Why Is The Titular Character in “Serena” Regularly Compared to Lady Macbeth?
Lady Macbeth was the powerful and ambitious wife to Macbeth, the protagonist of one of Shakespeare’s most notable plays. She goads her husband to commit regicide as a means of establishing herself the Queen of Scotland. Literary analysts describe her character as strong, cruel, and dissimulative. She subdues typical characteristics of femininity and motherhood to focus on her own initiatives, well aware of her own strength and power over her weak-willed husband. Most importantly, despite her command over Macbeth, she is unquestionably devoted to him.
Almost every popular review of Serena (2015) draws comparison between its titular character and Lady Macbeth - see reviews from Slant, The Dissolve, The New Yorker, Herald News, and Slate, as a few examples.
While George Pemberton (Bradley Cooper) in Serena is not as frail as Macbeth in regards to his overall abilities, he does find himself at the whim of his enterprising wife Serena (Jennifer Lawrence) much the same as the Shakespearian character. The above description of Lady Macbeth perfectly mirrors the qualities of Serena, a woman operating outside the supposed gender norms of her time, coercing those around her and possessing a substantial influence over her husband.