In the study of three Shakespeare plays, Twelfth Night or What You Will, The Tragedy of Richard II, and Henry IV, Part 1, one of the themes presented is the contrast between "appearance and reality". Sometimes the confusion is comical, other times it's simply tragic. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay When examining Shakespeare's Twelfth Night or What You Will, it becomes apparent that the theme of "appearance versus reality" is evident in many different ways. levels. One of the comic devices used is the mistaken identity of the twins Viola and Sebastian. We are asked to believe that these two fraternal twins who are brother and sister are so identical in appearance that, when dressed similarly, they are indistinguishable from each other. Viola's disguise is so effective that the beautiful Olivia mistakes her for a young man (Cesario) and falls in love, not only with her appearance, but also with the intelligence and grace with which he addresses her. The illusion is so complete that when Olivia sees Sebastian, she assumes he is the person she already knows. Sebastian is perplexed by her advances, but decides to accept the beautiful Olivia for who she is (Bates). Malvolio is a character whose very essence personifies "appearance versus reality". He is a totally self-centered person who daydreams of running Olivia's house as her master. He presents himself as a very pious and holier-than-thou administrator of his mistress's affairs, when in reality he is just looking for a way to further his ambitious desires. When the pompous Malvolio finds the love letter (presumably from Olivia) that Maria wrote for the purpose of luring him, he is already so in love with himself that it is easy for him to believe that Olivia is in love with him too. . He is so pretentious that Sir Toby, Sir Andrew and their friend Fabian want to beat him for his hypocrisy, and Maria enjoys seeing him make a fool of himself. Since Malvolio is a fool who thinks he is wise, Feste is a very intelligent man who comes across as a fool. He hides his knowledge behind his displays of foolishness (Bates). His witty criticisms and observations on the events of the play belie his role as a fool in Lady Olivia's house. His role as a fool allows him to engage in some conversational jousting with Viola, who, without taking offense, even rewards him for his wit while, at the same time, acknowledging that he might be smart enough to see through his disguise. He "is wise enough to play the fool, and to do it well he needs a kind of wit", Viola says of him. Feste even hints that he has intuited that Viola is in disguise when he jokes, “Now Jupiter in his next commodity of hair sent a beard [referring to pubic hair] (Shakespeare 458).” Neither is quite what they seem, although both are able to see through the other's disguise with little trouble. It's ironic because the entitled fool is actually no fool at all and the real fool, Sir Andrew, is the character. It is this interaction that reveals two types of fools, the conscious fool and the unconscious fool. In Twelfth Night it is essentially the unwitting fools who provide the real comedy, while the wise Feste adds insight into the larger meaning of the play. It is by acting crazy that Feste gets the privilege of telling the truth to the people around him. Through these truths, which are playfully directed at another, Feste's keen perception of others is revealed (Knisley). Richard II is shown as an outwardly self-confident and inwardly corrupt ruler very early in the play. He likes external appearancesof being a monarch and, due to his belief in his own divinity, is arrogant enough to think he has the right to do whatever he wants. This discrepancy between the appearance of kingship and the reality of the ruling will ultimately lead to Richard's downfall and loss of the crown. In the opening scene, the conflict between Bolingbroke and Mowbray is confusing because it is unclear who is telling the truth. The focus is on Richard's answers. While they address Richard in a very formal and conventional manner, the two men's elaborate rhetoric hides their true nature until their empty display of loyalty to the king turns into a barrage of angry accusations. Bolingbroke (later to become King Henry IV) appears to revere the king's office and obeys Richard's order of exile. When he later learns of Richard's acquisition of land that rightfully belongs to him, he still claims that all he wants is what is his, appearing to have no intention of usurping the throne. Soon, however, he shows an incredible inclination to do so when he sees how much support is given to him by Northumberland, Ross and Willoughby. They and other nobles are angry at Richard for his taxation and are disgusted by his ruthless theft of Gaunt's property. Although Richard prides himself on his wisdom and practicality, he abuses the power of his position and ultimately leads to his own deposition (Boyce 536). After Richard's exile, Bolingbroke asks, seemingly rhetorically, "Shall no friend deliver me from this living fear?" This is misinterpreted by Exton as a request to kill the former king, but after doing so, Bolingbroke condemns him for it. It is evident that Richard's death weighs heavily on the new king and he announces his desire to go to the Holy Land to ease his guilty conscience. In Henry IV, Part 1, one of the most pronounced examples of "appearance versus reality" is Prince Hal: the young reveler who shows that his lack of respect for the conventions of court life is just a mask hiding a man who , after all, takes his duty as the future king seriously. At the end of Act I, scene 2, Hal switches from prose to polite verse and reveals that his "dissolute behavior" is only a disguise. He realizes that the contrast between his current exploits and his future reform will be all the more dramatic when it occurs (Shakespeare 893). Falstaff is also a brilliant example of the contrast between appearance and reality. He is a combination of many different types of characters: "The moral drama vice, the braggart soldier?, the wisecracking parasite, and the Fool? (Baker 887)." As he struts around the world of the common people, promoting drinking and eating to excess, he engages in remarkably witty conversations, revealing the intelligence beneath the lewd exterior. Trying to decide what is real or counterfeit, true or false, is one of the play's major concerns. The characters ask each other to decide on the accuracy of news and reports, on different versions of the story, and on the reality of a man's reputation. Since Henry IV's claim to the crown is dubious due to the way he obtained it, all other claims to authenticity begin to be doubted. The image of stolen and broken "crowns", representing both coins and the symbol of royalty, highlights the fact that the usurpation of the crown is simply passed off as legal and legitimate. In Richard II and Henry IV, Part 1, there is the undeniable element of betrayal among the nobles who often appear to support one side, when in reality they are planning something completely different behind the scenes. Shakespeare writes plays that speak to audiences on many levels. One of the themes that recurs in many of his works is that, 1997.