Essay The Theme of Honor in _Much Ado About Nothing_

He hath borne himself beyond the promise of his age, doing in the figure of a lamb the feats of a lion. He hath indeed better bettered expectation than you must expect of me to tell you how. (Act 1, scene 1, line 12). This is the first we hear of the reputation of Claudio, from it we learn that he is mature, a good soldier, and has exceeded expectations. Leonato, having only heard good things about the young man, treats Claudio with respect and allows this very young man to marry his only daughter. This is an example of the saying ‘your reputation precedes you’. Benedick’s reputation is very apparent throughout the play: a Joker. At the Ball, Benedick in disguise, asks Beatrice about what she thinks of him, and she describes how most see him: 'Why, he is the Prince 's jester, a very dull fool, only his gift is in devising impossible slanders. None but libertines delight in him, and the commendation is not in his wit but in his villainy, for he both pleases men and angers them, and then they laugh at him and beat him. ' (Act 1, scene 7, line 2). Don John and Don Pedro have opposite reputations and perceptions of their characters. Don Pedro is a war hero, the prince, highly respected and trustworthy. He is the authoritarian, the one to look to for advice and input. We can see this when Leonato says: If you swear, my lord, you shall not be forsworn. [To Don John.] Let me bid you welcome, my lord, being reconciled to the

marriage women should be innocent, pure and faithful. Don John's plan to make Claudio think hero is unfaithful is a success which then Claudio, Don Pedro and Don John perceives Hero is unclean and impure.

Throughout the history of the world, honor has been an important part of life. In literature, as well, honor plays an important role in many plots and the development of almost any character. Shakespeare’s play Much Ado About Nothing is no exception. In this comedy about love and marriage, honor is revealed as the primary reason for many of the actions taken by several different characters. When Claudio breaks off his wedding with Hero, he does it because he believes she is not chastised as she claims to be and in being such, she would dishonor him as well as her father if the marriage were to proceed as planned. The play is an accurate depiction of the honor code and the different standards for men and women of the time in regards to

How ironic that Claudio’s quick decision to shame Hero at the alter shows his extreme lack of honor and virtue.  Rather than stand by his fiancée’s side, he chooses to believe a rumor and instantly disowns her.

Earlier in the play, a scene was described where Borachio and Don John plan to trick Claudio into thinking that Hero is diwsloyal because of a man in her chamber the night prior to her wedding. After the stated quote, the intent is to try and trick Claudio and show that Hero is disloyal when she is actually not. This quote presents significance by describing the overall trait of the entire act and scene which is the trickery and sabotage of Borachio and Don John upon the hapiness of all of the other characters in the play. Overall, the previouly described scene, in part with an already confused Claudio, makes this quote important to the wedding of Claudio and

This theme of appearance versus reality is common throughout the play in the number of times deception is used among the characters. Deceit, and misinterpretation of the events causes tension among Claudio and Don Pedro (Act 3 Scene iv). After Claudio fell in love with Leonato's daughter Hero, Don Pedro woos the young lady for him. As Don Pedro does this jealousy arises in Claudio thinking his love is being taken away by the Prince.

In contrast to Beatrice and Benedict, characters Claudio and Don Pedro do not possess self-knowledge. Because of this they are unable to see the things for what they are. By definition, vanity is excessive pride in your own character or abilities. Due to Claudio and Don Pedro’s vanity, they are unable to acquire self-knowledge. These men demonstrate their vanity in multiple ways. One way they do this is by refusing to admit to having any flaws. They prove this when they accuse, judge, condemn and even punish Hero, running her good name. The ironic part is that the crime in which she is accused of is a falsity in which was set up to deceive Claudio and

Men and women’s honour play a very important role in William Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing and in the times of the Elizabethan era. Throughout the play characters are faced with situations destroying their honour and they will go through many obstacles to restore their honour. Some of the characters are not controversial men and woman and do not always live up to certain ideals that define an honourable man and woman. In the opening scene, Shakespeare introduces the concept honour when Leonato, governor of Messina, asks the messenger whether people have died in the recent battle. The messenger replies, But few of any sort, and none of name. (1.1.7). This is an indication that honour is of high importance to the people in Much Ado About Nothing. Shakespeare shows the honourable woman through the character Hero.

