The Hysteria of Lady Macbeth

This short contribution may be called a study in applied abnormal psychology and its object is to lay bare the fundamental mental mechanisms in one of the most prominent and interesting of artistic literary creations. It notably differs from the usual conceptions of Lady Macbeth, since it does not interpret her behavior or motives either as criminal or as obsessed by ambition. If the tragedy be read anew in the light of modern psychopathology, the interpretation herein given will be found t...