Much Ado About Nothing
English Coursework Essay on 'Much Ado About Nothing'. 'The Jokes which society tells are a significant index of that society's concerns and anxieties'. (M. Mangan, A preface to Shakespeare's comedies, 1996) If this is the case what can we learn from 'Much Ado About Nothing' about the 'concerns and anxieties' of the society in which Shakespeare was living? 1Sir H Walpole once remarked that 'a comedy should make us think', Shakespeare exploits this function of comedy by utilizing jokes on the themes of cuckoldry, infidelity and honour to permit the audience to think about the 'concerns and anxieties' associated with these jokes within Shakespeare's society and what can be learnt from these jokes told. The figure of the Cuckold in 'Much Ado About Nothing', a husband of a woman who commits adultery, is a running joke throughout the play. In the play, the character Benedick, who carries a misogynistic view of women, is the main instigator of these jokes, he says that being a cuckold is what happens when you get married and you would have to 'hang' his 'bugle in an invisible baldrick' and he vows never to allow the plucking 'off' of 'the bull's horns and' setting 'them' on his 'forehead', meaning he does not want to get married. Even though Benedick may be slightly bestial, it is clear there is a fear of getting married in Benedick's opinions. As Michael Mangan2 comments in
An Exploration Of The Theme of Deception In much Ado About Nothing
An Exploration Of The Theme of Deception In much Ado About Nothing In his play Much Ado about Nothing Shakespeare presents the theme of deception in a remarkably convincing way. He seems to be bringing to the fore the fact that deception is life changing and not always bad. That there are various forms of deception justifiable and unjustifiable. He also discusses self deception and accidental deception. Every character in the play takes part in deception in one form or other be it hero or Claudio or Beatrice or Benedick The theme of deception first appears in the scene 1.1 with the entry of Don john, who appears to be wearing a mask of deception as he makes polite but curt replies and immediately afterwards in scene 1.3 he pours out torrents of evil words about the very people in whose company he was earlier seen by the audience. These scenes along with the masked ball in scene 2.1 set the tone for the upcoming deceptions. Shakespeare Presents Don John's character as that of a self obsessed man, highlighted by his continuous use of the word "I ", whose deception of people is driven purely by hatred and revenge; his deceptions are mean and meant to cause destruction and trouble in other's lives "I m a plain dealing villain", brought to light by his use of violent animalistic imagery "if I had my mouth I would bite". The first instance of this deception is seen in scene 1.3
How Is The Theme Of Deception Apparent in Much AdoAbout Nothing
An exploration of the ways Shakespeare presents the theme of deception The theme of deception is ever-present throughout 'Much Ado About Nothing'; the majority of the plot is based upon purposeful deception, some malevolent while others benign. The play itself, although set in Messina, Italy seems to echo the culture of Elizabethan society in which William Shakespeare lived; the importance of honour and pride at that time induced the need for the people to uphold this status through the constant deception of those around them, whether this was with appearances or words. Shakespeare creates a world where deception is used throughout the play and on many occasions it was intended for desirable effects; deception for positive effect is known as benevolent deception. One of the first instances where the gap between appearance and reality is portrayed is in the first dialogue of the play. The messenger has come to give news of the return of the men from a battle and speaks of how Claudio was 'doing in the figure of a lamb, the feats of a lion'. This illustrates the gap between the appearance of Claudio and the reality of Claudio, of how he exceeds the expectations of his age by his actions on a battlefield, and demonstrates how he deceives those around him of his true capabilities. Shakespeare also uses clever word play with the use of an alliterative pattern where the sounds
(Much Ado About Nothing) Remind Yourself Of Act 2, Scene 1, Consider The Effect The Scene Has In Terms Of The Dance Being Viewed As A Metaphor For Life Or As A Microcosm Of The Messina Society
