One of the continuous aspects of human nature is the constant change in the perceptions of the acceptable gender roles for both Women and Men. Shakespeare explores the traditional gender roles of his time in his play Macbeth. The story of the regicide of Kind Duncan of Scotland in the eleventh century. Shakespeare constantly question the gender roles of his time throughout the play, How are the sexes meant to act? Are they correct? And most predominantly; are they faithful to the fluctuations in human emotion. However the readers modern understandings of gender affect the reading of these questions, shakespeares strong questioning of traditional roles is affect by the understanding of modern gender roles.
Macbeth's transgression from male gender roles illustrate shakespeares questions of the faithfulness of those roles towards human emotion. The reader is given a strong character profile of macbeth before they even meet him through the captains description of his fighting talent. This profile is a perfect presentation of the traditional male gender role; strong fearless, courageous and merciless,. This perception of macbeth is quickly broken when the reader witnesses the conversation between him and his wife we see that such a strong man is in fact controlled and manipulated by his power driven wife, "You shall put this night's great business into my dispatch". This submission to a female is the first obvious transgression from traditional gender roles. Shakespeares next example of Macbeth's unmanly attributes is tendency to let his emotions get the better of him. Macbeth's guilt, paranoia and eventually sadness at the death of his wife is a serious transgression as traditionally men were meant to hide all emotion. "Will all Great Neptune's ocean wash this blood clean from my hand?" Shakespeare proposes that the roles given to men can not possibly be correct as they are not true to any man, as no man can be expected to withhold all emotion and live without its bitter sweet taste.
