"Much ado about nothing" - What does a study of Claudio's use of language reveal about his character and does he get what he deserves in the end?

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“Much ado about nothing” Coursework Assignment.

What does a study of Claudio’s use of language reveal about his character and does he get what he deserves in the end?

At the start of the play Claudio is strongly opposed to the idea of marriage but later he falls in love with Hero.  Don John is jealous of Claudio because his brother Don Pedro likes him so much and because he is the prince’s brother yet he is of the same social status as Claudio. Later, Claudio is led to believe that his friend Don Pedro is wooing Hero for himself when he promised to do it for Claudio by Don John. After this is quickly dispelled a date is set for the two to marry but the night before, Claudio and Don Pedro are taken by Don John and tricked into thinking Hero has been un-faithful to Claudio when they are actually seeing Borachio and Margaret. Claudio embarrasses Hero at the altar and is made to think she has died. When he finds out it wasn’t her at the window he cries a lot and asks Leonato to punish him as he sees fit, but Leonato asks him to marry his niece who turns out to be Hero.

I think that although it could be argued both ways, overall Claudio gets what he deserves in the end. At the start of the story he thinks of her as an object and reflects a typical male in those times thinking that she should do what he says and not have a voice which she accepts. She doesn’t speak out and lets the men speak for her as they would have done in the time the play is set.

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        Claudio sticks very closely to social rankings and talks down to people of lower social class “Benedick, didst thou note the daughter of signor Leonato” here he is using “thou” meaning the person he is talking to is inferior unlike Don Pedro who talks to everyone courteously as if they are of equal social rank “Amen, if you love her…” Later Claudio says “you speak this to fetch me in my lord?” using you as courtesy for a social equal even though Don Pedro is of higher rank. This makes him look arrogant and makes the audience dislike him.

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