macbeth essay plan gcse

Macbeth – A* / L9 Full Mark Example Essay

This is an A* / L9 full mark example essay on Macbeth completed by a 15-year-old student in timed conditions (50 mins writing, 10 mins planning).

It contained a few minor spelling and grammatical errors – but the quality of analysis overall was very high so this didn’t affect the grade. It is extremely good on form and structure, and perhaps could do with more language analysis of poetic and grammatical devices; as the quality of thought and interpretation is so high this again did not impede the overall mark. 

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MACBETH EXAMPLE ESSAY:

Macbeth’s ambition for status and power grows throughout the play. Shakespeare uses Macbeth as an embodiment of greed and asks the audience to question their own actions through the use of his wrongful deeds.

In the extract, Macbeth is demonstrated to possess some ambition but with overriding morals, when writing to his wife about the prophecies, Lady Macbeth uses metaphors to describe his kind hearted nature: “yet I do fear thy nature, / It is too full o’th’milk of human kindness”. Here, Shakespeare presents Macbeth as a more gentle natured being who is loyal to his king and country. However, the very act of writing the letter demonstrates his inklings of desire, and ambition to take the throne. Perhaps, Shakespeare is aiming to ask the audience about their own thoughts, and whether they would be willing to commit heinous deeds for power and control. 

Furthermore, the extract presents Macbeth’s indecisive tone when thinking of the murder – he doesn’t want to kill Duncan but knows it’s the only way to the throne. Lady Macbeth says she might need to interfere in order to persuade him; his ambition isn’t strong enough yet: “That I may pour my spirits in  thine ear / And chastise with the valour of my tongue”. Here, Shakespeare portrays Lady Macbeth as a manipulative character, conveying she will seduce him in order to “sway “ his mind into killing Duncan. The very need for her persuasion insinuates Macbeth is still weighing up the consequences in his head, his ambition equal with his morality. It would be shocking for the audience to see a female character act in this authoritative way. Lady Macbeth not only holds control of her husband in a patriarchal society but the stage too, speaking in iambic pentameter to portray her status: “To catch the nearest way. Thou wouldst be great”. It is interesting that Shakespeare uses Lady Macbeth in this way; she has more ambition for power than her husband at this part of play. 

As the play progresses, in Act 3, Macbeth’s ambition has grown and now kills with ease. He sends three murders to kill Banquo and his son, Fleance, as the witches predicted that he may have heirs to the throne which could end his reign. Macbeth is suspicious in this act, hiding his true intentions from his dearest companion and his wife: “I wish your horses swift and sure on foot” and “and make our faces vizards to our hearts”. There, we see, as an audience, Macbeth’s longing to remain King much stronger than his initial attitudes towards the throne He was toying with the idea of killing for the throne and now he is killing those that could interfere with his rule without a second thought. It is interesting that Shakespeare presents him this way, as though he is ignoring his morals or that they have been “numbed” by his ambition. Similarly to his wife in the first act, Macbeth also speaks in pentameter to illustrate his increase in power and dominance. 

In Act 4, his ambition and dependence on power has grown even more. When speaking with the witches about the three apparitions, he uses imperatives to portray his newly adopted controlling nature: “I conjure you” and “answer me”. Here, the use of his aggressive demanding demonstrates his reliance on the throne and his need for security. By the Witches showing him the apparitions and predicting his future, he gains a sense of superiority, believing he is safe and protected from everything. Shakespeare also lengthens Macbeth’s speech in front of the Witches in comparison to Act 1 to show his power and ambition has given him confidence, confidence to speak up to the “filthy nags” and expresses his desires. Although it would be easy to infer Macbeth’s greed and ambition has grown from his power-hungry nature, a more compassionate reading of Macbeth demonstrates the pressure he feels as a Jacobean man and soldier. Perhaps he feels he has to constantly strive for more to impress those around him or instead he may want to be king to feel more worthy and possibly less insecure. 

