Act 2, Scene 3 Summary
Benedick is in Leonato’s garden thinking about love and marriage when he hears Don Pedro, Leonato, and Claudio enter. He hides in the arbor.
Balthasar sings a ditty about how deceptive men can be.
The party talks of Beatrice's love for Benedick, as reported by Hero. They discuss the ways in which Beatrice can be carried away by her passion and anger, but they also acknowledge her strengths. They concur that Benedick is too dismissive to be told of Beatrice’s feelings directly.
After they leave, Benedict acknowledges that he loves Beatrice in turn.
Don Pedro sends Beatrice to call Benedick to dinner, and he tries to see for himself whether she really does love him.
Expert Q&A
What does Benedick mean by "shall make an oyster of me" in Much Ado About Nothing, act 2, scene 3?
In Much Ado About Nothing, act 2, scene 3, Benedick means he will only become an "oyster"—a person who pursues the pleasures of love—when he finds a woman who embodies beauty, wisdom, and virtue. He refuses to be made a fool for love like Claudio and insists on maintaining his dignity until he meets the right woman.
Who is Balthasar in Much Ado About Nothing and why is his song in Act 2, Scene 3 important?
Balthasar in Much Ado About Nothing is a servant and musician whose actions parallel the main characters. His song in Act 2, Scene 3 is important because it highlights the double standard in Elizabethan culture regarding infidelity, suggesting that men's unfaithfulness is natural while condemning women's. Shakespeare uses Balthasar's successful wooing of Margaret to juxtapose the unsuccessful attempts of Benedick and Beatrice.
In Much Ado About Nothing, do Benedick's two soliloquies in Act 2, Scene 3 reveal a change in consciousness?
Benedick's soliloquies in Act 2, Scene 3 of Much Ado About Nothing reveal a change in his consciousness from mocking love to embracing it. Initially, he ridicules Claudio and claims immunity to love, viewing women in abstract terms. However, upon believing Beatrice loves him, he shifts to seeing love as specific and attainable, acknowledging her virtues and deciding to fall "horribly in love" with her. This marks a significant transformation in his perspective on love.
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