...Christine Joy A. Tag at BSEDE-II Reflection Paper on Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing Without any idea of what Much Ado About Nothing is all about, I just let myself absorb whatever thoughts and ideas I could get as the movie started to play. The movie which is originally a play written by Shakespeare is a comedy drama but not pure humor as what most audience would expect in a comedy. I really find the work a genius one, with how the story evolves. And unlike any love stories, its plot is a very unique one. The theme is obviously full of deceptions. This act of deceiving is not at all what I know as a bad act. As from the drama, deception could sometimes lead the characters to goodness like how Don Pedro and Claudio intentionally let Benedict eavesdrop to their conversation about Beatrice’s love for him. Hero and her company also did the same to Beatrice. It ended up that Beatrice and Benedict really loved each other after all their ‘wars’. On the other hand, deception could be a bad act. When Don John planned to ruin the wedding by making Claudio and Don Pedro believe that ‘Hero’ is an unfaithful maiden and not anymore a virgin, the plan went out as it is which made Hero be publicly humiliated by Claudio. This only showed that purity of woman is very precious and the only honor that she could have. But whether deception is bad or good, I would first prefer not to believe easily what I hear or see or what others will tell to me. I must not depend on the superficial...
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...MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING Title As a title, Much Ado About Nothing fits neatly with those of Shakespeare’s other plays written around the same time: the titles seem whimsical and even flippant. Twelfth Night was alternatively titled What You Will, and As You Like It seems a much less informative title than, say, The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. Still, the capricious titles are actually as reflective of their content as any history or tragedy title. The plot of Much Ado About Nothing centers on a lot of hubbub over little misunderstandings; there’s a whole lot of fuss about stuff that ultimately isn’t that important. For the bigger issues in the play, though, we turn to the fact that, in Shakespeare’s day, "nothing" was often pronounced the same way as "noting." The play is built around the process of "noting," which has myriad meanings. It can mean "to take notice of" something, to eavesdrop, to observe, or to write something down – but these notings aren’t necessarily accurate. A person can misunderstand a meaning, or mishear, or misreport something, in the process of noting too. The foibles that result from noting (and misnoting) are central to keeping the play spinning. If that wasn’t interesting enough for you, you might want to note that "nothing" was also an Elizabethan slang term for the vagina. "Much Ado About Vagina" makes sense as a title, right? After all, the highs and lows of the play revolve around men and their relationships with, suspicion of, and...
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...Beatrice is a strong-willed, independent woman. How far do you agree with this statement? I would agree for the most part with this statement. Beatrice is indeed strong-willed, but her independence has its limitations. As with many Shakespearean characters, appearance can be deceptive, and what we see is only a facade, a mask to hide their true character or feelings. I believe that Beatrice uses her cleverness and quick wit to hide her real feelings, and that although she is independent to a certain extent, she is aware that she has limitations because of her gender. Although Beatrice states ‘I would rather hear my dog bark at a crow than hear a man swear he loves me’ she is ultimately fooled into believing that Benedick loves her. The fact that she is tricked so easily, and subsequently admits her reciprocal love, tells us that she views marriage in a more favourable light than she had previously led us to believe. Whether she gave in to the ‘social construct’ demanded by the patriarchal society in which she lived is questionable. What we do know is that Shakespeare has presented her as a wilful, self-confident, autonomous woman who appears to revel in her single status. In contrast we have Hero, the antithesis of Beatrice. She is meek, obedient and completely dominated by the men in her life. She is the perfect foil for Beatrice, her willingness to please further enhancing Beatrice’s character. It is clear from the start of the play that Beatrice is not an...
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...HOW DO YOU EXPRESS LOVE? William Shakespeare expresses his love and other themes in many different ways. The play Much Ado About Nothing was written by Shakespeare uses language and dramatic elements such as puns, mistaken identify, allusions and comedic language to convey key themes and characterisation. Act 2 scene 1 explores and challenges the themes of love, deception, and loyalty. The themes of love, deception, and loyalty are emphasised in this play and can clearly be seen in Act 2 scene 1. The theme of love is evident between Hero and Claudio in this scene, as they come together in the presence of Hero’s family and friends as they are conjoined together and plan to get married. “Silence is a perfect herald of joy. I was but little happy if I could say how much. - Lady, as you are mine, I am yours. I give myself for you and dote upon the exchange”. This extract of the play portrays Claudio’s happiness that he will be marrying Hero. Hero indeed conveys her joy too as she whispers into Claudio’s ear, “My cousin tells him in his ear that he is...