It would be unusual to see a Jacobean citizen approaching an “embodiment” of the supernatural as forming alliance with them was forbidden and frowned upon. Perhaps Shakespeare uses Macbeth to defy these stereotypical views to show that there is a supernatural, a more dark side in us all and it is up to our own decisions whereas we act on these impulses to do what is morally incorrect. 

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Macbeth Essay: Macbeth Kingship Exam Question and Detailed Essay Plan AQA

Subject: English

Age range: 14-16

Resource type: Assessment and revision

Last updated

6 September 2017

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ibrahimshahlive

Empty reply does not make any sense for the end user

Be careful with this resource: there are typos in the essay title! "Starting with this extract, explain to what extend you believe Shakespeare’s presents the idea of kingship"

RossettiChristina

A brilliant resource - good extract with questions and a detailed plan! thanks

dominicriste

Self assessment grid useful!

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‘Macbeth’ Grade 9 Example Response

Grade 9 – full mark – ‘Macbeth’ response

Starting with this extract (from act 1 scene 7), how does Shakespeare present the relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth?

In Shakespeare’s eponymous tragedy ‘Macbeth’, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s relationship is a complex portrait of love, illustrating layers of utter devotion alongside overwhelming resentment. Though the couple begins the play unnaturally strong within their marriage, this seems to act as an early warning of their imminent and inevitable fall from grace, ending the play in an almost entirely different relationship than the one they began the play with.

In the exposition of the play, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth initially appear immensely strong within their marriage, with Macbeth describing his wife as ‘my dearest partner of greatness’ in act 1 scene 5. The emotive superlative adjective ‘dearest’ is a term of endearment, and acts as a clear depiction of how valued Lady Macbeth is by her husband. Secondly, the noun ‘partner’ creates a sense of sincere equality which, as equality within marriage would have been unusual in the Jacobean era, illustrates to a contemporary audience the positive aspects of their relationship. Furthermore the lexical choice ‘greatness’ may connote ambition, and as they are ‘partner(s)’, Shakespeare suggests that Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are equal in their desire for power and control, further confirming their compatibility but potentially hinting that said compatibility will serve as the couple’s hamartia.

However, the strength of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s relationship falls into a rapid downward spiral in the subsequent scenes, as a struggle for power within the marriage ensues. This is evidenced when Macbeth, in act 1 scene 7, uses the declarative statement ‘we will proceed no further in this business’. Here, Macbeth seems to exude masculinity, embracing his gender role and dictating both his and his wife’s decisions. The negation ‘no’ clearly indicates his alleged definitive attitude. However, Lady Macbeth refuses to accept her husband’s rule, stating ‘when you durst do it, then you were a man’. She attempts to emasculate him to see their plan through. The verb ‘durst’ illustrates the risk taking behaviour that Lady Macbeth is encouraging; implying an element of toxicity within their relationship, and her harsh speech makes the cracks in their relationship further visible to the audience. It is also probable that a contemporary audience would be made severely uncomfortable in the presence of Lady Macbeth’s unapologetic display of power, and it is possible that Shakespeare attempts to paint Lady Macbeth as the villain of the play, playing upon the audience’s pre-determined fears of feminine power. Though Lady Macbeth appears to be acting entirely out of self-interest, another reader may argue that she influences her husband so heavily to commit the heinous act of regicide, as she believes that he crown may as a substitute for the child or children that Shakespeare suggests she and Macbeth have lost previously, and in turn better Macbeth’s life and bring him to the same happiness that came with the child, except in another form.

