of

England as he took the throne during a transitional period in the countrys history. The

succession of King James marked the long-desired transition back to a patriarchy from a

matriarchy. Considering the historical context and Shakespeares affinity for King James, some

Shakespearean scholars hold Lady Macbeth responsible for the political, moral, and personal
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destruction in the play, as well as a representation of Shakespeares opinion on female

leadership. In The Stage and the State: Shakespeares Portrayal of Women and Sovereign Issues

in Macbeth and Hamlet, Jane Dall writes that the actions of women in Macbeth lead to

political instability, and a disruption of natural harmony occurs because of their involvement in

the political process (9). We are drawn to consider the gender roles and issues within Macbeth

due to the social constructs of gender that we regularly engage with and that influence us. By

immediately faulting Lady Macbeth because of her gender or desire to become unfeminine, we

1
See Tennenhouse, Chamberlain, and Dall
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miss other key issues in the play. For example, when we blame Lady Macbeths access to and

usage of power for the tragedy, we neglect to consider the commentary on how the Macbeths

gained power through the regicide and patricide planned and committed by the two in order to

succeed in their usurpation of the throne. Today, we allow constructions of gender to cloud our

vision and prevent us from seeing truly essential elements and issues of our culture. The rampant

inequalities that exist in our society are disguised under years of systematically ingrained

constructions and expectations of gender. The reading of Lady Macbeths character should not

be limited to a stereotypical portrayal of female power that leads to destruction. Lady Macbeth's

attempt to become unsexed, her gender confusion, and her ultimate downfall reveal the

systematically enforced construction of gender and the cultural relevancy of Macbeth.

In determining the role that gender plays in Macbeth, it is essential to first understand the

distinctions and nuances that come with the term. Judith Butlers concept of gender

performativity suggests that there is a distinction between sex, as a biological facticity, and

gender, as the cultural interpretation or signification of that facticity (Butler, 522). Performing

certain actions that society associates with a specific gender marks you as that gender. In this

way, gender is socially constructed. Alfar defines the societal expectation of women as the

constant and unquestioning feminine compliance with the desires of the masculine (114).

Considering Macbeth from a modern perspective and taking this distinction into account, it is

necessary to determine if the play is concerned with sex or with gender. Before the action of the

play even begins, the audience is warned that Fair is foul, and foul is fair (1.1.11). The first

scene of the play casts the world of Macbeth as a land where everything is opposite or
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disordered. This line at the very start of the play cautions audiences to not take the play at face

value because things are not always as they appear to be. Because of this, all the binaries in the

play become complicated, their divisions blurred. Included in this is gender. The binary nature of

gender identities, male/female, is complicated and in some sense, essentially eliminated. In the

world of Macbeth, the typical gender constructions are manipulated and atypical. If the play does

not deal with sex, the qualities of Lady Macbeth cannot be applied to all women but rather,

representative of societys construction of gender, the patriarchy, and the limited, restrictive roles

of women. Within this reading of Lady Macbeth, Shakespeares examination and questioning of

gender construction allows modern day readers to recognize the enduring relevance of Macbeth.

Lady Macbeth goes against the social norms of gender performativity in order to gain and

utilize power. Whether she is aware of it or not, Lady Macbeth is limited by the restrictions that

society places on women and therefore needs to strip herself of feminine qualities in order to

gain power. Considering Judith Butlers concept of gender performativity, Lady Macbeths

soliloquy at the start of the play demonstrates the constraints of the social constructs and

limitations of gender:

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 thaccess and passage to remorse, (1.5.40-44)

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While Lady Macbeths words can be read as her asking to be made masculine because the

qualities she is requesting are typically associated with the masculine, she is not. Becoming

unsexed only implies her desire to be less feminine and therefore to not be limited to the socially

constructed idea of femininity. Lady Macbeth does not want to be either masculine or feminine;

instead, she craves an alternative gender identity, one which will allow her to slip free of the

emotional as well as cultural constraints governing women (Chamberlain 79-80). Because of

the socially constructed gender norms and expectations, Lady Macbeth cannot pursue her

passions and ambitions without fighting against traditional gender roles. While the decision to

become un-gendered questionable, it is the only chance Lady Macbeth has to accomplish her

goals.

When gender is socially constructed, power is not an attribute readily given to women

because of its association with violence. In a hyper-masculine society, the social constructs of

gender presuppose that women are not capable of having or utilizing power. By placing power

into the hands of a woman, Shakespeare demonstrates the brutality of absolute monarchy and

deconstructs the associations between gender, violence, and power. When Macbeth questions

their plan shortly before he is supposed to kill Duncan, Lady Macbeth follows through on her

earlier commitment to make Macbeth king at any cost by manipulating him, 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 (1.7.50-52). By calling him unmanly, Lady Macbeth spurs Macbeth into action in order

to complete his task. The threat of being unmasculine is effective because of the way in which

gender is constructed in the society of Macbeths Scotland. The male gender is performed
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through heroic and masculine acts. The fact that Macbeth reacts so strongly to Lady Macbeths

comment demonstrates the negative connotations that come with being female. The societally

enforced expectations of gender are designed to manipulate both men and women into specific

performativity. The obvious reading of this passage would be of Lady Macbeth as domineering

and manipulative in pursuit of her own goals. But that reading discounts the loyalty and

dedication she has shown to Macbeth and his success. By encouraging violence through

questioning his manhood, masculinity and violence become inextricably linked. This connection

essentially defines masculinity as violence within the world of Macbeth. The relationship

between power, violence, and masculinity alienate women and power and supports the

problematic construction of gender. This is problematic in the world of Macbeth and in society

today because it glorifies violence and forbids women from having power.

