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Much Ado About Nothing | Reading Pointers for Sharper Insight

Reading Pointers for Sharper Insight

Consider the following as you read Much Ado About Nothing:

Characterization:

Beatrice and Benedick are two of the most complex, fully developed characters in all of Shakespeare's plays. Their complexity stems from their self-awareness; in the midst of mocking their friends and each other, they recognize their own faults.

The play itself is complex because we are given multiple views of these characters. We see Beatrice and Benedick through one another's eyes, and each through his or her own eyes, but we also see them interacting with their friends and families, and we hear these friends and family members talk about them when they are absent.

  • Benedick is aware of his own tendency to overstate the case—that his babbling, even when he is alone, is slightly self-mocking and intentional.

    He likes being part of the “fraternity” of men that includes Claudio and Pedro and feels comfortable enough to mock his friends, even when they do not seem to appreciate it. However, when the seriousness of the situation with Hero becomes apparent, it is Benedick who remains both reasonable and loyal.

  • Beatrice says of herself, “I was born to speak all mirth and no matter.” Other characters also comment on her natural cheerfulness, and so we can assume that, even when she is mocking Benedick, it is in a good-natured, rather than bitter, way.

    When, in Act III, scene I, she hears herself criticized for being too sarcastic, notice how ready Beatrice is to let down her defenses and admit herown wrongdoing.

    She, like Benedick, is vulnerable and combative at the same time. Though they discount one another's opinion, Beatrice and Benedick are defined, even in their own eyes, by one another.

Language:

Also look out for uses and abuses of formal language. While Benedick and his friends seem to be well-born and educated, and can, therefore, make complicated rhetorical jokes and allusions with ease, attempts by Dogberry and Verges to use elevated language fail utterly.