Summary

Macbeth, alone, agonizes about whether to kill Duncan. He'd be willing to murder Duncan if he thought that would be
the end of it. But he knows that "bloody instructions, being taught, return to plague the inventor" (1.7.10). Also,
Macbeth notes, Duncan is a guest, kinsmen, and good king. He decides ambition is not enough to justify the murder.

Macbeth wrestles with his ambition and wins! He knows that murdering Duncan will only end up leading to more
bloodshed, and ruin his honor, which he prizes.

Lady Macbeth enters, asking where he's been. Macbeth tells her they won't murder Duncan. She questions his
manhood. Macbeth replies: "I dare do all that may become a man; who dares do more is none" (1.7.46-47). But Lady
Macbeth continues: she says she has nursed his baby, but if she'd known her husband was such a coward she'd
have rather "dashed [the baby's] brains out" (1.7.56).

Lady Macbeth and Macbeth debate about manhood and courage. She says it's taking what you want. He says it's the
power to put responsibility before selfishness, the power to not take what you want.

Macbeth asks what will happen if they fail. Lady Macbethassures him they won't fail if they have courage. She
outlines the plan: she'll give Duncan's bedroom attendants enough wine to ensure they black out from drunkenness.
Then she and Macbeth will commit the murder and frame the attendants. Macbeth, impressed by her courage,
agrees.

This is perhaps the most important single scene of the play. Here for the last time we see Macbeth a free man, still
capable of choice between good and evil. The motives that are at work to deter him from committing the murder, fear
of the consequences in this world, mingled feelings of kinship, loyalty, and hospitality, admiration for Duncan's
goodness, are not, perhaps, of the highest moral character; but in comparison with the reckless lust of power which
urges him on, they are certainly motives for good. The conflict rages in his soul, and it seems as if the powers of good
were triumphing, when Lady Macbeth enters.

Instantly she throws into the scale all the weight of her influence, backed by a relentless decision to contemplate
nothing but the immediate necessity for action. Macbeth wavers for an instant, and then, not so much overpersuaded,
as stung into action by the taunts of his wife, plunges headlong into the crime. From this time till the end of the play
Macbeth is no longer a free man. All his remaining actions spring by the logical necessity of crime from his first deed
of blood.

Settings

Lukis*

Plot

Character

Lady

How does Lady Macbeth persuade her husband to kill Duncan when he does not want to?

Lady Macbeth uses different methods to persuade Macbeth to change his mind. Which one really affected Macbeth?

She says it was his idea first. This is her opening line - simply pointing out that he raised the idea first.

She taunts Macbeth's masculinity - calling him a coward. This is an important part of her approach. Macbeth's rank
and fame depend on his courage and bravery.

She says he cannot love her. This personal taunt really hits home for Macbeth. It is unexpected because their
relationship is so intense.
ask: - Explain what act 1 scene 7 tells us about the character of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. What is troubling
Macbeth at the beginning of the scene and how does Lady Macbeth persuade him to go through with the murder of
Duncan?

My aim in this essay is to explain what Act 1, scene 7 tells us about the characters of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth,
and what troubles does Macbeth come across and how does Lady Macbeth persuade him to murder King Duncan.

The purpose that Shakespeare wrote act 1, scene 7, is to notify the audience more about Macbeth's and Lady
Macbeth's feeling and thoughts about murdering King Duncan. For example, when Macbeth leaves the dinner table,
deciding on what he should do, he is worried and is having second thoughts on whether to murder him, Lady
Macbeth stirs up Macbeth's spirits and manipulates his mind. When Lady Macbeth says "When you durst do it, then
you were a man." Lady Macbeth is manipulating his mind.

Before this scene, we are told that the king Duncan hears good news of the Norway battle. On the way home
Macbeth and Banquo meet three witches who tell Macbeth that he will become king and will be Thane of Cawdor.
The belief from the three witches led Macbeth to write a letter to Lady Macbeth to tell her the exciting news. The
bravery and courageousness in the battle of the Norwegian army by Macbeth, led the king to reward Macbeth Thane
of Cawdor.

After act 1 scene 7, Macbeth becomes king by the death of Duncan. Act 1 scene 7, plays an important part of the play
because in this scene Macbeth can not control him self, of knowing what he will do. "First, as I am a kinsman and his
subject, Strong both against the deed; then, as his host..." Macbeth knows that he should not kill the king instead he
should protect him, but in the other hand he could be king and do anything he wishes.