Because Lady Macbeth is attempting to be neither male nor female, her relationship to

violence and power is indirect. Rather than committing the violent act like a man would, Lady

Macbeth conspires and manipulates to ensure the completion of these acts. When waiting for

Macbeth to return from killing Duncan, Lady Macbeth says, Had he not resembled / My father

as he slept, I had donet (2.2.12-13). If Lady Macbeth was attempting to become male and she

sees Duncan as father-like, she would have a father-son relationship with him. In the

hyper-masculine society, the way you take power is by killing your father. Even when a son

waits for his father to die, succession is unconsciously always a matter of assassination insofar

as it fulfills the successors wish to succeed (Hunter 139). By not killing Duncan, Lady

Macbeth demonstrates her rejection of the masculine power that would allow her to wield the
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dagger and achieve individual power. She also shows her unwillingness to commit patricide

despite its cultural appropriation and political significance. This firmly establishes her as a

gender-ambiguous figure in the play because she sees Duncan as a father figure but refuses to

kill him for her own political gain.

Both Duncan and Lady Macbeth are androgynous figures. This duality of gender

complication and ambiguity stresses the occurrence of socially constructed gender norms and

expectations. After Duncans murder, an old man says to Ross, A falcon, towring in her pride

of place, / Was by a mousing owl hawked at and killed (2.4.12-13). The her in this metaphor

refers to Duncan while place capitalizes on the issue of hierarchy. By Duncan referring to

Duncan with a female pronoun and placing him at the top of the political hierarchy underlines

the significance of gender within Macbeth and forces audiences to question their ingrained

beliefs about female power and leadership. Citing 2.1.17, 1.4.28-29, and 1.4.34, Hunter writes

that Duncan is a fertile father and nurturing mother figure who plants his subjects and will

labor to make them grow, who overflows in measureless content, and Wanton with fullness,

weeps with gratitude (143). Duncan is a fusion of mother and father as the monarch of the

Scotland. In Lady Macbeths attempt to become unsexed, she confuses the two genders. The

difference between gender fusion and gender confusion is central to Duncans successful

alleviation of societally imposed gender constructs and Lady Macbeths failure to do so. Duncan

is able to succeed as an androgynous figure because he is the monarch acting as mother and

father to the country. In this role, he must utilize gender fluidity to fully address and support the

needs of the nation and its citizens. Because Lady Macbeth purposefully attempts to destroy her
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motherly capabilities, she cannot function in this role even when she is queen. Gender ambiguity

is only beneficial when it pertains to parental responsibilities and benefits the majority over the

individual.

There is a distinction between being between man and woman and being both mother

and father. Lady Macbeth attempts to perform a different gender, or no gender, in order to gain

power. By becoming unsexed, Lady Macbeth removes from herself the ability to be a mother.

The lines Come to my womans breasts / And take my milk for gall (1.5. 47-48) demonstrate

Lady Macbeths intention to remove the aspects of herself that allow her to be a mother. Not

only does this automatically eliminate the potential for a Macbeth line of succession, but also it

inhibits Lady Macbeth from capitalizing on her status as an androgynous figure to achieve the

same kind of power as Duncan. Motherhood is the only way in which women consistently have

power in a monarchical society. With control over a monarchs line of succession, a woman is

placed at the center of political power despite society's best effort to alienate her from any

position of power. By becoming un-gendered, Lady Macbeth gives up the one societal

construction that allows her power. When considering Lady Macbeths development over the

course of the play through the lens of societally-constructed gender norms and expectations, her

attempt to become androgynous only further alienates her from power.

Based on Butlers theory of gender performativity, Lady Macbeth, although she tries,

cannot choose to perform differently than her culturally assigned gender. This misstep is what

leads to her downfall. Lady Macbeths nervous breakdown is depicted in the incoherent

ramblings in her final scene in the play: Out, damned spot! Out, I say! One- / two-why then, tis
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time to dot. Hell is murky What need we / fear who knows it, when none can call our power

to / account (5.1.34-38). Her scattered thoughts and hallucinations, both visual and audible,

demonstrate how far she has fallen. She tried to unsex herself and construct a new identity but

discovers that it is impossible to do so. Lady Macbeth disintegrates into problematically

gendered madness because she was trying to consciously affect how she performs. Hunter writes,

assigning a new lineage to ones self must include symbolic matricide as well as symbolic

patricide (Hunter 143). Lady Macbeth performed a symbolic matricide by sacrificing her own

maternal capabilities and, in doing so eliminates Macbeths opportunities to be a father as he

commits patricide against a father-like figure. While Lady Macbeths attempt to unsex herself

and perform her gender differently served the purpose of achieving power and a new identity as

queen, she effectively ruins any chance at lasting success by destroying her motherhood

potential.

