his king and had good companionship in Banquo and his wife Lady Macbeth. In fact Macbeth and his wife had a very strong relationship, which at the beginning was a source for his power. Both Macbeth and his wife have murderous plans in their head, and by chance, Duncan comes to stay with Macbeth, giving them the perfect opportunity to murder. In Act 1 Scene 7 Macbeth does not want to go through with the murder. He says that Duncan is here in ‘double trust’ he is also scared. Lady Macbeth is able eventually to persuade him through her domination and her cajoling. She uses different techniques to persuade him. She tells him it was his idea first, “what beast wasn’t then that made you break this enterprise to me.” She taunts his masculinity by calling him a coward, “Art thou afeared to be the same in thine own act and valour as thou are in desire,” This is an important part of her approach. Macbeth’s rank and fame depend on his courage and bravery, so for her to say he is weak would drive him to prove her wrong. She also says that he cannot love her, “From time, such I account thy love.” The personal taunt really hits home for Macbeth. It is an unexpected scorn, as their relationship is quite intense and he shows that he really cares. So he may prove that he still does love her by murdering Duncan. Lady Macbeth also uses a very severe and shocking tactic, she says that she would kill her own child. It is known that lady Macbeth has lost a child when she was very young, so it is quite shocking when she says that she would have rather smashed it to the floor than go back on a promise. She says this because it is the ultimate sacrifice and she makes the point that she knew the joy of being a mother and would have given that up for Macbeth to become King. She also uses terrible, violent imagery to persuade him. “I would while smiling in my face, have plucked my nipples from his ...