(Much Ado About Nothing) Remind Yourself Of Act 2, Scene 1, Consider The Effect The Scene Has In Terms Of The Dance Being Viewed As A Metaphor For Life Or As A Microcosm Of The Messina Society The dance in Act 2, Scene 1 is an important scene of the play, with the dominant themes of the play being present and also a scene in which the relationships between the characters develop, but it can also be seen as a microcosm of the Messina society. A key of theme throughout the play is deception, and this is present in the scene. The four men are masked in an attempt to hide their identity from the women, which adds to theme of deception throughout the play, but when the dance is viewed as a microcosm of the Messina society, this could be seen as Shakespeare being critical of the men presenting themselves falsely to woo the women, and how this could weaken the marriage between them. Shakespeare also presents the characters as keen to meet the chivalrous and proper expectations of them within the dance. As Balthasar and Margaret dance, the dialogue between them is full of religious references, as both characters mention 'prayer' and 'amen'. This shows the strong belief that the society has in God, and the natural order of God being at the top, and the characters show this in their attempts to be chivalrous, again Shakespeare invites the audience to criticise how the Messina
Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing
Explore how Shakespeare dramatizes the way people deceive and are deceived in Much Ado About Nothing. Does any of this present difficulties for a modern audience. "Much Ado about Nothing" is not about nothing despite it's somewhat suggestive title. The play is in fact a compilation of deceit, portraying the complications of love, and deception on behalf of love, all of which entails the characters to become very much entangled in a web of facades and false talk. Shakespeare also fills his play with complex metaphors, many involving the taming of wild animals, which does dramatize the play somewhat (largely representing the manic love shared between his frantic characters and their inter-twinned love lives). In Shakespeare's time "nothing" was generally pronounced as "noting," therefore making the title of the play... "Much Ado about Noting." Unsurprisingly as a result, Shakespeare abuses this homonym at every opportunity. "Nothing" could mean "nothing;" "nothing" could denote "noting" or listening in/eavesdropping. "Nothing" was also a colloquial term for part of a woman, which was "nothing" compared to what a man had. So, the play orbits around instances of deception and eavesdropping coupled with complicated metaphors for sexual politics (and less complicated ones for sexual relations) between men and women, as was much common at the time. The basic action of the play
Explore Shakespeares presentation of the Courtly World of Messina in the plays opening acts. Evaluate how the setting might be regarded as typical for its time and analyse how modern audiences could feel alienated by the cultural values on display.
Explore Shakespeare’s presentation of the Courtly World of Messina in the play’s opening acts. Evaluate how the setting might be regarded as typical for its time and analyse how modern audiences could feel alienated by the cultural values on display. The concept of the courtly world goes beyond the mere setting of the royal court and is largely presented as a life style, especially with regards to romance. This idea has transcended time, with Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales depicting a similar courtly world in the Knight’s tale, a story that possessed broadly similar features to Much Ado About Nothing. This world is set firmly in a period where the monarchy was the centre of English life. This, perhaps, explains why some aspects, especially the apparent degradation of women until they become objects, are somewhat uncomfortable for modern readers as our liberal society views this as sexist, far from a Victorian audience’s view that this was normal life. The structure of the play is instrumental in establishing the recurring themes of a courtly world, most notably the hierarchical and patriarchal structures that operate in this setting. This is most obvious from the dramatis personae, with its order beginning with men at the top and women at the bottom highlighting the gender roles within the courtly world and love itself as it is men who essentially do the courting. This
Explore to what extent, if any, Shakespeare presents Claudio to be an admirable character in 'Much Ado about Nothing'
Explore to what extent, if any, Shakespeare presents Claudio to be an admirable character in 'Much Ado about Nothing' The first the audience hear of the character of Claudio in 'Much Ado about Nothing' is from other characters discussing his heroic feats during war. Shakespeare introduces Claudio, not through his own presence and actions, but through others' opinions of him. Don Pedro clearly thinks Claudio is an admirable character - approving of his service during the war against Don John - describing him as 'doing in the figure of a lamb the feats of a lion'. During Claudio's confession of his love for Hero, the prince describes Hero as 'worthy' of Claudio's love, showing he holds Claudio in high regard, Shakespeare repeats this word six lines later to place emphasis on Don Pedro's opinion. Due to Borachio and Don Johns' attempt to ruin the future wedding, Claudio believes that Don Pedro is in love with Hero and has betrayed him. Upon realising his friend is acting strangely, Don Pedro shows concern by asking, 'wherefore art thou sad?' This concern implies that he cares for Claudio. The way in which he selflessly woos Hero for him further emphasises Don Pedro's care for his friend's wellbeing. He tells Claudio that, 'as I wooed for thee to obtain her, I will join with thee to disgrace her'. This shows that the prince's act as a matchmaker between Claudio and Hero was not
