Witch- Slapped: Macbeth's Fall From Grace
What defines a man?
What it means to be a man has been redefined with each generation. While the denotation of a man has remained the same, the connotation is what has changed.
When I think about what it meant to be a man earlier in history I have two images. The first is from around the 50's. I imagine the men leaving home each day to go to work to provide a home for their family. It was their job to go out and provide for as well as protect their children and their wives. They were the head of the house hold and were respected.
The other image I have is of a knight. They are the perfect example of what the stereotypical chivalrous man is supposed to look like. It was the age of men going to battle to protect women and the kingdom. They had manners and respect. They would go out of their way for a woman but at the same time they were strong and lethal in a fight. When fathers looked for a men to marry their daughters off to, they looked for the strongest and wealthiest.
The twenty first century has changed this definition of what it means to be a man again. They are expected to be strong, intelligent, not emotional, love sports and sex, and are not supposed to be feminine. With this image many insults have appeared as well. People often call men who are more feminine, "gay." While this is not the correct use of this term, many bad connotations have arose from the word in relation to straight men who do not fit the stereotypical image of a man. However, in my opinion, it is not these qualities that make a man. While I appreciate strength, it is more important for a man to be honest and respectful. (Also I do not like gender stereotypes because I do not plan on ever staying at home and cooking. I can do anything a guy can do and usually do it better).
My values of a man are placed on their character; however, this is drastically different that the views expressed in Macbeth. Macbeth is told by three witches that he is going to become King, and when Duncan, the King, visits his home he contemplates killing him in order to full fill this prophecy. When Lady Macbeth finds out about this, she does not believe that her husband has the strength to complete the deed. She prays to spirits in order to "unsex her" because she believes that as a man she could complete the task better than Macbeth.
This reveals Lady Macbeth's values of a man. She, as well as many others of the time, considered a true man to be strong, brave, wealthy, and powerful. This can be seen in her tactics in trying to convince Macbeth that he must kill Duncan. In order to achieve this, she tries to humiliate Macbeth by questioning his manhood. In Act One, Scene 7, she calls him a coward and says then he was a man when he made the promise to kill Duncan, implying that if he breaks that promise he will not be a man in her eyes.
The exchange between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth shows that Lady Macbeth is more of a man than Macbeth in her eyes. She has courage and is in control- the things she wishes that her husband had in order to be a man in her eyes. 