They both think the same of the opposite sex, as demonstrated when Beatrice goes on to insult Benedick further more by saying, “Scratching could not make it worse, and ‘twere such a face as yours were” intimating that he is so ugly that nothing could make him uglier. Finally when Benedick says, “I have done” he means he has had enough and Beatrice replies by saying, “You always end with a jade’s trick: I know you of old”. This is also more proof that they have known each other for an extremely long time.
Later on in the scene, Act 1 Scene 1, Benedick is talking to Don Pedro and Claudio about love and Beatrice. He admits that he is a cruel person to women, when he says, “as being a professed tyrant to their sex?” He goes on to criticise Beatrice saying, “methinks she’s too low for a high praise, too brown for a fair praise, and too little for a great praise. Only this commendation can I afford her, that she were other than she is, she were unhandsome, and being no other, but she is – I do not like her.” His use of negatives greatly criticises Beatrice, but also demonstrates how fastidious he is in his choice of women.
On the other hand he contrasts with Claudio who is a very conventional character and is very passionate about love, using hyperbole to describe his feelings. When Claudio talks about Hero, Benedick doesn’t seem very interested and contradicts Claudio. Claudio compares Hero to a ‘jewel’ and ‘the sweetest lady’ that he ever looked on. To this Benedick says that he doesn’t think Hero is very special and that she is not that valuable and therefore could not a jewel making her seem quite mundane. But when he does talk about Hero, he also mentions her cousin who is Beatrice. Saying, “There’s her cousin, and she were not possessed with a fury,” again although he has not mentioned her in a good way or in a positive manner, she is still being mentioned which means that Benedick is thinking about her. Benedick also says, “Shall I never see a bachelor of three score again?” by saying this he is referring to everyone getting married. This is more evidence of how against marriage he is and would never be married himself. Even his friends, Don Pedro and Claudio comment on how much he is against love and they make fun of him. Don Pedro says, “Thou wast ever an obstinate heretic in the despite of beauty”. He also thinks that Benedick will one day change his mind and learn to love one day. Benedick replies by saying, “With anger, with sickness, or with hunger, my lord, not again with drinking, pick out mine eyes with a ballad-maker’s pen, and hang me up at the door of a brothel house for the sign of blind Cupid.” This is even more proof that Benedick is not at all interested in love and uses hyperbole language to reflect his opinions
Act 2 scene 1 Beatrice is again first to mention his name, and she is the one who brings him up in the conversation. Although she is not talking about him in a nice way, she still thought about him, which is other proof showing that both characters still do think about each other. She is calling him extremely childish and too much in love of his own. Leonato and Antonio tell Beatrice that she is too sharp and critical and that she will never get a husband. She also defends the fact that nobody is asking her to marry, by saying, “Lord, I could not endure a husband with a beard on his face!” Benedick is, of course bearded. Then she also says that she could not bear a husband with a beard because, “he that is less than a man, I am not for him.” This makes the situation sound impossible as no matter what happened she would never get married as every man would either have or not have a beard and exhibits her contrary nature.
During this scene, Beatrice has presents as more of a modern character with her own opinions and feelings on everything she does. It probably has something to do with the fact that she doesn’t have a father and therefore has had her chance to grow up in her own way without anyone stopping her and giving her no rules, for Shakespeare’s society was male dominated. After that, Leonato and Antonio seem to give up on her as Leonato says, “well, niece, I hope to see you one day fitted with a husband.” To which Beatrice replies, “Not till God make men of some other metal than dust.” When calling them “dust”, she is referring to them being made out of the earth and says that she will not be overruled by them thereby suggesting that no man will ever be worthy of her.
She does not give Hero a chance to speak in this scene as when Leonato and Antonio try to talk to her Beatrice answers all her questions for her and so Hero, again, does not get to say what she feels. Beatrice seems to talk too much, considered a ‘failing’ by male characters. Later on during this scene, there is a masked dance. Benedick asks Beatrice to dance, knowing who she is to find out her real thoughts. Benedick thinks that Beatrice does not know who he is, but doesn’t realise that she does know that it is him under the mask, and so she says some extremely hurtful things about him. He had expected Beatrice to say nice things about him, but she did the exact opposite. She calls him, “the prince’s jester, a very dull fool, only his gift is devising impossible slanders:” She is also saying that he is nasty, yet she is being extremely nasty and horrible herself. We then see how Beatrice’s words really did affect Benedick and he becomes extremely angry as well as being incredibly hurt. He thinks about how nasty Beatrice is being, and the thing he was most hurt about was being called a fool. He tries to protect himself by saying, “Hah, it may be that I go under that title because I am merry:” so is actually implying that Beatrice the fool. To get back at what Beatrice said to him, later on in the act, Benedick calls Beatrice a “Harpy” which is a fierce bird-like monster with a beautiful female face.
In the book ‘The drama of love, life and death in Shakespeare’ by Anthony Holden Beatrice and Benedick are described as “independent spirits just made for each other, if only they would swallow their pride long enough to acknowledge it.” This is an extremely interesting concept as it shows that both characters are so proud that they don’t even notice that they may be suitably matched and may get along, but as they have to protect their reputations they don’t see this.
The next scenes in the play involving both characters are the tricking scenes. The tricking scenes for Beatrice and Benedick are mostly similar but there are a few differences. Each trick being played on both characters have the same concept which is to think that the other is in love with them.
