Much ado about nothing exploring the relationships between Claudio and Hero & Benedick & Beatrice!!!

Examine the ways in which Shakespeare presents the relationship between Benedick and Beatrice and Claudio and Hero? Shakespeare gradually during the play changes our perception of Benedick and Beatrice's and Claudio and Hero's relationship through; dramatic irony, verbal irony sudden plot twists and other dramatic devices that build up tension and ignite the audience's interests. First, looking at verbal irony, this is most apparent in the scene between Beatrice and Benedick, where the character Beatrice uses metaphorical language to describe Benedick 'no less than stuff'd man'. Beatrice implies that Benedick is a coward, a man of no substance or worth, a hollow man with no feelings. This suggests to the audience that Beatrice has been hurt by Benedick in the past. Similarly, Benedick, on his arrival, greets Beatrice with an insult. After she says to him 'nobody marks you', Benedick responds with mockery 'my dear Lady Disdain is you yet living'. he calls Beatrice 'disdain', a scornful woman who looks down on others, Benedick goes on to say that he is 'loved of all ladies' except Beatrice but claims that he 'loves none'. Beatrice responds that women everywhere 'ought to rejoice'. Their war of wits reaches climax when Benedick calls Beatrice 'a rare parrot-teacher' a speaker and repeater of empty words. Beatrice responds 'a bird of my tongue is better than a beast of yours'

  • Word count: 1604
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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Analyse the way Beatrice and Benedick speak to and about each other, up to and including page 134

Analyse the way Beatrice and Benedick speak to and about each other, up to and including page 134 The characters Beatrice and Benedick in the William Shakespeare play "Much Ado About Nothing" can be described as sparring lovers. At the start of the play, it is difficult for them to converse without becoming involved in a "merry war" or a "skirmish of wit". This attitude gradually changes as the play progresses. I shall analyse the way in which this attitude changes as Beatrice and Benedick engage in parlance. From Act One, Scene One, Beatrice demonstrates hypocrisy when to Benedick she says "I wonder that you will still be talking, Signor Benedick, nobody marks you". The ironic part of this is that she is actually listening to him. Therefore, as much as she may like to deny it, she is giving the man she "detests" her undivided attention, and is noticing him. Benedick, in a quick flash of wit answers back "What, my dear Lady Disdain! Are you yet living?" As Benedick asks Beatrice if she is living, it presents the witty assumption that Benedick has not been aware of Beatrice's presence. A very well-put reply to this from Beatrice is that "Disdain" can't die whilst Benedick is there "feeding" it to carry on. This battle of wit which occurs between the both of them illustrates the deep loathing that they appear to have for one another. As we shall discover further on

  • Word count: 1084
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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The role of Don John

The role of Don John It is possible to ascertain that Don John serves to entertain the audience with dramatic irony, playing the instrumental antagonist to the theme of deception and slander underlying the play's narrative. The employment of specific literary devices and melodrama illustrates Don John's conformation to the stereotypical role of the villain and illegitimate offspring, evident in Shakespearean times. The Elizabethan villain was entirely self-conscious and often a complete embodiment of evil. With the growing consciousness that revenge was evil, revengefulness - particularly for injuries less than blood - became almost exclusively a villainous characteristic. Envy was considered the greatest Elizabethan vice, and it may be one of the most powerful of the passions inducing revenge. Envy's passion was so great that, in contrast to anger, no wrongs were necessary for a person to become the recipient of its malice; indeed, it was often directed against the most virtuous and peaceful of people. In the case of "Much Ado About Nothing" Don John was envious of his brother, Don Pedro, his position and rights as the legitimate son as well as Claudio, who was in his brother's favour, because he helped to quell the rebellion. This compelled him to wrongfully slander Hero's name, a woman considered to be naïve, innocent and the quintessential meaning of righteousness.

  • Word count: 1402
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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Much Ado - How do the speech patterns of various characters add to our understanding of them?

