Appearance Vs. Reality
Throughout the course of their life, every human being will experience a time during which they are deceived by what appears to be true, while there is an underlying reality that they are utterly unaware of. People use words, actions, and emotions to deceive people into believing they are genuine thus keep reality concealed. In William Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, the dichotomy of appearance vs. reality is incessantly used to intensify the plot of the play. The characters are blinded by what they see to be true, making it difficult for them to be able to distinguish between what is actually real and what appears to be real. The detachment between appearance and reality all through Macbeth adds suspense to the play and deepens the drama within the plot.
The play Macbeth opens with a disorderly scene where the three witches are introduced. All together they say, “Fair is foul, and foul is fair:” (Act I, scene i, line 11), which sets the evil tone for the play, and initiates the idea of appearances being misleading and deceptive. What is seen to be good and pleasant to the witches may be seen as awful and bad to others, and vise versa. Later on when Macbeth is told he shall be king by the weird sisters, he is unable to see the true malicious intents of the witches because he can only think of the good that they are telling him. He says “This supernatural soliciting/ Cannot be ill, cannot be good; if ill/ Why hath it given me earnest of success,” (I, iii, 131-133). Macbeth questions why they would pledge to him something so magnificent if they are supposedly so evil. He cannot see the ill will that truly lies within them because he is deceived by their false appearance of virtue. This is the starting point of ...
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...pleasant and secure to Duncan, the reality is Macbeth is planning on killing him. Duncan is completely unaware of his fate, creating dramatic irony as well as a great deal of suspense for the audience.
The division of reality and appearance within Macbeth generates a great deal of tension and suspense into the plot of the play. The deceivingly good appearances and immoral intentions of the characters makes it difficult to deduce what their true intent is. The separation between what is real and what appears to be real is plays an extremely important role in the play. Without the detachment between appearance and reality, characters would never be triggered to their downfall because they would never be mislead from what the honest truth is. Thus, the contradiction between appearance and reality is necessary to magnify the drama and anticipation within the plot.
Encompassing all the evidence that has been presented and after reading and viewing Polanski and Shakespeare's renditions of MACBETH it is logical to come to the conclusion that ambition and deceptive appearances is central to the dramatic development of MACBETH. Without ambition MACBETH would not have pursued his path to become King of Scotland so viciously. Deceptive appearances is the key to this play because without hiding reality all the evil enfolding this play, all the intentions of protagonist and the other characters would have been revealed. Without the centralisation of these themes, MACBETH would have been altered and the plot would be non-existent.
The Witches introduce the theme with the infamous phrase “Fair is foul, and foul is fair” (scene 1, line 11) in the first scene. It’s functional for the Witches to say this in the beginning of the book, as they are the start of all the perplexity. They become the core of confusion when they awaken Macbeth’s ambition and transform his perspective of good and evil, making bad things look good and good things look bad. Ironically in connection with this, Banquo warns Macbeth, “Win us with honest trifles, to betray’s In deepest consequence” (1/3/125-126). The Witches continue to speak in contradicting language, such as “lesser than Macbeth, and greater” (1/3/65) and “Not so happy, yet much happier” (1/3/66) that adds to the sense of moral confusion, by implying that nothing is quite what it seems. Banquo’s warning is fulfilled at the end of the play when the Witches had won Macbeth’s trust with prophecies that became true –‘honest trifles’- and then betray him in the things that really mattered, his life and his country -‘deepest consequence’- to win his spirit for hell.
Throughout the ages, people have been deceived by appearances. Whether it is a first impression or a superficial relationship, the old adage to “not judge a book by it’s cover” is ageless. In the play Macbeth, Shakespeare captured that aspects of deceit by creating a few characters who seem to be innocent and trustworthy, but as the play proceeds, their heart’s wickedness surpasses the fake outward appearance. People should temper judgment. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s innocent appearance gives way to deceitful and evil desires.
Appearance does not always agree with reality. A limited view on an event or a subject will likely lead to a limited or even false conclusion. For example, in Shakespeare’s tragic play Macbeth, the Scottish nobles viewed main character Macbeth as a "bloody tyrant"; for the readers, Macbeth is not total evil character, but nearly a hero with much physical strength and greatness. Only if he didn’t betray his king, he would’ve been a great thane. This essay is going to be dealt with this difference in appearance and reality of Macbeth
Appearances can be described as a “glimpse of the unseen”. Imagine opening your favourite chocolate bar only to discover it was not the kind portrayed on the outer wrapper. Imagine purchasing an item online and when it arrives it’s not what you expected. Shakespeare depicts this concept well in the infamous play Macbeth; although, doing it with more clarity and depth. The witches and Lady Macbeth use manipulative words to alter Macbeth and his thoughts and decisions. Macbeth, becoming the King of Scotland, displayed himself as two very different characters and failed to fully conceal the horrible deeds he committed, thus affecting the people and how they viewed him. Shakespeare portrays deceptive appearances as a negative chain reaction, starting
Among the greatest gifts that the renaissance produced was the eloquent and incredible Shakespearean plays. Written mostly in the 1590s these plays have been performed and admired countless times; entertaining mass audiences by providing interesting tales that explore the depth of human insights and the different universal themes. Among the many Shakespearean plays Macbeth, written in 1606, stands out with its short composition but multiple themes. This tragedy narrates the tale of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s quest to grasp ultimate power by ignoring their morals and succumbing to their dark desires, which ultimately leads to their downfall. This tragic play portrays the desires, needs, and temptations that accompany ambition in men and women. However the ambition in Macbeth is blind, it does not abide to the morals, but it allows space for dark actions as means necessary for accomplishment. Blind ambition serves as the main driving force that drives Macbeth to subdue to his dark desires, defy his noble behavior, and ultimately his downfall.
