From the crown to the toe, top-full of direst cruelty

This was a rather interesting quote in the play Macbeth. I think that the context in which this was said would be surprising to a viewer of this play in the time period during which the play was written. Lady Macbeth said this line while she made up her mind to murder the king. A lady at that time was thought to be weak, feminine, and full of human compassion, or the “milk” of kindness. This quote shows a sharp contrast to the feminine image. Instead of the lady being weak, the husband is weak. So in order to get what they both want, Lady Macbeth decided to take the task into her own hands to account for her husband’s cowardice. This idea of the wife being the stronger, more determined partner of the marriage was a new idea to society at the time.

 To be filled from the crown to the toe meant that her whole body be filled with evilness. Not just plain cruelty, but the direst, or extremely urgent, cruelty. Now why would anyone want to be full of cruelty at once? The answer is someone who has a burning desire to reach an ambition at any means, even if it meant corrupting their own moral values. I’m sure most of us have pretty high ambitions for our futures, but probably aren’t as willing as Lady Macbeth to do anything to reach it. In Lady Macbeth’s case, her determination to reach her goal was so great that she would kill the king of the land to achieve it. She does not want even a bit of compassion in her body because it would make her feel guilty about assassinating an innocent figure loved by the people. The fact that the king is a virtuous, honorable one means that the murder cannot be justified and will not be righteously looked upon by the people. Her utter desire for power overcomes public opinion and moral justice.