William Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing
In the play "Much Ado About Nothing", William Shakespeare describes how a person can do a lot of things out of nothing. There are four main characters in this play that find a lot to do about stupid things and it can make things very difficult. The main characters are: Benedick, Claudio, Beatrice, and Hero. Shakespeare explains the roles of these four different characters and how relationships work. It's amazing what he knew 400 years ago about relationships and how it is very similar to today's relationships.
Benedick is the young Lord of Padua, and is a man who will never get married nor settle down with one woman. Benedick is what we would call in the nineties, a bachelor. He likes to play the field and is a typical male, Benedick thinks that no woman can hold him down and he will never fall in love. Benedick will also never listen to a girl or do what she says either. Then he comes into the town of Messina and Claudio and Don Pedro decide to play cupid and match up Benedick and Beatrice. Benedick thinks that Beatrice is in love with him and wants to wed him, which is somewhat untrue and this changes Benedict's mind completely. He is now flustered with emotions and is in love and he wonders how this could be. Now Beatrice is a very pretty woman but the old Benedict didn't care, he's a man and no woman can hold him down. The new Benedict, on the other hand is head over heels in love and would do anything for sweet Beatrice. This is very ironic on how a person can change completely when falling in love. A great example is when Beatrice tells Benedick to kill Claudio, his best friend, and he ponders it and then says I will draw him to a duel. That is when the audience knows for sure that Benedick is in love and it is also the changing point in the play for Benedick.
Claudio is the young Lord of Florence, and he is a handsome young man and has a thing for Hero, and in fact proposes to her and marries her. Claudio is like a Tom Cruise in today's society, he is every woman's dream man. Claudio is also a good man, as Leonato, Hero's father, just adores Claudio with all his heart. Leonato thinks Hero is a lucky woman since Claudio is a perfect man. Claudio is also Benedick's best friends and they get along very well together despite their differences in takes on women. Claudio is the gentleman...
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...explain. Hero is a beautiful woman caught in the middle of high school rumors and it really hurts her and her father. When they find out that Hero is right with her story the friar has to come up with an idea on how to get her back with Claudio. The plan is that Hero killed herself and she has a cousin who is almost identical as Hero(which is truly Hero) which Claudio will marry cause he feels so bad about his love. So Hero and Claudio end up happily together.
This play is a great example of a relationship where best friends date two woman who are close and something bad is bound to happen. But in "Much Ado About Nothing", William Shakespeare ends it with a two couple wedding which is usually in his plays. Claudio and Hero have a beautiful wedding and Benedick and Beatrice also do have a fine wedding. Everything turns out okay despite the rumors that were stirred up by Don John the Bastard. I think this play is a great example of relationships and how people act and can change in them. It is amazing how Shakespeare writes this play as if it was in today's time period with relationships, but then I guess love doesn't change and people may always act this way when in love.
Hero and Claudio represent the Elizabethan norm in marriage. Claudio is the shrewd, hardheaded fortune hunter and Hero is the modest maiden of conduct books and marriage manuals, a docile young woman. It is important to note that Claudio is more concerned with advancement in Don Pedro's army than he is with love. Therefore, Shakespeare illustrates to the reader through the near tragedy of mistaken identity that Claudio must learn that marriage is more than a business arrangement and become worthy of Hero's love and affection. Source: Ranald, Margaret Loftus. "As Marriage Binds, and Blood Breaks: English Marriage and Shakespeare". Shakespeare Quarterly. Vol 30, 1979: 68-81.
Shakespeare’s introduction of the other couple in question is in stark contrast to the way in which Beatrice and Benedick were introduced. Claudio and Hero are amorously receptive to one and other from the very start. Upon laying eyes on Hero, Claudio remarks of her to Benedict “is she not a modest young lady?” (1.1.125). Clearly, by having Claudio express his fondness of Hero to Benedick, the playwright directly compares the older and more cynical to the more young and naive, allowing the reader to see the contrasting personas of the two men. This is reinforced by Benedick, who after finishing listening to Claudio’s rhetoric on the charms of the young Hero (“in m...
Thurgood Marshall overcame discrimination by his dreams of going into the law field despite the racism surrounding him at that time. “Thurgood Marshall, the great-grandson of a slave, grew up in the South and experienced racism and discrimination firsthand” (Hitzeroth and Leon 9). Since he was raised in the South, a more racist part of the country, he was already experiencing racism at a young age. He could not shop in the same store, sit in the same section of the bus, or attend the same schools as white children and white people in general (Hitzeroth and Leon 9-10). Also, he was a cum laude honors student, but he was denied admission to the University Of Maryland Law School because of the color of his skin (Hitzeroth and Leon 10). Despite all of these events, he still chose to pursue a career in law. Part of this could be because his father taught him to respect the U.S. Constitution and the authority of law (Thurgood Marshall Biography). Also, “author John Egerton wrote in his book Speak Now Against the Day, ‘In courtrooms, black lawyers were exceedingly...
