Beatrice and Benedict

Benedict and Beatrice are: “a pair of outsiders to conventional behaviour, a pair of clowns”. To what extent do you agree?

I believe strongly that Beatrice and Benedick are simply a pair of clowns, I believe this because of how language is used and the portrayal of their genders however on the other hand I think that many readers will disagree believe that Beatrice and Benedick are very serious characters.

One example of language used to portray comedy is repartee; the prime example of this is at the beginning of the play 1.1.88 -1.1.107 this not only creates a comic effect but also characterises Beatrice and Benedick as well as their relationship with one another. The repartee means that the scene is structured very simply making the conversation quick and meaningless with little depth making it appear more humorous to the audience as it doesn’t seem to very serious just a “merry war” (1.1.62) between the two characters; the merry war between the characters is where the repartee mainly lies. “The couple who talk and bicker endlessly thus displaying their intellects, their energy and their compatibility” (Smith, 2007), I believe that Smith’s statement is very accurate the use of sarcastic comments, puns and word play create humour between these two intellects, the light hearted insults create a bantering type of conversation portraying an image that there is some friendship beyond this merry war allowing the clown-like, comical characters to be formed. Much Ado about Nothing was written around two decades after sarcasm was first seen in the English language and therefore at the time and till this day it is vastly based upon the interpretations of the audience, this allowed the audience to make humour from the insults passed bet...

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... clown-like figure, the humour is brought from the sexual language Shakespeare uses and the simple concept he wants to remain a bachelor rather than commit in matrimony. “Here a good horse to hire” is one of the outlandish behaviours that Benedick portrays, a bold but light hearted statement stating he’d rather sell himself than fall in love, which is ironic as he does fall in love with Beatrice by the end of the play. The clown-like behaviour may come from a sense that we get from Benedick from his sexual language that he lacks responsibility and maturity.

Overall I believe that although some aspects of the play may be interpreted otherwise, on a whole the characters of Beatrice and Benedick are unconventional characters to Shakespeare’s era and undoubtedly are simply a pair of clowns.

Works Cited

Smith, D. E. (2007). The Cambridge Introduction to Shakespeare.