ENGLISH LITERATURE (CBSE/UGC NET)

FAMOUS PLAYWRIGHT POET AND OTHERS

MACBETH

Question [CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
Lady Macbeth calls on evil spirits to “unsex” her because ____
A
She knows that they are already at work in the play.
B
She knows her husband is too kind to do what needs to be done.
C
She is worried she will be too womanish when the time comes to kill the king.
D
She wants to kill her husband too.
Explanation: 

Detailed explanation-1: -In Act 1 of Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, sensing her husband’s shaky resolve in committing murder to secure the crown of Scotland, asks spirits to “unsex” her ‑ to take away the “weaknesses” associated with being female.

Detailed explanation-2: -Lady Macbeth’s command that these spirits ‘unsex’ here seems to be a request for her femininity or womanhood to be drained out of her, so she is more ‘manly’ and ready to kill. She wishes to be filled instead with ‘direst cruelty’ from head to toe.

Detailed explanation-3: -As she awaits her husband’s arrival, she delivers a famous speech in which she begs, “you spirits / That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, / And fill me from the crown to the toe top-full / Of direst cruelty” (1.5.38–41).

Detailed explanation-4: -What do Lady Macbeth’s words “unsex me here” mean? She vows not to have sex with Macbeth until he becomes king. She wants to set aside feminine sentiments that could hinder bloody ambitions.

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