As the play progresses, Shakespeare creates more and more distance between the characters, portraying the breakdown of their relationship as gradual within the play but rapid in the overall sense of time on stage. For example, Lady Macbeth requests a servant ‘say to the king’ Lady Macbeth ‘would attend his leisure/ for a few words’. Here she is reduced to the status of someone far lesser than the king, having to request to speak to her own husband. It could be interpreted that, now as king, Macbeth holds himself above all else, even his wife, perhaps due to the belief of the divine right of kings. The use of the title rather than his name plainly indicated the lack of closeness Lady Macbeth now feels with Macbeth and intensely emotionally separates them. This same idea is referenced as Shakespeare develops the characters to almost juxtapose each other in their experiences after the murder of Duncan. For example, Macbeth seems to be trapped in a permanent day, after ‘Macbeth does murder sleep’ and his guilt and paranoia render him unable to rest. In contrast, Lady Macbeth takes on an oppositional path, suffering sleepwalking and unable to wake from her nightmare; repeating the phrase ‘to bed. To bed’ as if trapped in a never-ending night. This illustrates to the audience the extreme transformation Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s relationship undergoes, and how differently they end up experiencing the aftermath of regicide.

In conclusion, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth begin the play almost too comfortable within their marriage, which seems to invite the presence of chaos and tragedy into their relationship. Their moral compositions are opposing one another, which leads to the distancing and total breakdown of their once successful marriage and thus serves as a warning to the audience about the effects of murder, and what the deadly sin of greed can do to a person and a marriage.

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gcseenglishwithmisshuttlestone

Secondary English teacher in Herts. View all posts by gcseenglishwithmisshuttlestone

9 thoughts on “‘Macbeth’ Grade 9 Example Response”

wheres the context

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It is also probable that a contemporary audience would be made severely uncomfortable in the presence of Lady Macbeth’s unapologetic display of power, and it is possible that Shakespeare attempts to paint Lady Macbeth as the villain of the play, playing upon the audience’s pre-determined fears of feminine power.

Also ref to ‘divine right of kings’

Thank you! This is a brilliant response. Just what I needed. Could you also please include the extract in the question.

We will proceed no further in this business. He hath honored me of late, and I have bought Golden opinions from all sorts of people, Which would be worn now in their newest gloss, Not cast aside so soon.

—> until end of scene

She did (Act 1 Scene 7)

Another great resource for grade 9 Macbeth analysis https://youtu.be/bGzLDRX71bs

In order to get a grade 9 for a piece like this would you need to include a wide range of vocabulary or could you write the same thing ‘dumbed down’ and get a 9.

If the ideas were as strong then yes, but your writing must AT LEAST be ‘clear’ for a grade 6 or above.

This is really great, I’m in Year 10 doing my Mock on Thursday, a great point that i have found (because I also take history) Is the depiction of women throughout the play, during the Elizabethan era, (before the Jacobean era) many people had a changed view of women as Queen Elizabeth was such a powerful woman, glimpses of this have been shown in Jacobean plays, in this case Macbeth, Lady Macbeth is depicted as powerful although she had to be killed of to please King James (as he was a misogynist) women are also depicted as evil in the play, such as the three witches, I also found that the Witches are in three which could be a mockery to the Holy Trinity.

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Home — Essay Samples — Literature — Macbeth — Theme Of Guilt In Macbeth

Theme of Guilt in Macbeth

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Mr Salles Teaches English

Kingship in Macbeth

(a grade 8 essay, improved to grade 9).

Hi again Mr Salles - I hope you are well,

Here is an essay I have written on the theme of kingship, tyranny and natural order.

If you have a spare few minutes, please let me know what mark this would get and how I can improve it to get full marks :)

Shakespeare cleverly crafts the themes of kingship/tyranny/natural order through the devolution of Macbeth. By contrasting morality and corruption within Macbeth and Banquo, Shakespeare cautions against ambition and associates it with the supernatural - a very disturbing idea for the contemporary audience, contributing to Shakespeare’s overall purpose of trying to flatter King James I and warn the nobility against rebellion.

Shakespeare constructs Banquo as a foil to Macbeth by illustrating their contrasting reactions to the same evil force - the supernatural and temptation. Banquo represents the route that Macbeth chose not to take: the path where ambition does not lead to betrayal and murder. Thus, it is Banquo’s ghost, rather than Duncan’s, that haunts Macbeth and conveys to the contemporary audience that restraint will lead to a fruition of power as Banquo’s lineage stays on the throne for the longest.