The character of Macbeth in act 1 scene 7, tells the readers that Macbeth is weak and that his wife is the dominant
figure in their conjugal relationship. Before this scene Macbeth was portrayed as a courageous and powerful warrior.

We also established that Macbeth is greedy and famished of getting power to be king, but in this scene the conscious
and fear troubles Macbeth of killing Duncan. In my opinion Macbeth is torn between two options, one being that if he
murders King Duncan, he will please his wife. The other option being that if he does not kill the King his wife will insult
his coward ness. In this scene Macbeth is having second thoughts of killing King Duncan. When Macbeth is deciding
whether he should murder King Duncan or not, Lady Macbeth comes and uses her manipulative ways to persuade
Macbeth to go ahead in murdering the King. Macbeth's greed of becoming king in order to inherit the power of the
monarchy and the persuasion of his manipulative wife, leads to Macbeth murdering King Duncan.

When at first Macbeth was introduced in the play, he was portrayed as an honest and truthful man who was a close
friend of the king. Who will expect a man who protects the king so solemnly will kill him cold blooded?

Before act 1 scene 7, Lady Macbeth was recognized as an " honour'd hostess. The love that follows us sometimes is
our trouble... Herein I teach you how you shall bid God yield us for your pains and thank us for your trouble." In this
part of the scene Lady Macbeth is portrayed as an honourable and innocent woman.

After act 1 scene 7, Lady Macbeth helps Macbeth kill King Duncan by drugging the two guards in order to show that
the guards killed the king. Further on in the story, Lady Macbeth dies by the cause of her guilty conscious of
murdering the King.

In act 1 scene 7, Lady Macbeth changes into a role where she becomes self-centred and malicious. She only wants
power and control. Being the dominated one in her relationship is still not enough for her. The words and actions that
were said by Lady Macbeth were unusual because before this scene Lady Macbeth had acted in the love of Macbeth,
but in scene 7 she started to love the power and control more than Macbeth, greed overcame the better of her.
Overall I think that in act 1 scene 7, Lady Macbeth used Macbeth for her own selfish reasons. Lady Macbeth
persuaded Macbeth to murder King Duncan, which is one of the major tragedies in the story, so Lady Macbeth has an
important role of the incident, which had occurred.

As being the dominated one in their relationship Lady Macbeth uses all her control over Macbeth to make Macbeth
murder king Duncan. She also challenges his patriarchy to make him murder the King. For example, when Lady
Macbeth says "When you durst do it, then you were a man." Now that Macbeth is trying to back out of it, Lady
Macbeth is calling him a coward and torments him to do the murdering. She also says " Wouldst thou have that which
thou esteem'st the ornament of life and live a coward in thine own esteem..." In other words, Lady Macbeth uses the
power of love to persuade him. She also says if you love me you would kill him straight away with no hesitation. Lady
Macbeth says "I have given suck and know how tender tis to love the babe that milks me: I would, while it was
smiling in my face, have pluck'd my nipple from his boneless gums and dash'd the brains out, had I so sworn as you
have done to this." In this quotation Lady Macbeth stirs Macbeth even more when Lady Macbeth challenges their
love relationship on the basis of the decision, he eventually gives in and murders King Duncan.

I think that Lady Macbeth is presented as an innocent and loving wife but in act 1 scene 7 she really is an malicious
and selfish wife, and this is when her true colours show. At first Lady Macbeth is perceived as a wife that is dominated
by her husband, what ever Macbeth says and does goes, but in act 1 scene 7, it tells us more about her true
character.

Lady Macbeth tells Macbeth what to do and how to do it. Lady Macbeth persuades Macbeth so much that she takes
his manhood away and turns him into a slave where he has no power and no control over the decisions he makes.

Macbeth is not fully convinced to kill the king he is confused and fear of appearing as a coward in front of his wife,
this is why, Macbeth kills king Duncan to prove how much he loves his wife and that he is man enough to do so.

If Lady Macbeth did not persuade Macbeth to murder the king, I think that Macbeth would have not did it because
when he left the table he had made his decision, which was to not to kill the king. Lady Macbeth uses all of her power
and womanhood to persuade Macbeth but the major impact on his decision that persuaded Macbeth to go ahead
with the murder was when Lady Macbeth involves there love for each other.

The main theme and issues in act 1 scene 7, are that Lady Macbeth and Macbeth are presented differently because
Lady Macbeth is shown to be an loving wife but really she is a wife who is malicious. Macbeth is recognized as a
fearless warrior and in front of Lady Macbeth it is a different matter because she has control over him.