Leonato plays an important role in Shakespeare's play Much Ado About Nothing. Leonato is at the center of events from beginning to end, being as he is one of the main characters Hero’s father, and Beatrice’s uncle. A great majority of the action in the play takes place at Leonato’s home. Leonato is a friendly but stern man. His daughter Hero is to soon be married, so as a father, he is helping set up the wedding. Leonato is a respected man by all in the story. Leonato has no problem getting along with his daughter’s future husband, Claudio, until the wedding. When Leonato’s daughter is accused of adultery at her wedding, it is clear that the honor of his family is very important to him. Leonato is ashamed and tells his own daughter that she
William Shakespeare said: “Women may fall when there's no strength in men” (Romeo and Juliet). Throughout history gender role have been a big, whether someone is a feminist or someone believes there is no equality between males and females; everyone has different opinions when it comes to the matter of gender roles. The same thing can be said about William Shakespeare who was a feminist (Shakespeare of Stratford). This ideology can be seen in his play Much Ado about Nothing. In this comedy Shakespeare focuses on two pairs of lovers named Claudio and Hero who are set to be married in a week but before their marriage day, they plan to conspire with Don Pedro, the prince of Aragon to trick their friends Beatrice and Benedick to admit their love for each other. Don John, the brother of Don Pedro, meanwhile plots to prevent marriage of Claudio and Hero by accusing Hero of being unfaithful. Don John initially succeeds in his plan as Hero is accused and ashamed at the marriage ceremony, but at the end Claudio and Hero are united and marry each other. Also, Beatrice and Benedick finally declare their love for each and dance at the end of the play. Shakespeare uses a lot of sources for this comedy and one of them is “Orlando Furioso” written in 1591, which gave Shakespeare the idea of Hero and Claudio’s marriage and Don John’s plot to prevent it. Another source Shakespeare used to write the play is the courtier written in 1588, which gave him the idea of the romance between Beatrice and Benedick. And also “La Prima de la Novelle” written in 1554 by Matteo Bandello gave Shakespeare the idea of putting the setting in Messina, Italy (Shakespeare in quarto). Because Shakespeare was a feminist, some of the women appear as supporting and central...
To begin with, there is Hero and Claudio who are the ideal representation of a couple during Shakespeare’s time. Claudio was a young brave soldier who recently came from war. After his return to Messina, he almost immediately falls in love with Hero. He saw Hero as an object and we can appreciate that when he asked Benedick: “Can the world
I. First I will start by discussing the various genres that created rock music in the 50’s and 60’s.
Funk, Soul, R&B, Pop, Hard Rock, Soft Rock and Disco were popular all over the world at this time, and in the late 1970s a new type of genre of music was born, hip-hop. Some of the best Rock and Roll we have ever seen was recorded in the 1970s, such as Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, and David Bowie. The early 70s was a lot similar to the late 60, The Rolling Stones, Beatles, Doors, and Jimi Hendrix were all very popular at this time. That was until Led Zeppelin formed and changed everything, “It’s truly impossible to oversell how brilliantly these records are produced; “rock” as an idea is really a ’70s idea, and Led Zeppelin established what that would mean and what it would sound like.”(Pitchfork, 2014) Led Zeppelin came along and emerged into something like The Beatles of the 70s. Every member in that band is considered one of if not the best in that field, and it is debateable that they are one of the best bands ever
When Benedick hears that Claudio has fallen in love for Hero, he is enraged. He thought that Claudio would live a bachelor’s life like him. Benedick tells him that men who are in love are not masculine. Near the end of Act IV, Benedick’s complete change is evident when Benedick chooses love over friendship. Benedick challenges Claudio, previously his closest friend in the world, to duel to the death over Claudio’s accusation as to Hero’s unethical behavior. After Beatrice complains to him about Claudio’s mistake, Benedick gives in, “Enough, I am engaged. I will challenge him.” At this point, there is no doubt that Benedick has switched his allegiances entirely over to Beatrice. But then again, Benedick was relieved that Hero was proved guilty so he would not have to fight his close friend Claudio.
Entry 1: Act I. Don Pedro and his men return from the war and visit the house of Leonato and his brother, Antonio. This sudden meeting reunites Beatrice with her archrival, Benedick, and it is here that Claudio and Hero fall in love. React: Is it a In Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing, there are the usual characters that show up in most of Shakespeare’s pieces.
Many people and many styles of music influenced Rock and Roll. The styles included Blues, Jazz, Gospel, Bluegrass, Boogie-Woogie, and Rockabilly. Each was a major factor into the introduction of a new style of music called Rock ‘N’ Roll.
The four characters that learn the art of love are Beatrice, Benedick, Claudio and Hero. From the first viewing/reading of the play, Claudio and Hero seem to be the main focus. However, looking deeper into the entire play, and/or if you read any scholarship on Much Ado About Nothing, the true fascinating plotline involves Beatrice and Benedick.
Throughout the history of the world, honor has been an important part of life. In literature, as well, honor plays an important role in many plots and the development of almost any character. Shakespeare’s play Much Ado About Nothing is no exception. In this comedy about love and marriage, honor is revealed as the primary reason for many of the actions taken by several different characters. When Claudio breaks off his wedding with Hero, he does it because he believes she is not chastised as she claims to be and in being such, she would dishonor him as well as her father if the marriage were to proceed as planned. The play is an accurate depiction of the honor code and the different standards for men and women of the time in regards to honor and chastity.
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Shakespeare’s play ‘Much Ado about Nothing’ has two main female characters, Beatrice and Hero, who are cousins. Both appear to be completely different in the beginning of the play but, as things progress and their characters develop, there are also some very obvious similarities between them. Hero and Beatrice have a very close relationship; they are best friends. Leonato is Hero’s father but Beatrice has no parents, which gives her greater freedom. Where Hero is polite, quiet, respectful and gentle, Beatrice is feisty, cynical, witty, and sharp.