In the play Much Ado About Nothing, speech and conversation are an integral part of the play. The way the characters converse with each other tells us a lot about the characters and also their relationships with each other. Sometimes their conversations with each other intend to amuse, sometimes intend to impress, and sometimes intend to conceal their true feelings. One prime example of a character that uses different language around different people is Hero. Hero is a character who adjusts her speech and conversation depending on which other characters she is in he company of. Being a conventional upper class woman, she uses courtly language when around men. Infact, when around men, Hero rarely speaks unless spoken too. However, when she is among the women her character really comes out. In Act 3 Scene 1, Hero and Margaret trick Beatrice into thinking that Benedick loves her. In this scene Hero has more lines on one page than she does in the entire previous acts. In this scene her language is very strong, which is something the audience don't suspect. She also speaks in blank verse during this scene. The reason Shakespeare may have done this is so that the audience are compelled to listen to Hero when she does finally speak. Her words are strong in this scene and have a huge affect on Beatrice. She describes Beatrice as someone who 'cannot love, nor take no shape nor project

  • Word count: 921
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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Claudio-'a man of honour betrayed'?

In order to understand the presentation of Claudio, it is necessary to consider him as 'a man of honour betrayed.' In Shakespeare's 'Much Ado About Nothing' honour is very important to all the gentil characters. To know Claudio's character and his cruel treatment of Hero, it is important to understand the honour code. Specific to aristocracy, honour meant reputation, status and respect. A man's honour was earned through conduct in battle and the virtue of a wife and daughter. Contemporary audiences would not approve of Claudio's manner towards Hero, whereas Renaissance audiences would understand Claudio's behaviour towards Hero. This is because honour was regarded very highly in their social class, which would suggest why audiences would see Claudio as 'a man of honour betrayed'. Throughout the play, even when the truth of Hero's chastity comes out, Claudio is a respected character who is not disliked by other characters, such as Benedick and Don Pedro. Audiences in the renaissance periods believed honour was everything. Claudio's 'dishonouring' would not only act as a threat to his reputation, but also undermine the social structure, as honour was an important tool of social cohesion. The Renaissance era believed that honour was synonymous with order. It is important to emphasize this concept to understand that Claudio is 'a man of honour

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  • Word count: 2018
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING COURSEWORK

An exploration of how the play Much Ado About Nothing falls within the genre of comedy. Much Ado About Nothing is a play that Shakespeare wrote as a comedy for the Elizabethan audience. In this essay I am going to analyse and study the characters that provide comedy and the different aspects of comedy in the play. I will look at the language that makes the audience laugh and how it shapes one of the main themes, comedy. I am going to try to investigate what Shakespeare does and what methods and characters he uses to produce a comical feel to the play. The two sets of characters that offer comedy are Dogberry and Beatrice and Benedick. But what I am going to try and find out is what they do and how they do it, and how that makes the audience laugh. The most obvious source of comedy in the play is Dogberry and the Watch. These characters are quite ridiculous and give the audience plenty of laughs. When they are first introduced to the audience they are presented to give some comic relief after the unveiling of Don John's evil plan. This reoccurs throughout the play, as every time something tragic happens, Dogberry and the watch are in the next scene to provide some light hearted humour. The main comedy provider is Dogberry, who is the leader of the watch. He uses big words to look more superior but instead makes himself look foolish because he gets his words mixed up, "have

  • Word count: 2058
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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Compare the Representation of Women in Hamlet (primary text) and Much Ado About Nothing (secondary text)

Compare the Representation of Women in Hamlet (primary text) and Much Ado About Nothing (secondary text) Women of Shakespeare's time were regarded to be possessions of men and as such were conditioned to be submissive. This would have influenced, in my judgment, how Shakespeare created the female characters in Hamlet. Furthermore, in the essay "The Warrant of Womanhood, Shakespeare and Feminist Criticism", Ann Thompson points out that male characters in Hamlet have a limited perception of the females. Shakespeare, according to Ann Thompson, goes as far as to let the audience know that he intended for the male character to misunderstand the female, therefore the male characters are often very wrong about the females in the play. The men completely misread the women and in Ophelia and Gertrude's situation, the consequences are very tragic. In order to address this issue, it is necessary to explore the characters of Gertrude and Ophelia in Hamlet and the characters of Hero and Beatrice in Much Ado about Nothing, and in addition, how they are treated by other characters. This will then enable me to pass my own judgement, as to how the women are represented in the two plays Hamlet and Much Ado about Nothing. Shakespeare's Division of Experience by Marilyn French describes and examines gender roles in a way which is applicable to literature. This provides the theoretical

