The theme of manhood and womanhood is prevalent throughout Macbeth's play. Macbeth's distorted concept of manhood combined with Lady Macbeth's distorted concept of manhood and femininity ultimately lead to Macbeth's downfall and Lady Macbeth's suicide. Shakespeare uses the technique of gender bending in Macbeth, where a woman will possess masculine qualities and a man will possess feminine qualities. This plays an important role in Macbeth. Minor characters such as Lady Macduff, Macduff, Malcolm and others deal with questions such as what is manhood and what is womanhood. Their responses determine the course of action they will take in different situations. After the opening scene of the three witches, the show moves to the battlefield where a sergeant speaks highly of Macbeth. He says, “For brave Macbeth – well, he deserves that name – / Disdaining fortune, with his steel brandished” (1.2.16-17). Macbeth displays courage, bravery, and loyalty, three traits associated with manliness in the traditional sense. Subsequently, these traits will be separated from each other and perverted. (Ramsey 265) Then in scene 3, Macbeth and Banquo meet the witches. After meeting them, Banquo says, "You should be women, / Yet your beards prevent me from interpreting / That you are." (1.3.45-48). The witches are the first example of Shakespeare using gender bending. Witches look like women, but they have beards, which is a virile quality. This seems to represent that they are both sexes, but they are neither sexes. They are supernatural beings, not humans. Witches can only prophesy and manipulate with no other purpose than to deceive anyone of their choosing. Later in the act, Lady Macbeth is introduced, and it is she who favors Macbeth's... medium of paper... ..manliness as “naked aggression” left no room for morality or reason. Then Macbeth went on a killing spree, for his manhood. This play shows how a perverse definition of a concept can cause chaos. Works Cited Dash, Irene G. Women's Worlds in Shakespeare's Plays. Np: University of Delaware Press, 1997. Print.Gerwig, George William. Shakespeare's ideals of femininity. Np: Kessinger Publishing Company, 1995. Print.Rackin, Phyllis. Shakespeare and women. Np: Oxford University Press, 2005. Print.Ramsey, Jarold. "Gender and sexual roles". 1973. Shakespeare for Students. Np: Thomas Gale, 1992. 263-269. Print.Shakespeare, William. MacBeth. Ed. Alan Durband. Np: Barron's Educational Series, 2004. Print. Shakespeare made easy. "Themes, Motifs and Symbols". SparkNote. Np, 2009. Web. 12 December. 2009. .