In this act, Shakespeare uses Lady Macbeth to show how the guilt of killing four innocent people affected her. Especially when they killed King Duncan, since it was ultimately Lady Macbeth's idea. During this time, “Macbeth informs his wife of the good things that have happened to him, and she sees only a bloody stairway to the future” (Cohen par. 1). This means that no matter what happens in the future, the Macbeths will only follow a bloody path until something changes. That is until a doctor and a gentlewoman are assigned to watch over Lady Macbeth while she sleeps. The reason they are there to watch over Lady Macbeth is that she started sleeping, walking and talking because of the guilt she felt. When Lady Macbeth walks in her sleep, she continually moves her hands in motion, as if she is washing her hands to try to remove an immovable part from her hands. He also says things like: “Get out of the damn place! out, I say!” (5.1.31) in hopes of getting the spot. Ultimately, “Lady Macbeth no longer actively manifests the unconscious; but he is passively subject to it” (Willbern 26). Shakespeare uses the image of her constantly washing her hands to show that no matter what Lady Macbeth tries to do, the bloodstain of murder will never leave her.