Overview of William Shakespeares Much Ado About Nothing
Overview of William Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing
Comedy or Tragicomedy? Boy-Meets -Girl Boy Romances Girl Boy Gets Girl Loses Boy and Girl find each other again
Key Facts • Much Ado About Nothing AUTHOR • William Shakespeare GENRE • Comedy 1600 • DATE OF FIRST PUBLICATION 1598, England • TIME AND PLACE WRITTEN
Messina, a city on the island of Sicily in southern Italy, sometime in the 16 th century The men returning from battle with Don Pedro would likely view Messina as a welcome respite from the battlefield. The whole point of the soldiers coming to Messina is that they’re in an idyllic setting, away from the action of the war. Setting
Characters
Beatrice High born lady. • She is cousins and good friends with Hero, Leonato’s daughter. • She is the niece of Leonato, a wealthy governor of Mesina. Feisty, cynical, witty, and sharp. • She loves to participate in a “merry war” of wits with Benedick. “I had rather hear my dog bark at a crow, than a man swear he loves me. ” Single by choice. • Her comments suggest that she and Benedick may have tried to have a relationship in the past but Benedick may have “led her on. ” Now she is wary of him.
Beatrice as comic relief. • Beatrice has a relentless and brilliant wit that could easily be mistaken as the role of a jester in the play, but her barbs are laced with insightful commentary and often inspired by penetrating understanding. She sees the absurdity of the world. • Instead of being melancholy or sad, she chooses to laugh at it, which is a sure sign of wisdom. • “He that hath a beard is more than a youth, and he that hath no beard is less than a man. He that is more than a youth is not for me, and he that is less than a man, I am not for him. ”
Benedick “Shall I never see a bachelor of three-score again? ” He is young lord of Padua. • Benedick Mountanto is in the service of Don Pedro, Prince of Arragon. He is a good friend of Count Claudio. • He is a good soldier, but a bit of a mischievous knave. He vows that he will never marry. • While Beatrice thinks no man will ever be good enough for her, Benedick seems to be more hung up on not being tied down. “When I said I would die a bachelor, I did not think I should live till I were married. ”
A Merry War Beatrice & Benedick -- They both fight love; however by the end of the play, the audience knows they are destined for each other. “Some Cupid kills with arrows, some with traps. ” Or, watch this video here and here
Claudio He is a young Count from Florence. Passionate He is a little immature. Claudio has distinguished himself as a soldier under Don Pedro, Prince of Arragon. He’s a friend of Benedick , and the groom, of Hero. When Claudio loves Hero, he loves her to distraction. When he hates her, he hates her with fury. Claudio’s actions throughout the play reveal that he has quite a bit of growing up to do – he quickly falls in love with Hero and can’t even court her on his own.
Don Pedro • Don Pedro most often uses his power and authority toward positive ends. But like his halfbrother, Don Pedro manipulates other characters as much as he likes. He is the Prince of Aragon • He is the noblest character in the social hierarchy of the play, and his friends Benedick and Claudio, though equals in wit, must always defer to him because their positions depend upon his favor.
Is he or isn’t he? • At one point, Don Pedro proposes to Beatrice. It seems he gets “a little melancholy” at her response of “no thanks. ”
Hero • Hero is Leonato’s daughter. • She is Beatrice’s cousin. A gentle, loving girl. • The beloved (and slandered) fiancée of Claudio. • She gives many of her big decisions over to other people. Female lead? • Though she is supposed to be the female lead of the play, Hero has the fewest lines of the four primary characters.
Don John • The illegitimate brother of Don Pedro; sometimes called “the Bastard. ” • Don John operates as a plot-device more than a fully fleshed out character. The Dispossessed Son • He does give us a little speech about how he’s a bad guy – and likes being a bad guy – but there’s not much that we say about him because we never really know his motivations, or even his reaction to all of the chaos he’s caused. Second Best • He is second to his older brother. • He is recently back in his good graces but doesn’t like the burden of “behaving” properly. Villians
Leonato • A respected, well-to-do, elderly noble at whose home, in Messina, Italy the play is set. • Leonato is the father of Hero and the uncle of Beatrice. • As governor of Messina, he is second in social power only to Don Pedro.
Margaret Balthasar Antonio Hero’s serving woman, who unwittingly helps Borachio and Don John deceive Claudio into thinking that Hero is unfaithful. A waiting man in Leonato’s household and a musician. Balthasar sings the song, “Sigh no more, ladies, sigh no more” about accepting men’s infidelity as natural. Leonato’s elderly brother and Hero's uncle. He is Beatrice’s father.
Borachio He is a “henchman” of Don John. Borachio is the lover of Margaret, Hero’s serving woman. He conspires with Don John to trick Claudio and Don Pedro into thinking that Hero is unfaithful to Claudio. Conrad One of Don John’s more intimate associates, entirely devoted to Don John.
“Marry, sir, they have committed false report; moreover, they have spoken untruths; secondarily, they are slanders; sixth and lastly, they have belied a lady; thirdly, they have Dogberry • He is he constable in charge of the Watch. • He is chief policeman, of Messina. • Dogberry is very sincere and takes his job seriously. • He has a habit of using exactly the wrong word to convey his meaning. Verges • The deputy to Dogberry • Chief policeman of Messina.
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