The witches’ equivocation: “ Lesser than Macbeth, and greater ” paradoxically suggests the drastic difference between Banquo and Macbeth, foreshadowing character development as the witches' prophecies come true. Banquo will never be king, but he does father a line of kings. Macbeth, on the other hand, will become the King of Scotland which is commendable in terms of the Divine Order; Macbeth’s reign of power will be one of selfishness and greed as he fulfils his cruel desire for power, eliminating all obstacles that stand in the way of his kingship.

As a result, Macbeth holds the shorter end of the stick in this paradox, facing paranoia, insomnia, guilt, and a tragic demise, therefore proving its accuracy. Here, Shakespeare is flattering King James I, as he was descendant of Banquo and Fleance, in order to gain his trust and potentially patronage for his theatre. This also helps Shakespeare later in the play when he subtly warns James I not to be repressive and tyrannical in his rule.

Shakespeare ensures Banquo isn’t perfect as he is tempted on some level by the Witches’ prophecy, but his ability to reject evil is what makes him a moral character and an antithesis to Macbeth. He is less able to resist temptation when he sleeps “ I dream’d of the three weird sisters last night ”, but instead of trying to hide this, he confesses to God and asks for help in remaining moral and virtuous.

This references the Bible as Jesus was tempted three times by the devil and resisted: perhaps Shakespeare is attempting to draw parallels between Banquo and Jesus which would have been largely impactful to a Christian contemporary audience, further warning about the devastating consequences of temptation and tyranny by contrasting this with the holy and biblical ideas associated with resistance to temptation and ambition.

Shakespeare demonstrates how the acquisition of power invokes an irreversible change in character, subverting the audience’s expectations as he implies that a person’s poor qualities are amplified by the crown and personal desire - Macbeth becomes paranoid.

In the beginning of the play, Macbeth is conveyed as the epitome of a loyal and quintessential Scottish soldier when the captain recalls Macbeth’s noble actions as he “ carv’d the passage ” of the traitor Macdonwald. Specifically, the emotive verb “ carv’d ” carries strong connotations of combative expertise and nobility. Alternatively, it could allude to him carving his name famously in the beginning of the play and eventually notoriously at the end of the play, foreshadowing his drastic moral decline. The stark contrast between Macbeth murdering an enemy of the king (which would be seen as an enemy to God due to the Divine Right of Kings believed by the contemporary audience) and when he commits regicide - the ultimate sin.

Shakespeare explores the consequences of usurpation - for the nation it is a nightmare; an illegitimate king can only become a tyrant, using ever greater acts of violence to maintain his rule. However, Shakespeare is careful to emphasise how the tyrant himself suffers at his own hands - violence traumatises the violent person as well as the victims. Macbeth ‘ fixed [Macdonwald’s] head upon our battlements ’. The head is symbolic as a motif of Macbeth’s declining heroism. First he is at his moral peak as he beheads the King’s enemy, effectively God’s enemy in the eyes of the contemporary audience, then after having his moral endurance tested in the form of ‘ supernatural soliciting ’ he goes out to commit regicide, losing all virtue. Finally, Shakespeare uses this motif to highlight the negative consequences to his audience as the ‘head’ foreshadows Macbeth’s later disgrace as his own head becomes described as ‘ the usurper’s cursed head’ that is reminiscent of his previous morality before he was corrupted by ambition and the witches’ prophecies.

Supernatural

Shakespeare forces his audience to question whether the unlawful act of treason has a supernatural urge, whether there are malign witches and demonic forces working against the moral bonds of mankind. Macbeth’s growing inclination towards ‘supernatural soliciting’ leaves him in a perplexed self-questioning state " why hath it given me earnestness of success/commencing in a truth ?” Linguistically, the sibilance of ‘ supernatural soliciting’ is deliberately used by Shakespeare to raise his audience’s alarm, given the satanic connotations and reference to devastating sorcery in the form of ‘soliciting’.