Societal constructs of gender result in the downfall of both Lady Macbeth and Macbeth.

Systematically enforced isolation is a contributor to the downfall of Lady Macbeth. With limited

interaction with other women, Lady Macbeth is left alone to cope with the challenges of being a

woman in a patriarchal society. Marion Davis writes, Lady Macbeths eventual weakness is a

result of a patriarchal portrayal of her gender...Women remain isolated which prevents them

from making significant changes because they have no strength in size. Similarly, Lady

Macbeth has no way to enact her schemes as she is kept isolated from other women during the

course of the play (1). Lady Macbeth is not able to deal with murder alone. Despite being

endlessly loyal to Macbeth, he expresses little emotion at the news of her suicide and simply
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says, She should have died hereafter; / There would have been a time for such a word

(5.5.17-18). Not only forgotten easily by her husband, Lady Macbeth is selectively isolated from

finding support in the company of other women. Throughout the play, parallels are drawn

between Lady Macbeth and Macbeth. Their deaths are no different. Levin writes:

Macbeth and all the thanes are guilty of a pathologically protective machismo,

supported by their mystified male-dominated cosmology, which is responsible for every

crime in the play (68, 74); and for Kimbrough, Macbeth's downfall is caused by a

definition of masculinity which comes from dominant societal norms that equate

machismo with manhood and thus teaches us the destructiveness of polarized

masculinity and femininity (177, 183) (126-7).

Macbeth should not be held accountable for every crime that occurs in the play; the blame should

be equally spread among all participants instead of using female power as a scapegoat. Just as

women are affected by the culturally enforced gender norms, men fit into the concept of gender

performativity too. In the world of Macbeth, men are expected to demonstrate an exorbitant

amount of masculinity. This expectation contributes to the widespread acceptance of violence

and patricide. While the deaths of each of the Macbeths are stereotypically gendered according

to the gender they perform in society, each downfall is aided by the way in which gender is

constructed and the limitations it imposes. When polarized masculinity and femininity are forced

on a whole society, chaos and destruction occur.

In evaluating the role of Lady Macbeth through a modern-feminist lens, Macbeth sustains

its cultural relevancy and indicates a persistent problem in society. Lady Macbeth attempts to
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unsex herself in order to appear a more acceptable candidate for power and leadership.

According to Judith Butler, while gender is performed and socially constructed, the performance

of a specific gender is not optional. To achieve power, Lady Macbeth is forced by gender

constructions to un-gender herself, but in doing so she strips herself of the only type of power

women are naturally given: maternal control. Lady Macbeth is successful in gaining power but,

within the structure of her society, she is set up to ultimately fail. The relentless isolation of

women strips Lady Macbeth of the potential support of a community and leads to her mental

breakdown. While a dramatized account, Shakespeares Macbeth explores and questions the

existence of socially constructed gender. By evaluating Lady Macbeths rise to and fall from

power, audiences are made aware of the limitations placed on Lady Macbeth that motivate her

un-gender herself and lead to her untimely death. Lady Macbeths tragic story rings true today as

the limitations on and perception of women have scarcely changed. The socially constructed and

enforced gender expectations pressure men and women alike to perform in a certain way in order

to reinforce societal norms. Even today, men are expected to exude masculinity to be socially

accepted and violence in consistently encouraged through various media outlets and mediums.

Society still sets women up to fail by limiting their ability to pursue their ambitions, reluctantly

giving them power, and isolating them from other women.

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Works Cited

Alfar, Cristina L. "Blood Will Have Blood." Fantasies of Female Evil: The Dynamics of Gender

and Power in Shakespearean Tragedy. Newark: U of Delaware, 2003. 111-23. Print.

Butler, Judith. "Performative Acts and Gender Constitution: An Essay in Phenomenology and

Feminist Theory." Theatre Journal 40.4 (1988): 519-31. JSTOR. Web.

Chamberlain, Stephanie. "Fantasizing Infanticide: Lady Macbeth and the Murdering Mother in

Early Modern England." College Literature 32.3 (2005): 72-91. JSTOR. Web.

Dall, Jane. The Stage and the State: Shakespeare's Portrayal of Women and Sovereign Issues in

Macbeth and Hamlet. Hanover Historical Review 8. 2000. 7-16

Davis, Marion A. "A Brief Look at Feminism in Shakespeare's Macbeth." Inquiries

Journal/Student Pulse 1.11 (2009).

Hunter, Dianne. "Doubling, Mythic Difference, and the Scapegoating of Female Power in

Macbeth." Psychoanalytic Review 75.1 (1988): 129-52. Web.

Levin, Richard. "Feminist Thematics and Shakespearean Tragedy." PMLA 103.2 (1988): 125-38.

JSTOR. Web.

Shakespeare, William, and David Bevington M. The Complete Works of Shakespeare. New

York: Pearson Longman, 2007. Print