Catwoman: a contemporary Lady Macbeth?

[Catbat]

"Maybe you should retire..."

It recently occured to me how much Catwoman's ambition to substitute Batman as Gotham's vigilante resonate with Lady Macbeth's self-empowering tactics. In a way, both charachters tried to reach major power at the expense of their male counterparts, Lady Macbeth by pushing her husband into assasination, Catwoman by playing a crucial role in framing Batman for the same crime.
Also, the bad influence they both had on their partners has similar effects: while Lady Macbeth was essentially an evil counsellor incidentally corrupting the king's morality, Catwoman uses her sexuality not only to weaken Batman's fighting skills, but also to undermine the very core of his vigilantism in order to eventually "force" him into retirement and possibly take his place.

In addition, it's interesting to notice that both women severely chastize their partners' lack of initiative or failures to underscore their inability to properly do their job. However, while Lady Macbeth saw her rebukes to her husband as a means to spur him into action, Catwoman ridicules Batman in order to demoralize him and convince him that his crusade is futile. Thier last exchange on the rooftop is particularly significant. Catwoman blamed Batman for having killed her the previous night when he reacted to her seduction/stabbing, although she was perfectly aware that she had viciously deceived him with the promise of sex. When he clumsily tried to apologize for that, she immediately derided him by shifting the topic on his general inability to save women. Therefore, Batman's "failure" to deal with her seduction got immediately linked to his insuccess to rescue the Ice Princess, and allowed Catwoman to again use her sarcasm about the retirement option and eventually punish Batman with another stabbing.

Therefore, although Catwoman's ways are much more direct, they probably serve the same agenda as Lady Macbeth's in terms of power play (Freud could also have something to say on the gender war sourrounding their confrontations).

[Catwoman]

Really interesting comparison I wouldn't have thought of in a million years myself. lol.

When I read the title I thought "oh bullsh*t" but after reading it, I definitely can see where you're coming from. I haven't read or even thought about Macbeth since I was in high school so it's a very thought provoking or whatever. I should read Macbeth again, I actually enjoyed it.

I will say this, I never really considered that Catwoman was trying to replace Batsy. That's another interesting theory. I wonder what a Gotham with her as its protector would have been like. Of course the obvious answer is "f***ing awesome." lol

[The Laughing Fish]

It's a fascinating observation Catbat and I don't want to rain down on it, but to be honest, I don't think Catwoman ever intended to replace Batman. She held a grudge against any man who dared to challenge her, and emasculated them whenever she could.

That being said, it does make me wonder how Gotham would have fared if Catwoman did take over as the lone vigilante in the city. I think Gotham would've been worse off because Catwoman was rebellious and had no interest in protecting the public. While it's true that she and Batman were both vengeful when they started wearing costumes, Batman still had Gotham's best interests at heart.