"Be innocent of the knowledge, dearest chuck till thou applaud the deed!"

Question

Macbeth

"Be innocent of the knowledge, dearest chuck till thou applaud the deed!"

ACT3 SCENE 2

what does this quote reveal about the part played by lady Macbeth in the plan to kill Banquo?

Asked by keisha p #380110 on 8/1/2014 10:54 PM

Last updated by Annie D #1307459 on 5/17/2023 9:48 AM

Answers 3

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Answered by jill d #170087 on 8/1/2014 11:02 PM

Macbeth is essentially telling his wife that he doesn't want her to know what he's doing until he's done it..... but that she'll be happy with the result.

Answered by Karlene S #800942 on 10/2/2018 10:39 AM

Here, Macbeth is belittling Lady Macbeth. This is shown through the words "my dearest chuck, till thou applaud the deed". The term of endearment used here shows that although Macbeth is becoming more evil and inhuman, he still loves Lady Macbeth. Also, this phrase implies that Macbeth doesn't want Lady Macbeth to know about the plan because he is afraid that she might try to stop him. The word "deed" shows that something will be sealed and done, also there is a hint of evil. In conclusion, Macbeth is leaving his wife out of the plan as a power shift from one to the other begins to occur and Macbeth begins to take control.

Answered by Annie D #1307459 on 5/17/2023 9:48 AM

By telling LM that she should be “innocent”, this has denotations of passiveness, submission, purity, and weakness, qualities which audiences’ traditional cultural assumptions attribute to women. His commandment that she must be innocent of the “knowledge”, reinforces the stereotypical idea that women are clueless, naïve, and are meant to lack the “knowledge” that their husbands have. When he calls LM his “dearest chuck”, Shakespeare’s 17th century audiences would understand this description to be a term of endearment, while contemporary audiences recognise how this is belittling and patronising for LM while he keeps her in the dark about his evil plans to kill Banquo and Fleance. Ultimately, through Macbeth’s commandment of LM that she be clueless, and his dismissal of her, Shakespeare reinforces the traditional gender roles of the 17th century that women are expected to passive, while men are typically independent and free to behave however they please.

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