Infertility’s Effects on the Macbeths Essay - 1168 Words

According to the clichà © rhyme,â€Å"First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes the baby in the baby carriage.† What happens, though, if the â€Å"baby in the baby carriage† never comes to fruition? Millions of couples struggle with infertility every year. Despite relentless effort and sometimes even therapy, many relationships become strained by the curse of sterility. Both partners in a childless (yet child-wanting) couple feel the tension of the struggle to become parents. One literature-based couple that struggles with infertility is Shakespeare’s Macbeths. Both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth yearn for a child and react to their unsuccessful attempts at becoming parents in psychologically understandable ways. The inability to bear children†¦show more content†¦They tend to focus their energy back into their work, a place where they feel they can have more success† (â€Å"Emotional Effects†). When considering this tidbit of informatio n, one may connect Macbeth’s behavior of securing his position as king (and thereby killing Duncan) to Lady Macbeth’s irrational behavior and murderous encouragement. Despite the fact that Macbeth is not the only murderous character in the tragedy, he experiences a significant amount of guilt, which is nothing but exacerbated by his infertility. Since men â€Å"are trained to be more instructional to take charge, to make decisions and to think without being sidetracked by emotions,† Macbeth eventually takes it upon himself to murder Banquo without consulting Lady Macbeth (â€Å"Emotional Effects†). Later, however, he greatly regrets his behavior, particularly when he finds himself in the presence of the ghost of Banquo (Shakespeare 101). According to an article by U.S. News World Report, â€Å"people with infertility often feel a sense of†¦regret†(â€Å"Managing Infertility†). Of course, the direct cause of Macbeth’s regret is not the fact that he is infertile, but rather that he has murdered. The guilt of his murderous behavior is, however, intensified by the haunting realization that he has no heirs. The effects of infertility also intensify the