Using the text to support your ideas investigate the importance of "madness" as a theme in Twelfth night

Even though, it seems the causes of this confusion are appearance and reality as Viola is disguised as a man. Viola says to Olivia when Olivia hints of her love for Viola ‘I am not what I am.’ Then, when Sebastian suddenly appears the chaos begins as everyone confuses Viola and Sebastian. Sir Toby who thinks Sebastian is Viola attacks him. Then Olivia invites Sebastian to marry her and Sebastian has no idea what is happening so he thinks he must be mad or in a dream, but then he realises he isn’t. He then thinks that Olivia might be mad but rules that idea out, as she wouldn’t be able to keep her house in such order if she was. Then Antonio asks for his purse, which he gave to Sebastian earlier that day and then confronts Viola thinking she is Sebastian. Everyone believes that Viola/Cesario is a man but ‘a little thing would make me tell them how much I lack of a man’ as she says when Sir Andrew confronts her with a duel.

Disguises seem to trick you into believing things, ‘nothing that is so is so.’ This is what the ‘fool’ says; he is disguised as a fool but is very clever. ‘I am indeed not her fool but her corrupter of words.’ The fool twists words around to trick people. Another disguise is Viola dressing as a man to trick people. Also Sir Toby is pretending to be Sir Andrew’s friend to be able to get money off of him ‘Marry, I’ll ride your horse as well as I ride you.’ Sir Toby says this when Sir Andrew promises to give Toby his horse if he can stop the fight.

Some of the acts of madness are connected to social status in society at that time as Olivia falls in love with Viola/Cesario who is supposedly a servant and Sir Toby marries Maria who is a servant, so this would be thought of as mad. Also the fact that servants manipulate and control their masters. For example Maria plans her trick on Malvolio and orders Sir Toby, Sir Andrew and Fabian to carry out the plan – page 59. Also, the fool, Feste seems to be the most intellectual character out of all of them as he has the ability to tease people with words and confuse them by using double meanings ‘words are grown so false’.

        The trickery that Maria uses against Malvolio drives him mad. He is so in love with Olivia he will do everything that the letter says but in the end the trick turns into cruelty as Malvolio says himself that ‘there was never man so notoriously abused’. Also, the madness that Sir Toby and Sir Andrew cause when they are staying in Olivia’s house make her angry so she has to warn them on many accounts about their behaviour. She then asks them to leave.

        Without the theme of madness this play wouldn’t be the same. That is why it is called ‘Twelfth Night’ which is the night when servants and masters switch places. The madness causes chaos, confusion and bedlam.