Much Ado About Nothing - The Importance Of Noting Essay

“Speak low, if you speak love.” (Shakespeare, 43) Much Ado About Nothing, written by William Shakespeare in the early 1600’s, is a Shakespearean comedy. Noting refers to the act of noticing or overhearing. In Much Ado About Nothing, noting is used by the characters to gossip, eavesdrop, and intentionally mislead one another. Noting leads to many consequences in Much Ado About Nothing, a few of these being when, Antonio and Borachio overhear the same conversation, Benedict and Beatrice are tricked into love, Claudio and Don Pedro witness the mock love scene, and the watchmen overhear a conversation between Borachio and Conrade.

This essay is an exploration of the play Much Ado About Nothing, and the gender roles involved in the deceit and trickery that transpire and develop throughout the story. As gender is one of the main themes in the plot, identifying the expected gender roles of the characters, and how the contrast between characters highlights these expected roles. In Shakespeare 's time, known as the Elizabethan Era, men and women’s roles and expectations were starkly different. Elizabethan women, no matter what social class, were inferior to men. A female’s role in the family was to get married so they could increase their family 's wealth and power and to produce heirs. Men, on the other hand, had all of the power within a household. Males were expected

The play Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare consists of many themes which grow out of the ‘game of love'. The two main themes consist of perception and deception. Through the plot complications, character development and dramatic techniques these themes can be explored. In the play deception is shown on both good and evil sides, the game of love between Beatrice and Benedick and the Don John plot to split up Hero and Claudio. Perception is a theme used in most of Shakespeare's plays. Perceptive views by the characters help portray the game of love. Hero is perceived as dead which then Claudio is sorry and feels for her. Beatrice and Benedick's loved is clouded by each other's perceptions and arguments.

Deceit and trickery play a huge part in the play Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare. Deception is a key theme in the play, it also moves the plot along. Trickery and deception is used in the love stories of couples Hero and Claudio, and Benedick and Beatrice, with opposite results. This play demonstrates two different kinds of deceit: the kind whose only purpose is to cause trouble, and the kind that is used to form a good outcome. In the relationship of Hero and Claudio, deception nearly succeeds in breaking them apart forever, while in the case of Benedick and Beatrice, it brings them closer together.

Italy, a lot of the plays written were set in Italy. This play has a

pivotal part of the plot - it is what makes the story revolve and what

Drama text, Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare is a romantic comedy revolved around marriage, dishonesty and love. In 2007, the original play had been interpreted and adapted into a new film text; Much Ado About Nothing Shakespeare Retold. This new film version is an adaption for the modern audience who’s views around love and marriage have changed since Elizabethan times. Brian Percival ‘Retold’ the original play, first published in 1623 by reinterpreting it into his own understanding of modern society with the focus of women’s roles nowadays. Whilst doing this Percival has maintained many of Shakespeare’s intentions.

            Hero does not get a chance to mull over the idea of Claudio as a husband.  Even the audience knows little about her going into the now famous “shaming scene.”  Details about Hero’s virtues and personality are purposely left out, partially to satisfy the dominant male perspective in the play, but also to give more clout to the heinous claim that Claudio makes during the wedding.  The reactions of Hero’s father and others indicate that a woman’s virtues are only as good as a man says they are.

A central theme in the play Much Ado About Nothing is the appearance versus reality portrayed through characters. Throughout the play characters are in a constant battle of showing their hidden truths or withholding their faulty appearances.

Blindness is only a disability to those that are mentally eyeless. Shakespeare being a man of keen mental sight, he has had the ability to portray mental blindness in several of his plays. Being one of the best writers, he is actively able to capture the four elements of a well-made play being peripetiea, denouement, timely entrances and exits and incredibly gripping scene entrances and conclusions. Having written 38 plays with two original plots, Shakespeare expresses his themes through passionate romance, sorrow filled tragedy, inviting history and hilarious comedy. One of his most famous comedies is the play called, Much Ado About Nothing. In this play the comedic aspects greatly emphasize the important theme of self-knowledge.

  Much Ado About Nothing raises many important issues concerning the institution of marriage. Perhaps Shakespeare's purpose in writing this play was to question the existing approach to relationships and marriage. Shakespeare reveals the faults of the process through the characters of Hero and Claudio and also Hero's father, Leonato. Shakespeare also may be suggesting an alternative approach to marriage and relationships through the characters of Beatrice and Benedick.

“Good comedy is tragedy narrowly averted”: these words were spoken by Jonathon Bate and Eric Rasmussen in their publishing of ‘William Shakespeare: Complete Works’. They show how many elements of comedy could be interpreted as almost tragic. The comedy in Much Ado About Nothing is often created when the audience can see that something could go horribly wrong, however it is saved in the nick of time. A sense of relief and light-heartedness is created, as customarily comedy is known to end in a meeting of characters at a gleeful point in time or occasion; most frequently with a wedding.

Each of the main characters in Much Ado About Nothing is the victim of deception, and it is because they are deceived that they act in the ways that they do. Although the central deception is directed against Claudio in an attempt to destroy his relationship with Hero, it is the deceptions involving Beatrice and Benedick which provides the play's dramatic focus.

Much Ado about Nothing is a romantic comedy written by William Shakespeare. Deception is a repeated theme throughout the play and it performs an essential role in the matters relating to romance. There are two couples who unwittingly are participants in the matchmaking and the match breaking schemes of others. There is Claudio of Florence and Benedick of Padua who arrive at Leonato’s house in Messina with Don Pedro, after being away in battle. Then, there is Hero, Leonato’s daughter, and heir, as well as her devoted cousin, Beatrice. In Much Ado about Nothing Shakespeare uses language and literary devices to reassure the audience that love will persevere and prevail in the end. He achieves this by juxtaposing Benedick and Beatrice with Claudio and Hero.

Much Ado About Nothing is primarily a play about gossip. Indeed, the title means a big fuss about a trifle, and by the end, this is exactly what happens. All accusations will come to nothing, causing the play to end the same way as if they never occurred at all. Shakespeare brilliantly plays on the meanings of nothing throughout this play. The word "nothing" would actually have been pronounced "noting" in his time. It can mean worthless, a person of little worth, or also mean everything, in the sense that much ado is made about everything (Smith). Much of the plot is moved along by characters eavesdropping on a conversation and either misunderstanding what they overhear or being deceived by