Claudio's Love in William Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing

Claudio's Love in William Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing

"O, what men dare do! What men may do! What men daily do, not knowing what they do!" Funny how these words come from someone like Claudio and when you try to ponder on the words and look closely on the character of Claudio, you will realize that these lines aptly describe the actions and qualities possessed by Claudio himself. Throughout the story, many instances would show how Claudio reacts hastily to situations that arise without knowing or understanding well enough what is really going on. Most of the time, he acts instantly without really knowing where his actions would lead him or if a situation is really worth his time and attention. He has this tendency to just jump to conclusions and believe everything he hears without even trying to see for himself if what he just found out is true or not. He then starts to do stupid things without him knowing the real situation, which adds trouble to what is a complicated situation already. In addition to this, Claudio can be very short-tempered and impatient when dealing with his life and love dilemmas. At first, you could see him exerting effort to win a woman's heart and the next thing you will know he is giving up and cursing that woman just because of some lousy rumors. If we try to look more closely on the circumstances where Claudio was entangled in, we can get a clearer picture of how he has been a perfect example of "men who dared to do things without really knowing what they were doing."

First, we recall the first time Claudio acknowledges his attraction to sweet Hero. Here, we see him as a man who has fallen deeply in love with Hero. Bene*censored* even thinks of him as a foolish man who is head-over-heels in love with this maiden. From being a valiant soldier, Claudio was instantly transformed into a helpless romantic (Bene*censored* describes it as an oyster) who was willing to do everything just to win the heart of his beloved Hero. He even asks the help of Don Pedro who offers to help him by disguising himself as Claudio and wooing Hero for him. He agrees with the plan and everything "was supposed" to go on smoothly not until misunderstandings caused by false rumors started to arise and complicate things. Moreover, the deception made by Don John even aggravated the situation and revealed the flaw in Claudio.