The tragedy that occurred in the play Macbeth, was when Macbeth was challenged by Lady Macbeth and by the
three witches. The story Macbeth is a tragedy because he is forced to become evil and gets caught up in the situation
to murder the king. This all started when the three witches said that he could become king, Macbeth's greed of the
monarchy lead him to murder the king, where on the other hand he should have reacted in the same way that
Banquo did. The character in the story that was responsible for the murder was Lady Macbeth because she was the
one who thought of what to do, and persuaded him to kill the king. Lady Macbeth was the one behind the murder, but
Macbeth could too be blamed because he could have stood his ground but instead he was manipulated by his wife.
Blaming Macbeth, I also feel pity for him because he suffered through out the act where he talked to himself and this
showed a sign of madness and then his wife dies, the one who he loved. He also had to murder his good friend,
Banquo.

Overall, I conclude that in act 1 scene 7, Shakespeare has expressed the true nature of the characters and what they
go through in the murdering of the true King. In this scene I have come across the characters changes, in a quote
from the play Macbeth was regarded as " Brave Macbeth well he deserves that name... Which smok'd with bloody
execution... Which ne'er shook hands, nor bade farewell to him..." In other words, Macbeth was recognized as a
brave warrior whom loved blood, but then Macbeth changes into a coward and an insignificant person. Lady Macbeth
changes into an authoritative lady who controls Macbeth, to do what she say, for example the murder of King
Duncan. This scene was an important role in the play not only realising what the characters thought and felt but the
scene also inspired the audience to read on.

Theme

In Macbeth, ambition conspires with unholy forces to commit evil deeds which, in their turn,
generate fear, guilt and still more horrible crimes. Above all, Macbeth is a character study in
which not one, but two protagonists (the title character and Lady Macbeth) respond individually
and jointly to the psychological burden of their sins. In the course of the play, Macbeth
repeatedly misinterprets the guilt that he suffers as being simply a matter of fear. His
characteristic way of dealing with his guilt is to face it directly by committing still more
misdeeds, and this, of course, only generates further madness. By contrast, Lady Macbeth is fully
aware of the difference between fear and guilt, and she attempts to prevent pangs of guilt by first
denying her own sense of conscience and then by focusing her attention upon the management of
Macbeth's guilt. In the scene which occurs immediately after Duncan's death, Lady Macbeth
orders her husband to get some water "and wash this filthy witness from your hand" (II.i.43-44).
He rejects her suggestion, crying out, "What hands are here. Ha! they pluck out mine eyes! / Will
all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood / Clean from my hand?" (II.i.56-58). But she in turn
insists that the tell-tale signs of his crime cannot be seen by others, that "a little water clears us of
this deed" (II.i.64). But midway through the play, Lady Macbeth loses both her influence over
her husband and the ability to repress her own conscience. Once her husband has departed to
combat against Macduff's forces and Lady Macbeth is left alone, she assumes the very
manifestations of guilt that have been associated with Macbeth, insomnia and hallucinations, in
even more extreme form.

As for the motive behind the theme of guilt, it is ambition for power, and it does not require
much for Macbeth to embrace the weird sisters' vision of him as the ruler of all Scotland.
Macbeth is ambitious, but it is Lady Macbeth who is the driving force behind their blood-stained
rise to the throne(s) of Scotland. Lady Macbeth is awesome in her ambition and possesses a
capacity for deceit that Shakespeare often uses as a trait of his evil female characters. Thus, when
she greets her prospective victim in Act I, she "humbly" tells King Duncan that she has eagerly
awaited his arrival and that her preparations for it are "in every point twice done, and then double
done" (l.vi.14-18). The irony here is that double-dealing and falsity are at hand, and Lady
Macbeth's ability to conceal her intentions while at the same time making hidden reference to
them has a startling effect upon us.

Beyond the evil that human ambition can manufacture, Macbeth has a super-natural dimension to
it; indeed, the play opens with the three witches stirring the plot forward. Even before his
encounter with the three witches, Macbeth finds himself in an unnatural dramatic world on the
"foul and fair" day of the battle (I.iii.39). Things are not what they seem. After his first conclave
with the witches, Macbeth is unable to determine whether the prophecy of the witches bodes "ill"
or "good." He then begins to doubt reality itself as he states that "nothing is / But what it is not"
(I.iii.141-142). The prophecy, of course, is true in the first sense but not what Macbeth takes it to
be in the second. In like manner, the three predictions made to Macbeth in the first scene of Act
IV seem to make him invincible; but the "woods" do march and Macbeth is slain by a man not
("naturally") born of woman.

Not only does an unnatural world overturn reality in Macbeth's...