Who has the power here?

What I enjoy most about Macbeth is the dynamic of the relationships. The relationship between Macbeth and his Lady is unlike any couple I have encountered in Shakespeare’s plays. Lady Macbeth is a powerful woman, one who is dominant over her husband publicly and privately. The third act reveals this truth nicely.

At first, it seems that Macbeth has control over himself, acting mournful about the deaths of the king and his son and planning the execution of his friend, Banquo. However, when he talks to himself about the reasons behind the need to kill Banquo, his speech implies that perhaps Macbeth is a little more shaken about the situation than he lets on (for now). His fear of dying because of the witches’ prophecy reveals the lack of power Macbeth truly has over the entire situation. He states in scene one,

“For Banquo’s issue have I filed my mind, / For them the gracious Duncan have I murdered, / Put rancours in the vessel of my peace / Only for them, and mine eternal jewel / Given to the common enemy of man / To make them kings, the seeds of Banquo kings” (3.1.66-71)

In this moment, Macbeth seems to be blaming these men for the things he has done. There is a repeated use of the term ‘for them’ –“Only for them…” –implies that Macbeth considers himself a martyr of sorts: he is acting out this way for their benefit, and he is willing to sacrifice his “eternal jewel” to the common man for his purpose. There seems to be a resignation within Macbeth even before the sightings of Banquo’s ghost makes him a little crazy.

Lady Macbeth, however, is a different story. Though unfortunately we don’t get any speeches from her in act three, we do have moments alone with her, moments that reveal her true self moreso than the moments with her husband. “Naught’s had, all’s spent, / Where our desire is got without content. / ‘Tis safer to be that which we destroy / Than by destruction dwell in doubtful joy” (3.2.6-9): here Lady Macbeth takes on a realistic view of the situation she created with her husband. She knows that the way to power is not pretty, and she knows better than to think that she and her husband are safe because he is king. In four lines, Lady Macbeth has more power than her husband.

Her power over the situation is most obvious when Macbeth sees the ghost of Banquo and makes a scene. Immediately, she gives excuses for Macbeth’s odd behavior, asking them to ignore it, because the king goes into attacks. She then turns to her husband and manipulates him by questioning his status as a man. “Are you a man?” she asks him in scene four, “What, unmanned in folly?” She belittles him for his fear in ghosts, and she verbally attacks him about it until Macbeth settles down, frazzled. By the end of the scene it is she, not Macbeth, the king, who convinces the lords to leave. Her power and strength as a woman in this play is outstanding.