Macbeth’s Gender Role Reversal Essay Example for Free

Macbeths Gender Role Reversal EssayWilliam Shakespe bes tragedy Macbeth completely challenges the idea of traditional gender roles and social norms during the spiritual rebirth period. The male characters have legion(predicate) feminine traits objet dart the female characters have manhoody more masculine and manlier traits. This was going entirely against the stereotypical outlook of the roles youre supposed to tour as your gender during that time of history. During the renaissance period women were only expected to clean, cook, and to have babies. Men on the other hand were typically expected to work hard and to provide for the home. Socially women didnt have power or respect and men were the ones who were supposed to be queer and operose at the best of times and the worst of times. That idea is challenged many times throughout Macbeth as their are several examples where dame Macbeth remains strong while Macbeth crumbles and becomes weak. The play consistently challenge s the society norms of gender roles.Its obvious the Macbeths dont serve as your stereotypical husband and wife. Right outside(a) throughout the first couple of acts, Shakespeare introduces Lady Macbeths character as an assertive and dominant woman that makes the decisions over her husband Macbeth. Lady Macbeth really makes it apparent that she wears the pants in there relationship. For example, in scene 1 act 5 when Macbeth tells Lady Macbeth King Duncan is coming and he seems to be very indecisive on how he will handle the Kings presence. Lady Macbeth takes charge and asserts her dominance by saying, He thats coming/ Must be provided for, and you shall put/ This nights great business into my dispatch (scene 1 act 5 64-66).In traditional society, if the king is coming to your house, it would be very anomalous for the lady of the house to be in charge of handling the appearance by the king.Lady Macbeth and Macbeth also exchange roles in the mode they handle their emotions and th e way they handle the guilt. For instance, when it comes to the thought of murder and death, Lady Macbeth shows no mercy, and when King Duncan was murdered, she remained unphased by the act. This is apparent when she deals with Macbeth leaving the gory daggers at the site of the murder, Give me the daggers. The sleeping and the baseless/ Are but as pictures tis the eye of childhood/ That fears a painted devil.(scene 2 act 2 56-58). Macbeth is portrayed as emotionally unstable and flabby as he is hydrophobic to even go back into the room where the murder took place, Ill go no more/ I am afraid to think what I have done(scene 2 act 2 54-55). This interaction between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth really shows the unusual roles one another play in their relationship because, in a situation where someone is murdered or there is a serious crime, women arent usually the ones who are brave and strong-minded about it, men are.As the play goes on, Lady Macbeth begins to lose her fierce and inti midating persona as Macbeth becomes the more assertive and dominant one. Lady Macbeth starts losing her edge when it becomes less difficult to get Macbeth to follow through with his murderous acts. Anytime Macbeth thinks youre interfering with his kinship, hell have no problem taking you down(a) and getting you out of his way. Macbeth no longer needs Lady Macbeth to persuade him. This is very apparent when he shows no mercy planning the murder of Banquo, in that locations comfort yet, they are assailable/ Then be thou jocund ere the bat hath flown/ His cloistered flight, ere to black Hecates summons/ The shard-borne beetle with his drowsing(prenominal) hums/ Hath rung nights yawning peal, there shall be done/ A deed of dreadful note (scene 3 act 2 40-44). A completely different Macbeth we see out of this quote, no longer hesitant and no longer appearing to be affected by guilt.Now that Macbeth is this individual who is ready and eager to kill, Lady Macbeth begins to show the sid e of her that wasnt present at the beginning of the play, Come on. Gentle my lord/ Sleek oer your rugged looks, be bright and jovial/ Among your guests tonight (act 3 scene 2 26-28). Lady Macbeth expresses emotion and traits of care, unlike any other time.The play Macbeth features many different gender reversals throughout the entire play. Shakespeare really tests the normality of having women be the assertive and dominant one in a marriage while having the man be kind of timid and soft. Lady Macbeth and Macbeths gender reversals distinctively show the extreme traits one another possess and it gives an opposite perspective than what we are used to. Whatever goes up always must come down, and when Lady Macbeth and Macbeth begin to form into traditional gender roles, that becomes the start of their decline.