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...“Much Ado About Nothing” is a comical play centered around scandals, love, and witty jokes. The antagonist of the play, Don John, schemes to make other characters suffer because of his on mishaps of being a bastard. As for the other characters, they play matchmaker to create happy relationships.Although “Much Ado About Nothing is depicted as a comical play, aspects of star-crossed lovers and deception reveal relevance to the moral of the story. In “Much Ado About Nothing,” deception, with the inherently evil connotation, reveals to have both negative and positive outcomes. Don Pedro disguises as Claudio in Act I and confesses his love to Hero at the mask ball because he feels that the two would make a perfect couple. Don John decides to...
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...Major Themes in 'Much Ado About Nothing' Shakespeare’s treatment of love in Much Ado About Nothing differs from his other romantic comedies. Sure, it shares the same stagy plot, which finishes with the lovers finally getting back together, but Shakespeare also mocks the conventions of courtly love which was popular at the time. Although Claudio and Hero’s courtly marriage is central to the plot, their relationship is the least interesting thing in the play. Instead, our attention is drawn to Benedick and Beatrice’s unromantic backbiting – it is this relationship that seems more believable and enduring. By contrasting these two different types of love, Shakespeare manages to poke fun at the conventions of courtly, romantic love. Claudio uses highly contrived language when speaking of love, which is undermined by Benedick and Beatrice’s banter: “Can the world buy such a Jewel?” says Claudio of Hero. “My dear Lady disdain! Are you yet living?” says Benedick of Beatrice. As an audience, we are supposed to share Benedick’s frustration with Claudio’s transparent, pompous rhetoric of love: “He was wont to speak plain and to the purpose, like an honest man and a soldier … His words are a very fantastical banquet, just so many strange dishes.” Deception As the title suggests, there is a lot of fuss over very little in the play – after all, if Claudio wasn’t so impetuous, Don John’s rather weak plan wouldn’t have worked at all! What makes the plot so intricate is the use of deception...
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...MAAN: Love, what is it good for? Merriam-Webster dictionary defines love as “strong affection for another arising out of kinship or personal ties;” Throughout the play, Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare, there is never really a love connection between the characters Benedick and Beatrice. In the beginning of the play, they despise one another and made witty comments about one another; not only that, but they also question why the other one loved them after overhearing the conversation between their friends. By this definition Beatrice and Benedick can't truly be in love, because of words spoken by their friends. At the start of the play, when Benedick first arrived in Messina, the first thing they did was make witty comments about...
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...In William Shakespeare’s comedy, Much Ado About Nothing, he uses the dialogue to show the transition of Benedick and his feelings toward Beatrice and marriage in general. Shakespeare uses the dialogue to show the reader the progression of Benedick’s outlooks on life go from hating Beatrice and the whole idea of marriage to then loving Beatrice and asking her to marry him. This kind of transition is very large and it can only be down by a great writer, such as William Shakespeare. Throughout the whole story Benedick shows very strong feelings toward both marriage and Beatrice, both good and bad, but in the end his true feelings are shown. In the very beginning of the book, after the war ended, Benedick and his fellow soldiers stay at a friend of Don Pedro’s house named Leonato. Leonato’s niece is named Beatrice, whom has a strong dislike of Benedick and vice versa. Benedick dislikes her so much that he states, “I will fetch you a toothpick from the furthest inch of Asia . . . do you any embassage to the pigmies, rather than hold three words’ conference...
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...Have you ever dreamed of reading a thrilling book about awesome characters and a devious plan involving death? Then “Much Ado About Nothing” by Shakespeare is the perfect book for you. In the enthralling play, there contain multiple couples. One is based solely on looks, one denies their love for each other, and one simply got together for the sake of a devious scheme. It also involves a plot that a kind character look scandalous, when really, they’re not. It’s a great story about love, evil, and forgiveness. In the play “Much Ado About Nothing” by William Shakespeare, Beatrice and Hero are foils of each other because of their interactions with others, how others feel about them, and their personality traits. Beatrice and Hero are major character foils in the play “Much Ado About Nothing” because of their...
