A paradox is something that seems self-contradictory. In order to strengthen her husband's resolve to embark on the path of murder, Lady Macbeth acts very tough. She wants to be unsexed and divorced from the emotions of compassion, pity and nurturance that are associated with a woman, most particularly a woman's breast, in order to make Macbeth king. She tells Macbeth she would dash her baby's brains out if she had promised to do so when he tries to reconsider whether or not it is a good idea to murder Duncan, and claims a little water will wash away the blood of their crimes.
However, the inner psyche of Lady Macbeth is at odds with the image of the ruthless killer she tries to project. In the end, she pays the price of her immense guilt, which leads her to sleepwalk and to try in vain to wash off the blood she dreams stain her hands. She has a conscience that arises to haunt her, despite her best attempts early in the play to suppress it. Eventually, it destroys her.
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