Deception And Deception In Macbeth

The theme, things are not always as they seem, is embodied in numerous works of literature, but perhaps, it is most blatant in Shakespeare’s tragedy Macbeth. Though the entire play is imbued with this theme of deception, it is more clearly crafted in three specific scenes; the dinner with the king, the acts of the witches, and the allusions Macbeth has.

Lady Macbeth and Macbeth’s dishonesty during the dinner scene reinforces the idea that things are not always what they appear to be. When they invite King Duncan over for dinner it is merely a bilk. King Duncan even tells Lady Macbeth, “See, see our honored hostess! The love that follows is sometime is our trouble, which still we thank as love. Herein I teach you how you shall bid God ‘ield us for your pains and thank us for your trouble (Act 1 Scene 6 Line10-13). Lady Macbeth and Macbeth deceive King Duncan into believing that they genially care about him and praise him. The king goes to sleep believing that he is safe and in a house full of friends when in reality, his “friends” will be the ones to murder him. The masks they wear make swindle the others into believing that Macbeth is a war hero and that Lady Macbeth is a warmhearted, loving person. None the less if they are able to persuade and trick even the king, they are able to deceive almost anyone. Even with all the deceits, the blood will always remain on the hands of the killer.

After the murder of the king the guilt begins to infest itself into the killers. Although Macbeth and Lady Macbeth see blood on their hands, it is not actually there. Lady Macbeth wakes up in the middle of the night to wash the nonexistent blood off her hands. The Gentle woman says, “It is an accustomed action with her, to see thus washing he...

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...d not of natural birth, thus not making him born of a woman. He wrongly interprets this vision and it causes him his life. Subsequently the appearances of the witches are not what they seem. When Banquo sees the witches he is unable to recognize that they are women, he says, “By each at once her choppy finger laying upon her skinny lips. You should be women, any yet your beards forbid me to interpret that you are so (Act 1 Scene 3 line45-47).” The witches have beards on their faces, blurring their identity. The witches are the evil and darkness in the play. While they do not physically cause the downfall of any human, they do direct the humans to the path of downfall by their own demise by way of misleading illusions. They not only mislead in their appearances but also in their apparitions. This once again reinforces the facts that things are not always as they seem.