Likewise, Macbeth’s rhetorical question is used by Shakespeare to create a self-doubting, unstable and malevolent fallacy created by the engagement with the ‘agents of the dark’.

This repeated motif of the supernatural was especially significant to a contemporary Christian audience as witches were believed to be women who made a pact with the Devil, but it also would have especially attracted the interests of King James I - Macbeth was first performed to him and his courtiers. James I hated witchcraft and wrote Daemonologie - a book about the supernatural. Here, Shakespeare is flattering the king by incorporating his interests into his play and is also warning the nobility who were unhappy with James as king at the time by suggesting their desire to overthrow James I was manipulated into existence by the supernatural and witches.

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This is a very ambitious title – normally you would have just kingship or tyranny set as the question. And then you are going to make it even more ambitious by introducing the supernatural!

This has led to a very convoluted thesis – having at least 3 ideas is excellent, but it has to make sense. You could simplify this:

Shakespeare contrasts the characters of Macbeth and Banquo to caution against ambition. Unchecked ambition is associated with the supernatural, which allows Shakespeare characterise ambition as inherently evil. Macbeth becomes a tyrannical king because he welcomes “supernatural soliciting.” The focus on the supernatural also contributes to Shakespeare’s overall purpose of trying to flatter King James I and warn the nobility against rebellion.

Notice how I have structured this differently in order to make one point at a time.

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If you get a question about guilt in the exam, there are two ways you can approach it:

A) you can look at how macbeth and his wife feel guilty about what they've done - of course they do: they killed a good king and, when it comes to it, they don't have a clue what they're doing. they weren't made to be rulers. they're rubbish at it. so what happened was that they killed a good king and were rubbish at ruling the state., b) who was guilty for killing duncan because if macbeth was begin controlled by a magic spell then was it fair to say that he takes responsibility for the crime, in short: any: question about guilt can approach either of these ideas and still do well., i've written more about lady macbeth here as i find her a more interesting character when looking at guilt, but there's plenty for both of them....

