Disguise and Mistaken Identity in Twelfth Night

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Write about the significance of disguise and mistaken identity in Twelfth Night Shakespeare’s use of disguise and mistaken identity is significant to the plot of Twelfth Night as it is the thread that runs through the entire fabric of the play; and is instrumental in providing confusion, misunderstanding, and ultimately – love. Almost all of the characters in this play either carry out some sort of identity deception, or are deceived by someone else doing much the same thing. Primarily we have the play’s protagonist, Viola, who resorts to gender deception in order to get a job in what is essentially a male dominated society. It is noteworthy to mention that in Shakespeare’s time, female roles were played by males, and the idea of a male playing a female who disguises herself as a male is doubly ironic, creating an even greater comic element, and in effect would have been hilarious to the theatre goer. We also have Malvolio, who dresses in what is effectively a disguise to impress Olivia, and Feste who acts like a fool when he clearly is not, and disguises himself as a pastor in order to trick Malvolio. In addition, although not disguising himself in a physical sense, Sir Toby Belch hides his true nature in order to befriend the very affluent Sir Andrew Aguecheek who has “three thousand ducats a year”. We could even say that Olivia also disguises herself to some extent, hiding behind her mourning veil in order to avoid Orsino’s advances. All of these characters combine to contribute a number of amusing yet sometimes poignant moments in the play. The dramatic backdrop of a shipwreck, and the apparent death of Viola’s twin, Sebastian, sets the scene for Act I scene 1 perfectly, introducing a grief-stricken Viola who is lost without her brother. “And what shall I do in Illyria? My brother he is in Elysium”. She is alone in the world and has no choice but
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