How does Shakespeare present gender stereotypes in 'Macbeth'?

STRUCTURE
In 'Macbeth', Shakespeare presents gender roles as out of rational order through the use of character presence in the play.

• Lady Macbeth begins Act 1, Scene 5 and even tells Macbeth he is "too full" of "th'milk of human kindness".
•  Moreover, the witches begin the entire play which suggests they move the play forward. 
• A Jacobean audience may be stunned as contemporaneously, women were often believed to be rather illogical thinkers and inferior to men. However, the witches and Lady Macbeth seem to be equals to men, as both genders begin and end scenes
• A male ends the whole play which creates a balanced share of power. A modern audience may feel more at ease with women starting the play but may be rather impressed as the witches move the plot forward by offering the prophesies. 
• By allowing women to begin the play and scene, Shakespeare may be appealing to the contemporary interest of witchcraft. Women were often thought to be witches as opposed to men hence by making them seem more powerful by presenting them as equals to men, enhances the dark powers the witches can have thus causing fear into the audience. A Jacobean audience may have fancied the thrill as even King James I, a royal patron for Shakespeare's Theatre Company wrote a book on his finds regarding witchcraft ('Daemonologie').
• Thus, gender roles are presented out of rational order to cause a thrill to the audience and perhaps to challenge contemporary gender roles as Shakespeare knew he had a powerful audience like King James I. Although, rather than challenging the gender roles, he is using them to satisfy the audience by evoking a sense of horror and terror through the witches being conveyed as powerful; allowing their manipulative power to be unleashed.

LANGUAGE 

He uses a lexical field of gender in order to make the audience question the nature of the different sexes.

STRUCTURE

Shakespeare breaks gender stereotypes through the use of contrasts. For instance, when Macduff's wife and children are slaughtered, he says he will much rather "feel it as a man" which opposes traditionally views of masculinity of not being sensitive and emotionally over-stimulated.

• He breaks gender stereotypes as both women and men speak in iambic pentameter.

FORM 

Overall control of the novel.

However, Shakespeare conforms to gender stereotypes through the use of Tragedy which means 'Macbeth' is the protagonist. However, Lady Macbeth controls his actions and is a underlying force to his character downfall although he fights and hears the prophesies.

FACTS: 

In Macbeth, men derive their power from different sources.

Men generally gain their power from military or political means.

Men in the highest ranks of the military had greater chances of ascending rank.

However, the females gain power through marriage. However, Lady Macbeth uses Macbeth to gain power as she becomes Queen as Macbeth becomes King. Lady Macbeth is behind most of Macbeth's gain of rank.