Macbeth's guilt

During the opening of the play, macbeth makes it clear that he doesn't want to kill duncan. he calls the idea a "horrid image" and says that it will "shake his single state of man" so violently that he won't be able to do it. he argues that he should be "shutting the door" against anyone who wants to kill duncan, and that duncan's death will be so awful that even the angels will rage "trumpet tongued" against his death. so macbeth seems to know that killing duncan won't get what he wants, but he does it anyway. as a result, quite predictably, he feels really guilty afterwards ., here are some key quotes looking at macbeth's regret for what he did to duncan:, i had most need of blessing, and 'amen' stuck in my throat - just after killing duncan, macbeth must have said a prayer but he cannot say amen which suggests that god cannot bless him., methought i heard a voice cry 'sleep no more macbeth does murder sleep', the innocent sleep . - the fact that macbeth stops being able to sleep is commonly cites as being a result of him feeling guilty. however, although there are repeated connections between sleep and innocence the line "sleep no more macbeth does murder sleep" is written in speech marks, and macbeth clearly says that he "heard a voice cry" it, and it's what the witches did to the sailor during the opening, so it would seem to make much more sense that macbeth can't sleep as a result of the witches' magic spell than any sense of guilt., i am afraid to think what i have done; - macbeth doesn't fear the norwegian army, but he is afraid to face what he's done., will all great neptune's ocean wash this blood / clean from my hand - the image of having bloo d on your hands runs through macbeth, and here he's arguing that even all the water in the sea won't wash his hands clean of their guilt., we sleep / in the affliction of these terrible dreams / that shake us nightly: - regardless of who caused his inability to sleep, macbeth cannot sleep throughout most of the play. here, he talks about his sleep being haunted by terrible dreams that shake him awake again. this is a clear reference to how he cannot escape his guilt for what he's done., better be with the dead .. . than on the torture of the mind to lie / in restless ecstasy. - in this quote he can't sleep, but lies with his mind being tortured. in fact, it is so bad that he would rather be dead, o, full of scorpions is my mind, dear wife - t his is the classic line to show macbeth's unstable mental state. sc orpions attack from both ends, they're desert dwellers - like the serpent from the bible - and they're inside his brain; the centre of his sense of self., however, despite this macbeth quickly finds himself in a position where he can't go back. he says that he is "in blood stepp'd so far that should i wade no more, returning were as tedious as go o'er." which is essentially a way of saying that he's already done so much wrong that it would be as bad to go back as to continue. and so, although he feels guilty, he doesn't turn back and eventually kills banquo as well as macduff's wife and child, and seems pretty non-plu s sed about his wife's death when that gets announced. as a result of all this, it's tough to feel that sorry for him., below, i've gathered a collection of quotes from the play that reflect the mess that macbeth is in by the end. he feels bad about killing more people, but can't seem to stop himself:, i am in blood / stepp'd in so far that, should i wade no more, / returning were as tedious as go o'er: - this is a great line when looking at macbeth's mental state. here, he claims that he's so knee deep in blood that it's as "tedious" to continue killing people as it would be to try to return to his old state of decency. "tedious" is a pretty crazy word to use to describe what he's talking about, but the image is clear: he's over committed now, so he may as well see the whole thing through..., i have almost forgot the taste of fears; - remember when macbeth was afraid to think on what he'd done well by the end that is not the case... he's committed so many terrible acts that he's forgot what it feels like to be afraid of anything his life is a big old mess and that's pretty much how he ends up..., lady macbeth and guilt:, lady macbeth's guilt, when it comes to guilt, lady macbeth comes up most often. she starts the play being adamant that she will feel no regret - she's the classic image of the psychopathic killer. she remains like this for acts 1, 2 and 3 (though there are four lines in act 3 where she's a bit sorry.) she doesn't appear in act 4 at all, then, suddenly in act 5 she's so full of regret that she commits suicide., so, in a nutshell, her character arc goes:, act 1: no remorse act 2: no remorse act 3: no remorse act 4: no appearance act 5: suicidal regret, on the back of this, it's not unreasonable to argue that her character arc is a little lacking. when did she change her mind did something happen to change it what motivated her to rethink her actions why did she just suddenly realise what she'd done, and go through one of the biggest u-turns in literary history, entirely off-stage shakespeare never really explains, and it's absolutely reasonable to argue that this constitutes a considerable missing element in the play., quotes about lady macbeth not feeling any guilt :, stop up the access and passage to remorse - in lady macbeth's m agic spell from act 1 scene 5 she asks the spirits to stop her from feeling any "remorse" - which means regret or guilt. so here, she is using magic to stop guilty feels from being able to access her., the bit when she said she'd kill her own baby - if ever there was a sign that someone lacked the capacity to feel regret or remorse it's the fact that they say they'd kill their own baby to fulfil a promise. lady macbeth really is psychotically ruthless., these deeds must not be thought / after these ways; so, it will make us mad - one thing with this play is that the characters quite often predict what will eventually happen to