In the play of “Macbeth”, Shakespeare gradually and effectively deepens our understanding of the themes and most importantly the relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. The main theme of Macbeth is ambition, and how it compels the main characters to pursue it. The antagonists of the play are the three witches, who symbolise the theme appearance and reality. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s relation is an irony throughout the play, as most of their relation is based on greed and power. This is different from most of Shakespeare’s other plays, which are mostly based on romance and trust. There is also guilt that leads Macbeth and Lady Macbeth to the final consequences of the play. As the progresses, the constant changes in Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are exposed.
In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, a selfish Scottish thane becomes over-ambitious and commits several murders in order to gain and stay in power. After the murders, Macbeth evades suspicion by hiding his guilt and intentions, therefore deceiving others into thinking that he is innocent. Other characters including Lady Macbeth, the witches and the Scottish thanes also use their appearances to hide the truth and deceive others. With these examples, Shakespeare shows that appearances can be deceiving.
Macbeth: Appearance vs Reality? & nbsp; & nbsp; & nbsp; The way people act on the outside and who they really are on may be two totally different things. Some may change because they feel they don't fit in the sand. Others pretend to be something they truly aren't. No matter which. The way you look at it, if you try to act like someone your not, the truth will. always appear in the end. That is exactly what happened in William. Shakespeare's play, MacBeth. Banquo, MacBeth, and Lady MacBeth each project an. image, but as time passes.
Illusion versus reality is often referred to as deception of appearances. This is when something or something portrays itself as what it is not. Just like disguise, deception of appearances is an appearance in order to conceal one's true attitude or identity. This is related to the idiom "Do not judge a book, by its cover" and the metaphor "A wolf in sheep's clothing." In the play Macbeth, most characters deceived others by their outward appearances. An example of a character that was deceptive with his appearances was main character Macbeth.
Reality is the state of being real or actual, whereas an illusion is a mental misinterpretation of what is believed to be true. Illusions often prevent people from perceiving reality and objective truths, which consequently results in delusions, and in some cases, tragedies. In Macbeth, a play written by William Shakespeare, the theme of illusion versus reality is overtly evident in the main character, Macbeth. Macbeth frequently misinterprets illusions as the actual reality due to possessing such an untamed ambition, which ultimately ends up resulting in a series of tragic and horrific events, for Macbeth and his victims. Macbeth’s ambition first leads him into believing that he is destined to become King of Scotland, which results in Duncan’s death. Macbeth’s ambition then affects his mental health, which causes him to mistake his hallucinations for reality, eventually resulting in further detrimental acts. Finally, Macbeth’s ambition blinds him into living a life of delusion, which causes him to reach his peak of arrogance and optimism, resulting in even further detriment and ultimately his very fall. Just as ambitions are incredibly illusive and detrimental in Macbeth, they can also be incredibly illusive and detrimental in our actual, modern day society.
Initially, the Elizabethan audience consider Macbeth as a respectable and well like character. We do however learn that appearances can be deceptive which corresponds with the main theme; 'Fair is foul, Foul is fair' which is referred to a lot throughout the play. This theme is first introduced in Act I, Scene I where the witches foretell the struggle between the forces of evil and good in which Macbeth is to be involved. It is also an indication that all will not be as it seems. This portrays a character as being much worse if the audience's first impressions of that character were positive.
Macbeth is a play revolving around many key ideas observed in Shakespeare’s time with various messages communicated to the audience successfully, despite the lack of the cinematic effects present in today’s literature entertainment. The interweaved themes of immoral ambition and corruption are displayed throughout the text, unveiling the corruptive nature of one’s excessive greed for supremacy, affecting both themselves and others. This idea in Macbeth is successfully conveyed to the audience in Shakespeare’s time through the literary devices of characterisation, soliloquy and plot.
In conclusion, this theme of appearance versus reality is developed and presented through different characters in the play which include The Witches, Lady Macbeth and Macbeth. All these three characters paint a vivid picture of their personalities on the outside; but as proven, they are different on the inside. Interestingly, Macbeth’s first line in the play is “So foul and fair a day I have not seen” (1, 3, 36), showing that Macbeth is the core of the play’s moral confusion from the start of this play. It is made clear that Shakespeare identifies what he sees in life as the world’s fatal flaw, the inability to distinguish between appearance and reality. However, no matter what, reality will conquer appearance whether it is slow in the case of Macbeth or abrupt like Lady Macbeth’s, the truth will always emerge at the end.
"Macbeth" begins with the witches, three haggard old women, appearing in thunder and lighting which, in those times, conjured up superstitions of unrest and creatures of darkness. They chant in eerie tones and indicate that their next meeting will be on the hearth "ere the setting sun" to confront Macbeth. (Shakespeare, (I., i.) They continue chanting, "fair is foul, and foul is fair," (Shakespeare, I.,i) indicating that moral order will change and lead to confusion. The witches may allude to a fair thing, but it has a hidden meaning that is foul. Good is evil, and evil is good. [not a quote] (Shakespeare, I.,i) ; the witches are evil and love evil. They vanish the scene as quickly as they had appeared.