Many people trust in the outward appearances of others, and it is what causes the downfall of most. Through experiences, a lesson that people learn is that it is dangerous to trust others based on their appearances instead of who they truly are, and in the end, it is what can destroy a person. In William Shakespeare's Macbeth, deceives innocent people to reach his goals and it leads them to the destruction of their own lives. He also ends up destroying himself after he is deceived by witches, who tell him truths that have a double meaning. The characters destroy themselves when they trust the appearances of their friends and of powerful people. As well, there are characters who manage to succeed by not trusting people based on appearances.
Firstly, by trusting the outward appearance of friends, characters in the play end up being betrayed and murdered. For instance, King Duncan says that the original Thane of Cawdor "was a gentleman whom [he] built/an absolute trust"; however, he orders for him to be executed (1.4.l 13-14). This shows that trying to deceive others with a fake appearance will only result in one's own demise because when the Thane of Cawdor pretends to be allies with Duncan, he is ordered to be executed after he is revealed to be a traitor. Also, Duncan trusts Macbeth (who later tries to kill him), as a cousin and believes that Macbeth is completely loyal to him. He says to Lady Macbeth that he "loves him highly and shall continue [his] graces towards him", which shows that Duncan is able to trust Macbeth with his own life (1.6.l 30-31). Duncan destroys his own life by trusting Macbeth and believing that they are allies, and as a result, he is murdered. Furthermore, Banquo's trust in Macbeth is so strong, that he is too blind to see that Macbeth is planning to harm him, which is what gets him killed later on. Banquo responds, "[a]y, my good lord", when Macbeth asks him if he would be riding his horse (2.