them. here, lady macbeth recognises that if they spend too long thinking about what they've done - if they dwell on their feelings of guilt - that it will make them mad. which is exactly what happens to her, my hands are of your colour; but i shame / to wear a heart so white. - h e re, lady m a cbeth claims that her hands are as bloody as macbeth's but she'd be ashamed to pretend that she was pure. she accepts what she's done and won't pretend to feel guilty when she doesn't. she won't pretend to have a pure white heart when she knows her heart is bad., things without all remedy / should be without regard: what's done is done. - here , she's basically saying that if you can't do anything to fix something, you shouldn't think about it. she's arguing that because they can't change what they've done they shouldn't worry about it anymore. there is no time or space in lady macbeth's world for feelings of guilt., note : there are loads more of these, but they're a pretty good selection, four lines in act 3:, nought'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., these four lines from act 3 are really important as they're the only time prior to her sleepwalking scene that she expresses anything close to any regret for what they've done. really, to take her character from not feeling any guilt to feeling so much that she's suicidal takes a change in her character which we don't ever see., but really, if you look closer at these lines she's not actually feeling regret for what they've done, she's just angry that they've got what she wanted but still aren't happy. she's also troubled by the fact that they're not safe in their position, which isn't really a feeling of regret at all but just a concern for their position., so really, she doesn't actually express any regret until she suddenly becomes suicidal., quotes about lady macbeth feeling regret:, out, damned spot out, i say - here, lady macbeth is sleepwalking a nd trying to wash the blood from her hands. the most common argument here is that she cannot escape what she's done - she has blood on her hands and she cannot escape that fact. she discovers, in fact, that you can boss other people around, but she cannot manage her own conscience. this is what eventually brings her down., what, will these hands ne'er be clean ... here's the smell of the blood still: all the / perfumes of arabia will not sweeten this little hand. - these t wo lines come from the same scene where she's fretting about the blood on her hands., it is very telling though that lady macbeth's expressions of guilt come while she's sleepwalking. sleeping - and dreaming - are often considered to be interesting states as they allow us to get in touch with our subconscious. here, it could be that shakespeare is saying that although lady macbeth may seem like she feels no guilt, she is actually just repressing it. it's possible that shakespeare is really just saying that even someone as evil as lady macbeth can't escape her subconscious feelings of guilt., why did shakespeare leave her lacking so much detail, this is a completely reasonable question and if you're going to mention this idea in an essay you should really look at this. without being able to ask shakespeare himself, i've put together a few ideas that seem reasonable:, a) if we'd spent time with her, going through the slowly dawning process of remorse, there was a danger that we'd develop some sympathy for her position. shakespeare didn't want this. because the whole point of the play was to put people off doing what she did, any element of sympathy for her would have been frowned upon by king james. as a result, shakespeare cut out her descent into madness, and made sure we feel no sympathy for her at all., b) she was a woman and, as such, her character didn't need to be as developed as the male characters on stage. the play itself is really a study in macbeth's motivations anyway, and although his wife steals the scenes she's in she's only ever a secondary character. you could argue that there was just no need to delve into her reasons that deeply., c) she never actually felt any regret consciously... this is a tough one to argue but the fact is that the only time we see her feeling regret is when she's sleepwalking; so she really only dreams the regret that we see. here, shakespeare could be highlighting the way that you can't escape your actions, even if it only in your sleep that they come back to haunt you. this argument is complicated a little when you consider that she killed herself, but...., did she definitely kill herself, the fact is that we think lady macbeth killed herself because malcolm says that macbeth's "fiend-like queen, who, as 'tis thought, by self and violent hands took off her life." but this is the only reference to her having killed herself., during the action of the play, we hear some women screaming off stage and then a character called seyton (whose name sounds suspiciously like satan) goes to check on her and comes back saying she's dead. now, i'm not saying that satan killed her and then malcolm just cast it aside on the grounds that she was dead and he didn't need to know anymore, but it actually makes a lot more sense of her character arc if she was killed by seyton and his minions rather than that she killed herself., whichever way you choose to look at it, the fact remains that shakespeare doesn't spend long enough on her regret for me to find her character arc very believable, and although you should avoid directly criticising shakespeare you're well within your rights to observe this., who was guilty, essentially, if you're going to argue that macbeth wasn't in control of himself when he killed duncan you'll need to refer to the sections on ambition and the supernatural ., but, if you do this, it's important to bear in mind that macbeth did kill duncan., so while you can argue that he was being controlled by a magic spell or being manipulated by his wife, you can't avoid the fact that he was holding the knife that ended duncan's life. and that's a fact....