Lady Macbeth
Lady Macbeth is a character in Shakespeare's tragedy *Macbeth*, the ambitious wife who goads her husband into murdering King Duncan to seize the throne.
Her name has become shorthand for a ruthlessly ambitious woman who manipulates others—especially a spouse—to achieve power.
She's the Lady Macbeth behind his political career.
The phrase "Lady Macbeth syndrome" sometimes describes obsessive guilt, referencing the character's famous hand-washing scene as madness overtakes her.
Disastrous or sorrowful event
- GlobeFamous Elizabethan theatre
- ElizabethanOf late 1500s England
- soliloquyDramatic speech to oneself
- monologueUninterrupted solo address
iambic pentameter · bard · Stratford-upon-Avon · playwright · witches · prophecy · renaissance · theatre
Ambulatory behavior during slumber
- handwashingCleaning palms with soap
- bloodBody's oxygen carrier
- conscienceInternal moral sense
- madnessMental derangement or folly
torment · anguish · remorse · haunted · unhinged · obsession · stain · suicide
Most powerful chess piece
- sovereigntySupreme independent authority
- dominanceSuperior influence over others
- authorityPower to enforce obedience
- controlAuthority to direct
command · reign · supremacy · influence · mastery · ambition · throne · crown
Convincing through reasoning
- goadingInciting through persistent pressure
- tauntingInsulting to provoke
- cowardiceAbsence of bravery
- unmanningWeakening someone's spirit
cunning · calculating · scheming · insidious · controlling · strategic · ruthless · emasculation
Ceremonial chair for sovereigns
- crownSovereign's ornamental headpiece
- queenMost powerful chess piece
- kingshipRoyal dominion status
- usurpationWrongful seizure of power
ruthlessness · aspiration · striving · climb · hunger · thirst · determination · scheming
tragedy
Disastrous or sorrowful event
- GlobeFamous Elizabethan theatre
- ElizabethanOf late 1500s England
- soliloquyDramatic speech to oneself
monologue · iambic pentameter · bard · Stratford-upon-Avon · playwright · witches · prophecy · renaissance · theatre · verse
sleepwalking
Ambulatory behavior during slumber
- handwashingCleaning palms with soap
- bloodBody's oxygen carrier
- conscienceInternal moral sense
madness · torment · anguish · remorse · haunted · unhinged · obsession · stain · suicide · descent
queen
Most powerful chess piece
- sovereigntySupreme independent authority
- dominanceSuperior influence over others
- authorityPower to enforce obedience
control · command · reign · supremacy · influence · mastery · ambition · throne · crown · partnership
persuasion
Convincing through reasoning
unmanning · cunning · calculating · scheming · insidious · controlling · strategic · ruthless · emasculation · false face
throne
Ceremonial chair for sovereigns
usurpation · ruthlessness · aspiration · striving · climb · hunger · thirst · determination · scheming · goading
- Shakespeare VillainsIago, Richard III, Claudius, Edmund, Regan
- Fictional CharactersAlice, Oliver Twist, Hermione Granger, Harry Potter, Bilbo Baggins
- ShakespeareRomeo, Juliet, Hamlet, Othello, Romeo and Juliet
- literary villainsIago, Moriarty, Voldemort, Dracula, Sauron
- charactersprotagonist, antagonist, hero, character, characters
- Shakespeare CharactersHamlet, Othello, Romeo, Juliet, Ophelia
Lady MacbethCordelia
Name meaning "heart" in Latin
Desdemona · Portia · Virgin Mary · Mother Teresa · Griselda
Lady MacbethPenelope
Traditional name, Greek origin
Portia · Ruth · Abigail Adams · Eleanor Roosevelt · Eurydice
Lady MacbethMadonna
Christ's mother, or pop icon
Blessed Virgin · Demeter · Cordelia · Cinderella · Snow White