Themes in Much Ado About Nothing

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Themes in Much Ado About Nothing   The play "Much Ado About Nothing" is not about nothing. It shows strong themes in the areas of deception, love and the power of words. Also, the play is streaked with metaphors involving the taming of wild animals. These ideas make proving themes and issues and easy and convincing argument.   The plot of the play is based upon deliberate deceptions, some malevolent and others gracious. The deception of Claudio and Don Pedro results in Hero's disgrace, while the trick of her death prepares the way for her redemption and reconciliation with Claudio. Lines like "men were deceivers ever" (2.3.54) bring about the fact that the deception is a key theme in the play. Nothing shows that deceit is essentially evil, but in the play it is sometimes difficult to distinguish between good and bad deception. The bible says:       "But people who are evil and cheat others will go from bad to worse. They will
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fool others, but they will also be fooling themselves." (2 Tim 3:13)       This is evident as Don John plots and succeeds in fooling Claudio and Don Pedro into thinking that Hero has been sleeping with other men before their marriage, but backfires when her "death" is staged and Claudio and Hero are reunited and even more in love after Claudio sincerely apologises.   Another turning point in the play is where Beatrice and Benedick are fooled into thinking that each loves the other, but actually does fall in love as a result. In the end, deceit is neither wholly positive nor ...

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