Dramatic irony exists when the audience knows something that the characters on stage do not. In this case, Duncan's belief that Lady Macbeth is a "noble hostess" is ironic since the audience knows she is plotting the king's murder. Lady Macbeth has already told her husband that they must put on airs when Duncan arrives, in order to lull their guest into a false sense of security:
[Macbeth should] bear welcome in your eye,
Your hand, your tongue; look like the innocent flower,
But be the serpent under't.
When Duncan appears before the castle and is greeted by Lady Macbeth, the dramatic irony is palpable. It is made all the more so by Duncan's remark that they love Macbeth "highly," and "shall continue our graces towards him." Duncan's love for Macbeth, and his regard for Lady Macbeth as a hostess, creates a sense of dramatic irony that renders the treachery of the Macbeths all the more foul and unnatural. The man they murder is not only the King of Scotland, but also a man who holds them both in high regard and would never suspect them of disloyalty.
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