Since Claudio asked Benedick for his opinion, Benedick is definitely senior and Claudio would like to have his approval of Hero, as he asks, “Is she not a modest young lady?” The audience gets an impression that Benedick is heartless because Claudio is so madly in love with Hero, but then they realise otherwise because Benedick wants someone on his side; for someone to be a bachelor like him. “Is’t come to this? In faith hath not the world one man but he will wear his cap with suspicion? Shall I never see a bachelor of threescore again?” His language suggests that he could be angry, but inside he feels upset that his friend wants to get married and that he feels left out.
In the second extract, Benedick’s monologue suggests that he will never find the right woman because, “Till all graces be in one woman, one woman shall not come in my grace.” According to Benedick, his ideal wife has to be perfect, but no one is perfect so he will never find a wife. Benedick believes that women are untrustworthy and he mentions in the previous extract, “I will do myself the right to trust none. And the fine is, for the which I may go the finer, I will live a bachelor.” He is still very sarcastic and somewhat childish as he calls Claudio, ‘Monsieur Love!’, but he may be jealous of him inside.
Don Pedro, Leonato and Claudio all take part in the gulling of Benedick. Benedick’s monologue afterwards has a definite change in tone and attitude. “They say the lady is fair; ‘tis a truth, I can bear them witness; and virtuous; so, I cannot reprove it’ and wise, but for loving me.” His language changes to a much more positive tone and he points out all the good aspects of Beatrice that he never thought of before. His pessimistic old-self becomes optimistic as he says, “When I said I would die a bachelor, I did not think I should live till I were married.” Benedick is much more open-minded now that he embraces the concept of love.
As Beatrice approaches Benedick, he completely falls for the trick and thinks that Beatrice loves him. “I do spy some marks of love in her” seems to be a more welcoming and warm sentence than his cold and miserable remarks in the previous extract. “You take pleasure then in the message?” Benedick is trying to coax Beatrice to admit that she loves him and thinks that her cold remarks are just covering up her real love for him. “If I do not take pity of her, I am a villain; if I do not love her, I am a Jew. I will go get her picture.” He is far more considerate and caring than he was before and insults himself instead of other people.
Before being gulled, Benedick said to Claudio, “Go to i’faith, an thou wilt needs thrust thy neck into a yoke, wear the print of it and sigh away.” He contradicts himself and explains his past behaviour by saying, “I have railed so long against marriage. But doth no the appetite alter? A man loves the meat in his youth that he cannot endure in his age.” Benedick is matured now and is past his youth; his ‘appetite altered’. The two quotations are very different because the first is about marriage being like a punishment that you walk into; in this, he uses imperatives and bitter phrases. The second is explaining himself and how his way of thinking has changed; in this, a rhetorical question makes what he is saying more persuasive.
Benedick changes his mind because he realises that deep inside he loves Beatrice; something he could only find out when he ‘knows’ that Beatrice loves him. Don Pedro, Claudio and Leonato (especially Don Pedro) are aware of this, which encourages them to gull Benedick. They use exaggerated lies like, “Then down upon her knees she falls, weeps, sobs, beat her heart, tears her hair, prays, curses – ‘O sweet Benedick! God give me patience.’ ” Leonato is involved in the scheme, which makes it more believable because Benedick respects him whereas Don Pedro and Claudio are his comrades. Hero is mentioned in the gulling, which confirms that Beatrice must love him because her and Hero are very close. Deep inside, I think Benedick wants to change his views and the gulling helps him open his true self up.
On the surface, Benedick seems to be a proud, sexist “professed tyrant” yet he really is a kind and sensitive character when he thinks of Beatrice. “By this day, she’s a fair lady” says he and the impression an audience gets of him is that he is determined to put on a manly and proud front, yet inside he is quite soft and a little bit naïve. Shakespeare cleverly uses dramatic irony because Benedick and Beatrice are antagonistic from the start, but everyone knows that they secretly love each other deep inside.