  • Word count: 3656
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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Much Ado About Nothing Report

Much Ado About Nothing Report By Russell Melton Yr 9 The Elizabethan Theatre To start this report I am going to explain a little about the Elizabethan theatre and the plays that were performed, like this one, and also a little on what it would have been like. For example the lighting, sound and costumes as these played a very large role in these times. Firstly a little about the theatre itself, the Elizabethan was named after Queen Elizabeth I and was built for Shakespeare and many other play writers. The theatre itself was very different back then from theatres today. Nowadays you can go and pay an affordable price and sit in a good seat in a comfortable theatre and have perfect lighting and great sound to illuminate the actors and have complicated background and scenery to give impressions of indoor and outdoor scenes, but back then they were very different. The centre of the theatre had no roof. And since there was no powerful lighting they had to depend on sunlight. The centre, open part, contained a stage and a courtyard. Unlike today, many people had to stand in the yard in front of the stage and the stage was raised so everyone could see. Only wealthy people could sit in the high storeys which were covered by a roof. There was no scenery back then so Shakespeare's actors could move freely across the stage. Costumes were often rich and impressive but were

  • Word count: 1660
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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"Every text offers a unique perspective" Discuss with reference to your set text and other texts.

"Every text offers a unique perspective" Discuss with reference to your set text and other texts Within all texts a unique perspective is offered to the responder. A re-occurring idea within many texts is that of perspectives on change and truth. All of the texts studied offer to the responder a unique perspective on the idea of change; these vary greatly upon the composer's ideas, beliefs and opinions. All of the texts challenge the idea of a 'universal' truth. They demonstrate that truth is a perspective, which changes based upon the responders cultural values, and personal beliefs. This is shown mainly in Kenneth Branagh's Much Ado About Nothing, Jennifer Saunders's Absolutely Fabulous (Episode: Death), the cartoon A Woman needs the patriarchy like a fish needs a bicycle, The Board of Studies "Changing" booklet, Texts 2a and 2b, and in John Keats' sonnet On First Looking Into Chapman's Homer. Branagh's 20th century appropriation of Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing, deals with change in a light-hearted, humorous, way. Through the text the director is suggesting that large changes in perspective can be brought about by very small events. The director deliberately looks at this change of perspective in a humorous, light hearted, surreal way. In Much Ado About Nothing the change in perspective is shown through the use of film techniques. The garden sequence is an

  • Word count: 992
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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Much_Ado_About_Coursework-1.doc

An exploration of the nature of the relationship between Beatrice and Benedick and what it contributes to Much Ado About Nothing * * * The relationship between Beatrice and Benedick is a major contributor to several key oppositional themes in Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing. It echoes themes of the difference between appearance and reality, love and hate, men and women, and deception and misunderstanding. In addition to this, their relationship contributes to the play's theme of double meanings, or multiple layers of meaning. It also provides humour and interest throughout the play, giving a secure background against which the gradually rising drama, the climax, and the resolution of the Hero-and-Claudio plot is played out. Beatrice and Benedick are at first presented as being in a constant "merry war" with each other - although in fact it is more Beatrice attacking Benedick than the two attacking each other. Indeed, the very first thing she says to Benedick is a provocative comment that "nobody marks" him. This is why Shakespeare quickly establishes her in Act 1 scene I of the play as a woman defiant against the contemporary convention of women being meek, submissive and modest. Hero's adherence to this convention is emphasised by the contrast of her and Beatrice. Not only does this stark contrast exaggerate Hero's character, it also amplifies that of Beatrice -

  • Word count: 2468
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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