The humiliation caused to Hero in the event would be inconceivable to an audience at the time, being accused of adultery would no doubt ruin a woman’s reputation and therefore create difficulty for her when finding a husband; especially for a woman of high status such as Hero. Claudio is being presented as a potential threat at this part in the play, contrasting with the gallant war hero we were first introduced to. This emphasizes how bitter and sinister Claudio has turned, consequently reminding the audience by irony that is he only interested in wealth and status when marrying Hero. Claudio’s shallow fickleness plays into the villain’s hands. Shakespeare uses the threat of Claudio to generate further anxiety in the audience and concern for Hero’s welfare. This scene shows the men of the play coinciding with each other in their response to the defamation of Hero. Don Pedro personally insults Hero during the commotion of this scene, “to link my dear friend to a common stale,” he suggests here that he believes her status has been lowered by what she has supposedly done and rendered her ‘common’. This personal attack on Hero which has come from someone who shouldn’t really be involved advocates the idea that she is isolated in a patriarchal society in which men group together to defend male interests. Hero’s reputation is being publicly ruined here, and at the time this would have ruined Hero’s life and her

As defined by the dictionary, honor is a high respect that is earned through deeds and reputation. But, what is honor, and how does one receive it? Honor is like many things that are hard to put into words. Along with that, honor can be totally different, depending on your perspective. In the play, A Few Good Men, there is a central theme based around honor, who is doing right and who is doing wrong.

Some would say that honor is a thing of the past; a thing long since extinct with the King Arthur and the knights of the round table. In fact, it is not, it is real and can still be seen all around through people all the time. In Charles Dicken’s novel, A Tale of Two Cities, honor and dishonor are main themes that are exemplified and enacted through many characters. To be honorable, or to act in honor, is to act in a way that is not necessarily socially acceptable, but is morally right, noble, and kind. To be dishonorable is to neglect the basic responsibility of treating every human being in the respectful manner they deserve, giving no variance to rank or status. Throughout the book different men show varying degrees of honor and dishonor.

Heinrich Böll uses his novel, The Lost Honour of Katharina Blum, to attack modern journalistic ethics as well as the values of contemporary Germany. The structure of this novel is important to conveying his message. He uses a police report format, differences in chapter lengths, narrator or author intervention, a subtitle, and the extensive use of the 'puddle' metaphor. All these things contribute towards the message in the text.

In Henry IV, Part One Shakespeare revels in the opportunity to suggest the idiosyncracy of character through his command of a wide range of both verse and prose. As a result the play is full of rich and different character parts (Wells 141). Two in particular, Falstaff and Hotspur, hold diverse beliefs concerning the main theme of the drama, honor. In Shakespeare’s time, honor was defined as the special virtues which distinguish those of the nobility in the exercise of their vocation–gallantry in combat with a worthy foe, adherence to the accepted code of arms, and individual loyalty to friends, family, and comrades in arms (Prior 14). Throughout the play, honor plays an important role in

Don John's malevolent plan to ruin Claudio and Hero's wedding was to take effect the night before they were to wed. The malicious Don John constructed, or rather misconstructed, the scheme that insinuated Claudio's belief in Hero's faithlessness. It is Don John who reports to Claudio and Don Pedro that Hero is having an affair, and he who stage-manages an elaborate charade featuring his own henchman Borachio and an unwitting stand-in for Hero to lend credence to this fiction. Perhaps the most significant thing to be noted in connection with this deception is that the spectator does not witness the crucial scene in which Claudio overhears the counterfeit exchanges between Margaret and Borachio that persuade him of Hero's guilt. We learn of this episode only at second hand, when Borachio boasts of his exploit (Lucking).

Honour is a very important in this play, specially for Eddie and Marco, who are the “alpha males” of the house more or less, because Eddie is from the beginning the boss at his house, but when he threatens Rodolpho, Marco tries to show Eddie that he is also a strong man and that he cannot do that to HIS brother. It means far more to them than the law. To be honorauble is to be respected, and this is show in the chair scene, where Marco is showin his strength to Eddie to protect his brother. If you do something dishonourable, you lose respect. That is why Eddie and Marco are always protecting