Why did Shakespeare make Lady Macbeth so powerful?

Answer 1

In Shakespeare's time the only way for women to gain power was through their husbands. Lady Macbeth asks the spirits to make her evil and then she proceeds on to convince Macbeth to kill Duncan. If MacBeth becomes king then Lady MacBeth will become the queen. The opportunity presented itself and Lady MacBeth wanted her husband to act on it. She may be more greedy than ambitious however, because she wanted the fame without having to do it herself. Ambition has more to do with action while greed has more to do with desire.

Answer 2

It's less important than you think. Certainly the fact that Macbeth is not one of those people whose ambition is to live in a cave and eat turnips, but rather one of those people who are interested in positions of power and authority does affect how he behaves. But Macbeth's actions are not motivated by ambition. In Act 1 he expressly says that "vaulting ambition" is no reason to go around killing people. Nor is he persuaded by Lady Macbeth pointing out to him how great it would be to be king. Instead she appeals to his fear of being called a coward, to his concept of manliness and to the ideal of being someone who keeps his promises. She knows that he is no more ambitious than the next man. And once Duncan is dead and Macbeth is named as his successor, he has no further ambitions to gratify. He is motivated by the desire to keep what he has, not to get anything further.

So basically, all ambition does to Macbeth is keep him interested in the idea of being king as opposed to being a turnip-eating troglodyte. It does not spur him into action.

Answer 3

Because that's the story he wrote. The fact that she was powerful pushed Macbeth to become a murderer against his better judgment and better nature. It's on this that the plot of the play hangs.

Answer 4

Duncan has ambitions to establish his children as heirs to the throne even if they are not best suited to the job. This was not the practice in Scotland at the time. Therefore Duncan names his son Malcolm, who is a dweeb and a hopeless soldier, to the title of Prince of Cumberland, making him the heir to the throne, even though his cousin Macbeth would have been a better king. Malcolm goes along with this, showing that he has ambitions to be king himself.

And of course, the witches' prophecy makes Macbeth and Lady Macbeth think about the prospect that they might be king and queen. Macbeth is after all a close relative of Duncan's and it is not unlikely that he could be king. At least as far as Macbeth is concerned, he is just as ambitious as Malcolm. Lady Macbeth, on the other hand, takes it to another level. She not only thinks about the possibility of being queen, she is prepared to do whatever it takes to make sure that it happens. Or rather she will talk Macbeth into doing whatever it takes because she herself is all talk and no action.

Answer 5

He was happy about being the king's cousin, and therefore being in line for the throne. He was happy about being a nobleman and living in a castle, as opposed to living as a hermit in a cave. His ambitions were normal ones for a person of his social standing: more wealth, more power. The thing is, everybody is ambitious. Even the humble McDonald's burger-flipper has ambitions to become the restaurant manager. But that does not mean that such a person would commit murder for the promotion. Maybe some would, but the ambition in itself does not lead to murder. In Macbeth's case, the ambition to become king is not so strong that he would commit murder to get it. It is strong enough that he thinks about it, but he rejects "vaulting ambition". Then his wife arrives.

Answer 6

Shakespeare made Lady Macbeth powerful to challenge traditional gender roles and to emphasize the theme of ambition in the play. Her character adds depth to the exploration of power dynamics and the consequences of unchecked ambition. By creating a strong female character, Shakespeare also highlights the complexities of human nature and the lengths individuals will go to attain their desires.

Answer 7

To rule Scotland