Macbeth And Lies Essay, Research Paper

Shakespeare’s Macbeth is saturated with thought-provoking situations and

enigmas. Many of these enigmas are contradictions or overlapping puzzles.

Equivocations, or things said alongside their opposites, occur often in the

play. The presence of the supernatural also enhances the eluding effect.

Finally, statements made by characters analyzing their own situations often

illustrate the idea of illusion versus actuality. This theme of truth and

reality opposing fallacy and fantasy is a prominent idea in Macbeth. Throughout

the play, especially in the first act, duality and contradiction is commonly

mentioned. Initially, this is seen as the witches speak in the opening scene.

"Fair is foul," they say, "and foul is fair" (I, 1, 12). The

Weird sisters also speak in this manner when they address Banquo. They tell him

he will be "Lesser than Macbeth and greater" (I, 3, 68). Although this

seems perplexing, one later finds that what they say is true; though Banquo does

not become a king he is a better man than Macbeth. In the fourth act, many

things "double." The witches wish upon Macbeth double the pain, and he

wants to be double sure about himself. Another example of equivocation is the

imaginary liar the drunken porter allows into the gates of hell. This further

proves that this eluding form of speech is wicked and deserves punishment. By

saying two separate things together as truth, one is unsure about the validity

of the statement. Another confusing aspect of Macbeth is the reality of the

impossible and supernatural. The witches, whether real or illusion, had an

enormous effect on the lives of the characters. They make Macbeth believe he has

control over his fate, and by doing so they have changed his fate. The

apparitions they bring about also have great impact on Macbeth’s plans and state

of mind. These images contradict one another, making him be more concerned with

which statement is true, than the apparitions’ own legitimacy. One, an armed

head, cries, "Beware Macduff!/ Beware the Thane of Fife!" (IV, 1,

81-82). The next ghost, a bloody child, tells Macbeth, "Laugh to scorn/The

power of man, for none of woman born/ shall harm Macbeth" (IV, 1, 90-93).

One would be skeptical of these prophecies, because one says to beware Macduff

and another says not to fear anyone. Macbeth, however, continues to put his

trust in them, and this leads to his downfall. The dramatic climax occurs when

Macbeth sees the ghost of Banquo sitting at his dinner table. He is the only one

who can see the ghost, and the dinner guests think their host is going crazy.

Certainly, the existence of this ghost, visible only to one man, is

questionable. Through all their trials, the main characters agree that

appearance is often a poor indication of reality. This is seen from the point of

view of both the liars and the deceived. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth say that they

should hide their ambitions from Duncan and the other guests. "False face

must hide what the false heart doth know," says Macbeth at the close of Act

1 (I, 7, 95). Lady Macbeth encourages herself and her husband to pretend to be

peaceful but be offensive and wicked. There is also a lot of mention of clothes,

which cover and loosely hide what is truly underneath. Malcolm, who is cautious

of cover-ups and lies, eloquently says to Macduff, "Though all things foul

would wear the brows of grace/ Yet grace must still look so" (IV, 3,

29-30). This means that everything, even evil things, can appear harmless and

pure. Nothing should be judged only by its visible attributes. The dual nature

of people and situations, confusing the issue of fact and fantasy, is a major

theme illustrated in Macbeth. This is seen first through the equivocations of

the Weird sisters and others. Also, the supernatural beings and occurrences

reinforce the idea. Lastly, characters’ notice of the triviality of appearance

further demonstrates the theme. Because Macbeth was too trusting in that which

could not be trusted, he was bound to fall tragically.