LexBrew
Vol. 08 · Shakespeare ·Macbeth, Act I.v ·Lady Macbeth

"Unsex me!"

Not quite the line.

How it's usually quoted
"Unsex me!"
What Shakespeare actually wrote
"Come, you spirits / That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here." Lady Macbeth — Macbeth, Act I.v

Why it matters

Out of context the two-word imperative sounds like a transgender anthem; in place, it is a spell summoning demons to strip her of the conscience Elizabethans coded female.

More from the canon.

Browse the rest of the shelf, or try a cold reading.

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