Paper Title
The Private Versus Public Self of Lady Macbeth: Strength Versus Evil!

Abstract
The life and the Elizabethan world of William Shakespeare was completely patriarchal where women were the ‘lesser halves’ always dependent on their menfolk. Despite the fact that the throne of England was ascended by an unmarried queen, Elizabeth the first, men had an upper hand in the societal existence even demeaning the existence of women at times. In such times, Shakespeare created one of the finest examples of strong, defiant, and independent women characters in his dramas; sometimes even in antagonism with their principal male characters. He must have had some mettle to have done so amidst the risk of all criticism, thereby, risking all his popularity and voice in the society. Most of his women characters have complicated personalities where the elements of defiance and submission exist in them altogether at the same time. Be it submissive Portia in front of Bassanio or a strong schemer when disguised as Balthazar in the famous Trial scene of The Merchant of Venice. A docile and timid Hero in the presence of her father, Leonato, whereas an opinionated woman when wooed by Don Pedro in Much Ado About Nothing. Who can ever ignore the forever famous, or so to say, infamous Lady Macbeth from Macbeth who was even considered the fourth witch and appears to be having multiple guises all throughout the play! The Private self of hers who is a determined, loving and manipulative one with her husband merely a pawn in the game or the Public self who is ambitious, evil and blood thirsty in addition to being a clever schemer planning the murder of the then king, Duncan. In doing so she along with her husband have performed what was a taboo in the medieval Scotland: killing a sleeping guest/ king while the latter is unaware of the dangers ahead. This research paper throws light on the various aspects of her character in diverse situations faced by her. Keywords - Patriarchal, Elizabethan Women, Antagonism, Taboo