Why doe s she ask for the spirits to fill her with "direst cruelty" and "make thick my blood"?
Answer: She wants the spirits to make her stronger and crueler, so that she can persuade Macbeth to kill Duncan.
Explanation:
In Shakespeare's Macbeth, Lady Macbeth and her husband devise a plan to murder the current king, so that Macbeth can become a king himself. Lady Macbeth is more ambitious than her husband, and, since Macbeth is having second thoughts about killing the king, realizes that she must convince him to 'do the deed'. This is why she calls upon the supernatural to make her strong enough and carry out the plan. In the same speech, she asks the spirits to 'unsex me here' - to give her the qualities and strength which are normally found in a man.
What does this speech reveal about her character?
Answer: At this point in the play, Lady Macbeth is presented as a strong, female heroine, willing to take her family's life into her own hands. However, at the same time, she is consumed with guilt.
Explanation:
At the beginning of the play, it seems that Lady Macbeth is more ambitious than her husband, and mentally stronger. However, she has guilty conscience about the idea of killing an innocent man. She needs to 'make thick her blood' and convince her husband to commit murder. This proves that she is a decisive women, willing to take her family's future into her own hands. Had it not been for Lady Macbeth, Macbeth probably would not have killed Duncan. However, after Duncan's murder, Lady Macbeth will become haunted by guilt, and will take her own life.
