Thursday, May 6, 2010

Death... Oh yes, lots of death

After all, what is a Shakespearian tragedy without a lot of people dying horribly? I suppose, however, that this play is comparatively tame when put next to Titus Andronicus.

Of course, it is Shakespeare, and therefore, I am left with ambiguous feelings. Lady Macbeth's death, to me, is the most confusing. Am I happy that she's dead? Not really. Certainly, she deserves death, for what she took part in, and what she caused, but yet, I can't help but feel a bit depressed at the whole thing. Perhaps it's because we had to watch her gradually descend into madness, and then, if I interpret correctly, she kills herself? How upbeat.

For some reason, Macbeth's death doesn't seem as disturbing to me. Perhaps, in a weird way, it's because of the way he died. He was beheaded, yes, but for some reason, being put to death as a punishment for regicide is a lot less emotionally disturbing to me than killing oneself because she's going crazy.

Steve Martin once said, "If you're studying geology, which is all facts, as soon as you get out of school you forget it all… but philosophy, you remember just enough to screw you up for the rest of your life." I think that applies to literature, as well, because this play has being screwing with my head for the last few days.

What is it about this character, a horrible woman who persuaded her husband to do terrible things due to her own ambitions, that makes her death seem unsatisfying? Perhaps there is something about her that I can empathize with, though I cannot imagine what. I haven't been involved in regicide lately. Perhaps it is just the magic of Shakespeare.

Or perhaps I really have learned just enough to screw me up for the rest of my life.

2 comments:

LC said...

I felt much the same way after King Lear. Cordelia's death really resonated with me for some reason. I wrote in my last blog post that I thought it was senseless, though after a little consideration, I'm beginning to understand why Shakespeare included it. Lear had to lose everything he thought he didn't need, in a way; his title, his closest daughter, etc.

Anyway, I'm rambling. Lady Macbeth, to me, is one of the more twisted female main characters that I've ever come across. I think I accepted her death wholeheartedly because I thought she needed to die, though it might also have something to do with the fact that it wasn't a shock. This is probably the third or fourth time I've read the play, after all.

Emily Turck said...

I really enjoyed your attention to Lady Macbeth. She certainly is an interesting character, and the audience isn't always sure how to view her. She is very ambiguous in that you don't know if you are happy or sad to see her death. I think you are right that we feel sympathy for her because we see her decline into insanity.