A Marxist Study of Much Ado About Nothing. The ideology perpetuated in Much Ado About Nothing revolves around, centrally, ensuring the needs and insecurities of the aristocratic the need for a patriarchal power, the need to reject, stigmatize and dom
A Marxist study of Much Ado About Nothing Using the Marxist approach to one of Shakespeare's comedies, Much Ado About Nothing, this essay deals with the unconscious of the text in order to reveal the ideology of the text (as buried in what is not said) so as to discover the hegemony behind the text. The ideology perpetuated in Much Ado About Nothing revolves around, centrally, ensuring the needs and insecurities of the aristocratic - the need for a patriarchal power, the need to reject, stigmatize and dominate the lower class and women. According to Elliot Krieger in A Marxist Study of Shakespeare's Comedies, there is a "primary world" and a "second world" in each of Shakespeare's comedies. The second world is a location towards which "the characters, hence the action, move" (1). The primary world is the actual location which the characters originally inhabit, while the second world is where the characters escape to. This second world is an alternative to the primary world, a different perspective for the characters to see the objective reality. It represents a state of mind which "shelters or separates them" in the primary world as the protagonists "circumscribe all of objective reality with their subjectivity" (3). While the protagonists "experience the second world as a retreat, withdrawal, or replacement" releasing their private fancy in this second world, others
In the world he creates in Much Ado about Nothing(TM) Shakespeare demonstrates above all the value of friendship as the strongest bond in life. Do you agree with this statement? In your answer you should include an examination of a l
In the world he creates in 'Much Ado about Nothing' Shakespeare demonstrates above all the value of friendship as the strongest bond in life. Do you agree with this statement? In your answer you should include an examination of a least two extracts from the play. When studying Shakespeare it is always important to examine the context that his work was written, Shakespeare lived in the Elizabethan age, and age later called 'The Golden Age'. However it is essential to remember that the 'Golden Age' preceded the Age of Enlightenment. In fact Shakespeare was surrounded with a world of unexplained phenomenons as the entire concept of science was only just finding its feet in the world. As Shakespeare was writing there was no explanation for the content of the sky or belief of what was past it, disease went unexplained, and genetics was something far beyond the thought of any person living at that time. His era followed the aptly named 'Dark Ages' and even the most intelligent people could not offer any explanation beyond the supernatural and the existence of witches. God's existence was often questioned as the churches appeared to become more and more corrupt with no explanation other than that their actions were dictated by a scripture that the majority of the country were not able to read or understand. Foreign cultures were also largely unheard of at this time, though world
In these extracts, how does the language which Beatrice and Benedick use show the audience what they are thinking and feeling?
Beatrice and Benedick Question: In these extracts, how does the language which Beatrice and Benedick use show the audience what they are thinking and feeling? Both Beatrice and Benedick react in a similar way to the thought of the other loving them; a positive way, they simply express themselves in a different manner. Beatrice uses poetic language and imagery to display her emotions, whereas the language used by Benedick appears more drawn out; he uses longer sentences in the form of prose. The use of poetry in the speech made by Beatrice conveys her passion and fiery nature towards Benedick. "And, Benedick, love on; I will requite thee, Taming my wild heart to thy loving hand" Beatrice is clearly exhilarated at the thought of Benedick loving her, the passionate language and broken up phrases that she uses depicts to the reader an almost childlike excitement and amazement. Benedick however, uses longer sentences and speaks in prose, expressing his awe, and wonder that Beatrice is on love with him. He talks about why Beatrice is so appealing to him; he is almost idolising her. Previously in the play we hear him set ridiculously high standards, for his ideal woman, and now he has discovered that he describing Beatrice. "They say the lady is fair" "and virtuous" "and wise" Both Beatrice and Benedick appear initially disbelieving at the news they receive; they are both