d by saying, "Is't night's predominance, or the day's shame / That darkness does the face of earth entomb" (2.4.7-8). Macbeth like the owl both hunts and rules by the shadow of night; and like the owl he can not sleep at night. He is a creature of chaos.Lady Macbeth's sleep is representative of the portrayal of a woman's place in the play "Macbeth." As a woman, her guilty conscience makes her sleep. Her madness makes her benign. Lady Macbeth is the prototype of the madwoman in the attic who lives in a state of semi-sleep, mumbling to herself, and washing her hands. She poses no threat to anyone but herself. Her madness makes her less dangerous then when she was in control of her senses. In contrast, the inner chaos of Macbeth causes him to be awake. His madness makes him dangerous. His inability to sleep causes his mind to grow more bloody and his rule over Scotland more treacherous. Macbeth's madness is characteristically masculine. In his madness he achieves the thickening of the blood that Lady Macbeth wishes for. Macbeth becomes emboldened and more violent, he becomes more awake. In contrast, Lady Macbeth undergoes a feminine transformation as madness makes her sleep and more docile. In her madness she becomes profoundly female, even adopting stereotypical female habits like washing and being concerned about the spots of blood. She becomes a docile creature who instead of being unsexed has been castrated of her aggression. The word sleep is manifested not only by Macbeth's inability to sleep but also in Lady Macbeth's benign existence at the end of the play.Darkness in our society is indicate of evil. For instance, a black cat, a dark night, and a dark place are all symbolic of debauchery. Authors use these symbols to describe an evil character or setting. William Shakespeare employs the imagery of darkness in Act 4 of his play "Macbeth" to describe the agents of disorder. The witches, Macbeth, and Scotland are a...
