Literature Essay

Disguise, as a theme, is heavily interwoven throughout the entirety of the play,

Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare. In the Elizabethan Era, one’s attire was used to
express both a person’s wealth and social stature. Shakespeare, in this play, focuses on love
and utilising disguise, the change of one’s character, he concretizes the truly extreme extents
in which people go into in search of love. Characters in the play showcase the positives and
negatives that the deception of disguises. In the play, the audience are witnesses Viola’s
transformation into Cesario to help with her pursuit of Duke Orsino’s favour and Malvolio,
who naively conforms to the “supposed” Lady Olivia’s requests of him in hopes this may
secure her hand in marriage.
Viola was a woman who arrived in Illyria, after being washed up onto the coast. As a
character, she was witty and using this quality, she conjures up a plan to disguise as a man to
find a place favourable for her desires. Cesario, being the name of choice, became her second
life as she exploited the advantages that men had when compared to women. As the Duke’s
pageboy, the negatives of her disguise is revealed to the audience. She is tasked by Orsino,
the man which she loves, to aid in his courtship of Lady Olivia. In act three scene one,
“Would it be better, madam, than I am? I wish it might, for now I am a fool,” Viola wishes to
return to the life in which she once had in hopes of bettering her chances with Orsino. This is
in light of Olivia’s confession of love to Viola disguised as Cesario, thus forming a love
triangle among the three characters.
Malvolio is an authoritative figure in the play, working as Steward in Lady Olivia’s
House. Due to his high position, he must enforce order among the workers lower in position
to him, which leads to these workers duping him into believe that Olivia had fallen for him.
Maria, who was also ironically disguised as Olivia, instructs him to alter his appearance and
mannerisms into what is revealed to be the polar opposite of Olivia’s true favourable qualities
in a man. “Good Maria, let this fellow be looked to. Where’s my cousin Toby? Let some of
my people have a special care of him. I would not have him miscarry for the half of my
dowry.” These lines express the true extents that Malvolio took to, all fuelled by the idea of
possibly being married to a woman of higher class than him.
Throughout the play, the use of disguises and deception was justified by a character’s
personal desires. These desires may blind say characters leading them astray into using
disguises, all in the search for love.