MacBeth

            "Macbeth" by William Shakespeare portrays a particularly insecure character, Lady Macbeth. Lady Macbeth is wife to the disloyal hero, Macbeth, whose ambition brings about the downfall of himself and his wife.
             The tragedy commences with Macbeth, the then Thame of Glamis and Banquo returning victorious from battle for Scotland. They meet three witches who predict that Macbeth will one day become King of Scotland but also that Banquo's heirs will one day rule Scotland. These predictions arouse Macbeth's ambition which is then harnessed by his wife Lady Macbeth, who too has ambitions as great as Macbeth. This twinned desire leads to the murder of Duncan, King of Scotland by Macbeth assisted by his wife. From this point, Macbeth's ambition spirals out of control and after becoming king, he becomes suspicious of everyone close to him. Recalling the witches" predictions, he then has Banquo murdered and also attempts to have his son, Fleance murdered. Unfortunately for Macbeth, Fleance escapes. The Macbeths" insecurity from this point grows and Macbeth has the household of Macduff murdered. Unaware of the murders, Macduff begins negotiating with Duncan's son Malcolm in England. The play climaxes with the suicide of Lady Macbeth, and the dethronement and murder of Macbeth by Macduff. Malcolm then becomes new King of Scotland.
             We first come across Lady Macbeth as she is reading a letter from Macbeth. In this scene, she demonstrates that she knows her husband well. She shows her admiration of his ambition: " thou wouldst be great," and also shows her great ambition "to catch the nearest way". The scene shows that Lady Macbeth contains a great ambitious desire, which will be of benefit to her husband in his quest to become King of Scotland. Lady Macbeth shows also a great desire to be of benefit to her husband in any way possible to achieve this goal, including the murder of Duncan.
             Lady Macbeth also possesses an admirable amount of feminine qualities.