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...Shakespeare My first impression of Much Ado About Nothing is that it would be a love story. Although it is categorised as a Shakespearean comedy, I found the many "funny" parts of the play were foggy and required you to read the scene over a few times before you understood them. But then again, I had to read the whole scene over again a few times to understand anything. All of the characters in Much Ado About Nothing seemed to develop a personality of their own from the very first scene. It also helped that I saw the movie version of Much Ado About Nothing before we read the play so I could almost get a picture in my head as to what each character looked like. As the character's had their own personality, so did the two love relationships in the play. Benedick and Beatrice seemed to hate each other so much from the very start of the play that as the play carried on it almost seemed like the two went full circle in their relationship. But their relationship might not have changed for the better without help from Claudio, Don Pedro, Leonato, Ursula or Hero. In Claudio's and Hero's relationship seemed to be much more conventional in the way they came together. Claudio first saw Hero and instantly fell in love with her, while Hero stood by and took orders from her father, Leonato. Only when Don John devised his deception to break Claudio and Hero apart that I felt the relationship was in trouble, but even then I felt there was hope. In Act...
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...Much Ado About Nothing Love Story Shakespeare My first impression of Much Ado About Nothing is that it would be a love story. Although it is categorised as a Shakespearean comedy, I found the many "funny" parts of the play were foggy and required you to read the scene over a few times before you understood them. But then again, I had to read the whole scene over again a few times to understand anything. All of the characters in Much Ado About Nothing seemed to develop a personality of their own from the very first scene. It also helped that I saw the movie version of Much Ado About Nothing before we read the play so I could almost get a picture in my head as to what each character looked like. As the character's had their own personality, so did the two love relationships in the play. Benedick and Beatrice seemed to hate each other so much from the very start of the play that as the play carried on it almost seemed like the two went full circle in their relationship. But their relationship might not have changed for the better without help from Claudio, Don Pedro, Leonato, Ursula or Hero. In Claudio's and Hero's relationship seemed to be much more conventional in the way they came together. Claudio first saw Hero and instantly fell in love with her, while Hero stood by and took orders from her father, Leonato. Only when Don John devised his deception to break Claudio and Hero apart that I felt the relationship was in trouble, but even...
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...Much Ado About Nothing is one of William Shakespeare's classic comedies that manages to tie in not only many comedic and light-hearted moments through the witty Benedick, but also presents tragic themes as well through the 'death' of Hero. Furthermore, the play in general flowed well, making it easy to get absorbed into the characters and the conflicts presented. The points that really brought the play together for me was the selection in actors, both in skill and their ability to work as a unit for the finished product. The actors for the play, in my opinion, was very appropriately casted to fit each character quite nicely. Going into this completely blind, I found that it was especially easy to guess the relations between specific characters using their actions alone. For example, when Beatrice was hiding from Hero and the maid, she used her actions to portray listening in while also making it entertaining to watch. In conclusion, the directors choice in actors made the play work together....
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...from ones looks, but from their beauty within. In the play Much Ado About Nothing by Shakespeare, there’s many couples that end up in love. Some actually are in love while others just associate the title of love with them, this including Hero and Claudio. In the play, a brave and heroic young man, Claudio, supposedly falls in love for the governors young and beautiful daughter, Hero. When their love is put up to the task, it fails miserably, leading to the conclusion that Hero and Claudio are not in love. When Claudio first sees Hero he instantly falls in love with her before getting to know her, therefore only falling in love with...
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...Gender Collisions in Much Ado about Nothing Some of Shakespeare’s plays are related to the love between male and female, such as, Romeo and Juliet, Twelfth Night, Much Ado about Nothing and etc. Shakespeare’s focuses in these plays varied from different periods in his life. I’m going to analyze the gender collisions in the following couples in Much Ado about Nothing: Hero and her father Signor Leonato, Hero and Claudio, Benedick and Beatrice. I. Hero and her father Signor Leonato Hero and Leonato’s relationship is the typical father-daughter relationship in the feudal patriarchy. Signor Leonato, the father, is an arbitrary male chauvinist, loves his daughter superficially but never truly care about Hero. Hero, like most women in that time, follows everything what her father says. Obedience is rooted in her life. Marriage and obedience are the only two things she could use to please her father. As a “useless” girl in feudal society, Hero accepts her fate. All these factors result in the chaos in wedding. When Claudio doubted Hero’S chastity and dishonored Hero, Leonato’S first response is feeling humiliated for himself, worrying about his reputation and wanting to kill his daughter to save his fame. Hero just cried and even cried to faint. The only thing she could do is sitting, crying and saying “no”. She never thought stand up, and tell her father Claudio bravely “No! You are wrong! I am innocent!” The arbitrary and arrogant father and the coward daughter are still exist...
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