An analysis of how the relationship between Benedick and Beatrice moves from "merry war" to "honourable marriage". Is this a marriage that will last, do you think? - Much Ado about nothing
With close reference to the chracters' use of language, analyse how the relationship between Benedick and Beatrice moves from "merry war" to "honourable marriage". Is this a marriage that will last, do you think?
In Much Ado About Nothing we see "Signor Mountanto" and "Lady Disdain" move from a "skirmish of wit" to a state of "honourable marriage": a complete and ironic reversal and complete irony of Benedick's and Beatrice's previous is achieved by the end of the play. At the beginning of the play we are immediately shown the merry war and indeed, the first confrontation between the two is shown in the first Act of the first scene. Benedick and Beatrice undergo a change in their attitudes to one another that is so sudden that it is comical in the middle of the play. However, they never lose their charm that is shown throughout the whole play, ending with Benedick making a proposal to Beatrice. This therefore creates a clearly compatible couple and a marriage between them to last. Much of the play is based on the idea of Noting: indeed this relates to a pun in the title, as in Shakespeare's time "Nothing" would have been pronounced "noting". A lot of this play is based on noting: indeed, Benedick and Beatrice only come together when they note what is discussed by other characters in the play. Don John's plot hinges on the misnoting of what the Princes see at Hero's bedroom window.
In the beginning of the play we see a "merry war" between Benedick and Beatrice. When Beatrice enters at the beginning of the play she makes an immediate impact: rather than following the very conventional ways and actions as Hero does, she acts in a very unladylike manner. When Beatrice talks to the messenger she insults Benedick, saying "he waits his faith but as the fashion of his hat", to the mere messenger who is only trying to politely describe the service of Benedick during the wars: the complete opposite of a conventional Elizabethan lady whom is embodied by her cousin, who is
In Much Ado About Nothing we see "Signor Mountanto" and "Lady Disdain" move from a "skirmish of wit" to a state of "honourable marriage": a complete and ironic reversal and complete irony of Benedick's and Beatrice's previous is achieved by the end of the play. At the beginning of the play we are immediately shown the merry war and indeed, the first confrontation between the two is shown in the first Act of the first scene. Benedick and Beatrice undergo a change in their attitudes to one another that is so sudden that it is comical in the middle of the play. However, they never lose their charm that is shown throughout the whole play, ending with Benedick making a proposal to Beatrice. This therefore creates a clearly compatible couple and a marriage between them to last. Much of the play is based on the idea of Noting: indeed this relates to a pun in the title, as in Shakespeare's time "Nothing" would have been pronounced "noting". A lot of this play is based on noting: indeed, Benedick and Beatrice only come together when they note what is discussed by other characters in the play. Don John's plot hinges on the misnoting of what the Princes see at Hero's bedroom window.
In the beginning of the play we see a "merry war" between Benedick and Beatrice. When Beatrice enters at the beginning of the play she makes an immediate impact: rather than following the very conventional ways and actions as Hero does, she acts in a very unladylike manner. When Beatrice talks to the messenger she insults Benedick, saying "he waits his faith but as the fashion of his hat", to the mere messenger who is only trying to politely describe the service of Benedick during the wars: the complete opposite of a conventional Elizabethan lady whom is embodied by her cousin, who is