Can’t Raise a Man - Lady Macbeth

While tv shows and movies have genres, society sections off individuals into different groups as well. When society groups people they typically put them into different groups, either lacking or having femininity or masculinity. Being “feminine” in a social context means to be delicate,gentle, sensitive, or dainty; while being masculine refers to rough,harsh,aggressive,or confident. Masculinity is shown and described throughout the play Macbeth. In the play, William Shakespeare puts emphasis on how a man should distinguish himself away from femininity. Macbeth, inherently traditionalizes the concept of masculinity by incorporating the notion into the play.

The true definition of masculinity can be recognized widely by the way that men tend to act, or carry themselves. In this play, Macbeth consistently tries to prove himself as the alpha male. This is not a surprise seeing as me believed women couldn’t. Many men were taught how to act as a man kings or by their fathers. With this being known, there might always be an underlying competition amongst the men on who could be superior; a fight to be king is regularly portrayed in Macbeth. Men are held to the standard of being a constant gentleman, and they are to handle their business as adult tradesmen. Men know not to deviate from their roles because they can face constant bashing and rude banter from their peers. They could lose respect and be looked down upon by their cohorts. Most men understand and know fully what they are expected to do and how they are expected to act. Competition is imminent amongst them and challenges were a constant activity. Many men challenge each other to prove their superiority. Shakespeare’s Macbeth shows no exception to this. He manifests the idea of complete masculinity with no femininity present. Femininity is looked down on in the play as a weakness. Any gentleness or sensitivity shown in a man drew questions to a man’s masculinity. Men in the play act impulsively only to overly present their masculinity. Shakespeare creates his male characters with passionate will and desire, which drives the