Apperences vs. Reality in Twelfth Night Essay - 851 Words

Appearances vs. Reality M.C Escher said, â€Å"Are you really sure that a floor cant also be a ceiling?† This quote is saying that what you see and what is actually there can be two different things. Appearances versus reality is a recurring theme in William Shakespeare’s play, Twelfth Night . Appearances hide an important reality and sometimes can get in the way of a character from developing or attaining his or her goal. The problems that happen involve disguises and deceit of one form or another and create tension amongst the characters. The reason Shakespeare has this recurring theme is because of the comedy that comes with it. It is funny for the reader to see the situational irony that occurs and is what makes the play.†¦show more content†¦Malvolio is mislead at one point of the play by Maria and Sir Toby. They write him a fake letter that is supposedly from Olivia saying how much she loves him. He only believes the letter because he loves her so much and will believe a nd do whatever it takes to be with her. This is his down fall with what appears to be a good situation for him, but is actually people playing tricks on him. He acts how he really feels in front of Olivia to only turn her off, and because of his own pride causes him to act foolish. Love itself is an appearance that beats reality when its taken to lightly and overcomes the reality so all you can see is the appearance of love. Count Orsino believes he is in love with Lady Olivia, however he is in love with the idea of being in love. He claims to love Olivia but really he is growing very fond of Viola/Cesario, this appears to be him loving these two women but is actually like stated previously him being in love with the idea of being in love. With Olivia mourning the death of her brother it is a viable excuse not to see men at the moment. However in