Clarifying the thread before we trace it deeper into the play...

First I would like to clarify the foundation for the theme which I have been exploring.  There are two phases to this theme.  The first phase is irony and the second phase is the evidence for this irony.  Earlier I said that we would be tracing a thread of irony throughout the play; I think it more accurate to say that we'll be tracing the evidence of an ironic relationship.  So the valuable thread to follow throughout this play comes from the irony seen when we compare two sets of relationships:

You can follow the flow of the king's "absolute trust"
(if this is hard to read, you can click on it to see it full size)

You'll notice that there is a "thread" around the border of the image.  This is what I will be exploring deeper in later posts.  This thread is the echoing evidence of the shattered relationship between Macbeth and King Duncan; it is Macbeth feasting, till his death, on the king's words: "There's no art to find the minds construction in the face."