Biblical Macbeth

People often think of Macbeth as a play full of darkness and tragedies, and feel compelled to read it simply because it was written by William Shakespeare. However, what you may not notice is the huge transformations and the character development of Lady Macbeth and Macbeth in Macbeth. More surprisingly, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s relationship is similar to that of Adam and Eve in Genesis. The main character, Macbeth, goes against his conscience and commits an inhumane deed which leads to his destruction. His actions and emotions had not been possible without the tempt and influence of Lady Macbeth, who demanded Macbeth to give her the position of being Queen. Similarly, Eve was tempted by the idea of being independent of God and propelled Adam in eating the forbidden fruit. Both Lady Macbeth and Eve evolved from an apparently one-dimensional character to that of multiple altitudes. As a reader, watching how the female character influenced the male character was fascinating. Now, let me walk you through how these two relationships can be analyzed through temptation, and transformations and punishment these two parts.

Starting off, Lady Macbeth came off as a one-dimensional character that is demanding and vicious. There seem to be no variation in her actions except for being power hungry. Her eager for power and crown were demonstrated through her monologues.

Watch video below to see Lady Macbeth’s brutal thoughts in the movie Macbeth directed by Rupert Goold.

“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” (Act 1, Scene 5).

Lady Macbeth acted as a guide for Macbeth that tempted him in killing King Duncan. However, Macbeth wandered back and forth with the idea of murdering his beloved king. She stood in direct contrast with Macbeth as her vicious thoughts contradicts Macbeth’s indecisive decisions. Macbeth feels guilty to commit such dreadful acts on King Duncan, while Lady Macbeth is willing to commit any sin to receive crown. In these moments, however, Lady Macbeth would offer demanding speeches and incited Macbeth in calling him a “coward”. Eventually, Macbeth became completely manipulated by his wife, and led to the murder of King Duncan he will never have thought about without the pressure from his spouse.

This influence of Lady Macbeth to Macbeth is demonstrated through the painting The Fall of Man by Michelangelo. As we can see on the left half of the painting. The serpent handed Eve something, which is believed to be the forbidden fruit. Eve was tempted by the idea of being independent of God and making decisions by herself, similar to how Lady Macbeth was tempted by the throne. Eve received the forbidden fruit and propelled Adam to commit such sin that was forbidden. As we can see in the painting, Adam shows his back to his audience as he looks to the back, almost as if he is checking if God is watching them. This represented the hesitation and doubt Macbeth possess before the killing of King Duncan. She convinced Adam in disobeying God’s order by eating the forbidden fruit. "she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat" (Genesis 3:6). In both relationships, the female character amplified the evil and eventually led their partner to commit such actions. Both characters were driven by some desire and was not satisfied. Prior to the murder of King Duncan, Macbeth was already announced as the Thane of Cawdor. He was living a life with respect and love from King Duncan. This was represented by the vibrant colors on the left part of The Fall of Man by Michelangelo. The beautiful environment represents what Lady Macbeth and Macbeth had already possessed. However, both female characters were ambitious for more and obtained theirs goal by convincing their partner. The killing of Duncan and the reaching of the forbidden fruit represented the success in Lady Macbeth and Eve as being the temptress.

The Fall of Man - Michelangelo

However, what appears to be a one-dimensional character of Lady Macbeth soon turned into that of multiple altitudes. As readers, our initial thoughts of Lady Macbeth as a character with no variations in actions and was simply demanding slowly transforms as the story proceeds. After the murder of Duncan, Macbeth becomes paranoid and turned power hungry. Lady Macbeth, however, was scared of Macbeth never having enough. Lady Macbeth went through a period of confusion as she slowly turned soft and brittle from being vicious and aggressive. “Naught’s had, all’s spent, where our desire is got without content.” (Act 3, Scene 2). Lady Macbeth was intimated by the greediness of power, Macbeth possess, and slowly realized that Macbeth will soon be out of control. Lady Macbeth begins to live in regret and fear. She started sleepwalking as she imagines not being able to wash the blood of Duncan on her hands.

Watch video below to see four performances on Lady Macbeth's sleepwalking scene

We can also see this transformation process in Genesis. “And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons” (Genesis 3:7). Eve became aware that being independent of God was being impure. By realizing their nudity and seeking things to cover, it is clear that Eve and Adam realized they were contaminated. God was enraged at Eve and Adam as they lost the innocence and purity, and demanded Eve and Adam leave the Garden and Eden. The anxious and humiliated facial expressions on the partner corresponds to the apathetic colors in the right part of the painting. This contradicts to the vibrant colors on the left part of the painting The Fall of Man.

Another interesting aspect of Macbeth and Genesis we don’t necessarily see is the similarity in the roles of the serpent and the three witches.In Macbeth, Lady Macbeth became confident of the assassination of King Duncan after hearing the three witches’ prophecies. Likewise, Eve was excited at the idea of being independent of God after hearing the serpent’s voice. As the serpent’s body coiled around the tree in The Fall of Man, it acted as a pivotal point that segregated the good times in the Garden of Eden and the anguish of an irrevocable decision; just like how Lady Macbeth suffered after the murder of Duncan.

The Three Witches in Macbeth

The serpent and Eve in Genesis