The scenes had to be cleverly planned as Beatrice and Benedick are the most clever characters in the play. This also makes it much more interesting and amusing for us as an audience to watch, as it makes the clever characters look dumb.
The first scene is tricking Benedick who is being tricked by Don Pedro, Leonato and Claudio. Each of them know that Benedick is hiding in the bushes listening to their conversation, so as well as talking about how Beatrice is in love with him they also talk about Benedick in a bad way and insulting him. The main motive of the trick is to pass time and amuse themselves until the wedding of Hero and Claudio. Don Pedro is the one to bring the subject up when saying, “come hither Leonato, was it you that told me of today that your niece is in love with Signor Benedick?” This instantly grabs the audience’s attention as we know that this is definitely not true from our past knowledge of Beatrice which is that she hates men, this gives evidence that what Don Pedro says is false. They use extremely exaggerated language to describe Beatrice’s love for Benedick such as “enraged affection”.
The things that they say about Beatrice do make her seem bizarrely in love with Benedick although it hardly fits with her character and she would normally never do this. Leonato, being the uncle of Beatrice is naturally expected to know more about her so he is the one to say most. He uses such hyperbole examples showing Beatrice’s love, he says, “my daughter is sometimes afeared she will do desperate outrage to herself” meaning that Hero thinks that Beatrice may harm herself so severely, she may even kill herself. We know from this is a complete overstatement. They also make the situation sound tremendously impossible for Beatrice, for whatever happens between her and Benedick, there would be a drastic outcome for example, when Claudio says, “Hero thinks she will surely die, for she says she will die, if he love her not, and she will die ere she make her love known, and she will die if he woo her, rather than she will bate one breath of her accustomed crossnes.”
The characters then go on to insult Benedick. This is a humorous element of the play as Benedick feels extremely stupid whilst hearing the truth about himself, which he finds painful. Don Pedro says that he has a “contemptible spirit” calling him a proud person. They insult him further, “I wish he would modestly examine himself” showing Benedick does not know what he is like to others. Benedick’s response to this is quite different to what would be expected of him. He changes the way he feels about things very quickly, he says, “happy are they that their detractions, and can put them down to mending.” He also knows with the aim of marrying Beatrice, after being against marriage for so long people would make fun of him. He then goes on to contradict himself on all his beliefs saying the good reasons for marriage which is extremely pathetic. He also says, “when I said I would die a bachelor, I did not think I should live until I were married” which is yet another paradoxical. He instantly changes his view of Beatrice saying, “by this day she’s a fair lady, I do spy some marks of love in her. Beatrice’s tricking scene comes next; she is being tricked by Hero and her two gentle women, Margaret and Ursula. Beatrice is also hidden behind a bush they begin with a negative point saying she is “disdainful” calling her very proud.
When talking about Benedick, Hero, Margaret and Ursula say numerous things about Benedick that do not at all fit with his character. Hero says, “I pursued them, if they loved Benedick, to wish him wrestle with affection and never to let Beatrice know of it.” Subsequently Ursula says, “Oath not the gentlemen deserve as full fortunate bed as ever Beatrice shall catch upon.” Hero replies to this by stating all of Beatrice’s bad points; as Hero is a very shy and quiet character, we feel this is her solitary chance to let out her thoughts and true feelings as Beatrice isn’t there to say everything for her. Hero states that Beatrice is prouder than anyone, that she doesn’t appreciate anything she sees and that her intelligence is so important that nothing can compare to it; she says that Beatrice never credits anything with any good and that she is not like the rest of the girls in the town. Hero really stresses theses points and she even says that Benedick should die not declaring his love and then die being mocked or a fool, “it were a better death, than die with mocks.”
Finally Beatrice’s response to these comments shows that she was hurt, “what fire is in mine ears? Can this be true?” she does not want to believe the things said about her. She also, like Benedick, quickly alters her opinion of Benedick, “and Benedick lover on, I will requite thee, taming thy wild heart to thy loving hand.” This Is different to what would be expected of the two as they appear to be constantly arguing.
These scenes show how easily even the cleverest characters of the play are tricked and deceived by there friends and family. It also shows the most modern and clever characters of the play are tricked into believing a lie.
It is also extremely funny to observe the attitude changes to love of Beatrice’s and Benedick’s attitudes. As they were both so against it before and now they have both changed to like it. There attitudes towards each other also quickly change, and they both take a false liking into each other.
In Act 4, Scene 1, Beatrice asks Benedick to prove his love to her. She asks him to kill Claudio, one of his best friends, as he has wronged Hero. This is extremely hard for Benedick and he has to show Beatrice that he cares for her, so therefore has no choice but to challenge Claudio and kill him. In the book ‘The drama and love, life and death in Shakespeare’ by Anthony Holden, the plays are referred to being, “about the essential respect built into true love” This is a very true comment as Elizabethan lovers would do anything for each other, especially the men for the women, to declare their love. They are willing to forgo anything for them as everything they seem to do is extremely hyperbole and not viable.
To conclude, both Beatrice and Benedick are tremendously similar and are perfectly suited for each other, which at the end of the play is shown as they are matched together. They are the most modern characters of the play as they both have their own feelings and views on everything. They evidently do not care what others around them think of by showing the way they are so confident and independent. They keep the play flowing and adjoin humour and provide the audience with great entertainment, by the way they speak to each other and others around them.
