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Much Ado About Nothing – William Shakespeare

Directions: As we read the play, fill in the “mis-notings” or misunderstandings that create conflicts for the characters and advance the plot. Web out these mis-notings and be sure to indicate the event(s) and which characters are involved and affected by the misunderstandings.

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Much Ado About Nothing

PLOT SUMMARY OVERVIEW

The play opens at the home of Leonato, governor of Messina. Residents of the household include his daughter Hero, his niece Beatrice, and his brother Antonio. They prepare to welcome the army of Don Pedro, who are returning victoriously from battle. In Don Pedro’s company are the soldiers Claudio and Benedick. Claudio is the hero of the recent battle.

When Beatrice and Benedick meet, they resume their long-standing relationship of witty insults and mutual derision. Claudio, meanwhile, falls in love with Hero at first sight. At a masked ball, Don Pedro woos Hero on Claudio’s behalf. Despite a misunderstanding created by Don Pedro’s illegitimate brother Don John, he is successful, and Hero and Claudio are engaged to be married. Don Pedro makes a plan with the other members of the party to trick Benedick and Beatrice into admitting their love for one another.

The next day, Don Pedro, Claudio, and Leonato talk about how Beatrice is lovesick over Benedick, knowing that he is eavesdropping. Struck by the revelation of her supposed love and the assertions of the men that he would be too proud to accept her affections, Benedick declares that he will love her in return. Hero and her maidservant Ursula enact the same scheme with Beatrice, and she reacts similarly.

Meanwhile, Don John has come to hate Claudio for being the new favorite; he decides to sabotage his relationship with Hero. He hatches a scheme with his servant Borachio: Borachio will make love to Hero’s servant, Margaret, on Hero’s balcony when Claudio and Don Pedro are sure to happen by. It goes just as Don John plans, with Claudio and Don Pedro mistaking Margaret for Hero. Enraged by Hero’s supposed infidelity, Claudio publicly denounces her the next day, on the altar at

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Mis-notings or Misunderstandings

Throughout the Play

their wedding. In order to protect her and unearth the truth, Hero’s family hides the humiliated bride and tells everyone that she has died. Overwhelmed by the events of what should have been a happy day, Benedick and Beatrice confess their feelings for one another. Beatrice asks Benedick to kill Claudio, and he reluctantly agrees.

Meanwhile, the foolish but earnest Constable Dogberry gives the evening’s assignments to the night watch. In spite of some very mixed-up instructions, Dogberry’s watch manages to overhear Borachio talking about how he and Don John tricked Don Pedro and Claudio; the watch successfully apprehends the culprits.

Unaware of this new development, Leonato, Antonio, and Benedick challenge Don Pedro and Claudio to duels to avenge Hero’s honor and supposed death. Don Pedro and Claudio maintain that they have acted justly. Dogberry and the watch enter with Borachio as their prisoner; Borachio confesses everything, revealing the error that Don Pedro and Claudio have made. To atone for his treatment of Hero, Claudio agrees to marry Leonato’s niece (another niece—not Beatrice). At the altar it is revealed that the “niece” is in fact Hero herself. Beatrice and Benedick realize that they have been

tricked and, again, try to pretend that they are not in love, but no one is fooled—the two finally confess publicly and agree to marry. A messenger tells the party that Don John has been apprehended, but they decide to delay his punishment until tomorrow, as this is meant to be a joyful occasion. The two weddings are celebrated with music and laughter.

WHO’S WHO: The Characters

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Ursula

One of Hero’s maidservants. She helps Hero trick Beatrice into thinking Benedick is in love with her.

Verges

Dogberry’s deputy. He helps Dogberry give out the assignments to the watchmen.

Claudio

A soldier and nobleman who has won acclaim under Don Pedro. He loves Hero, but is easily tricked into believing that she has been unfaithful.

Conrade

A devoted servant of Don John.

Messenger

Brings news of the recent war’s victors to Leonato and his family.

Borachio

Don John’s other servant and Margaret’s lover. He helps Don John trick Don Pedro and Claudio into believing that Hero has been unfaithful.

Leonato

Governor of Messina, a respected nobleman, Hero’s father, and Beatrice’s uncle. The events of the play take place in his house.

George Seacole

Member of the watch, a group of local men who patrol Messina, attempting to keep order.

Friar Francis

A clergyman who helps Hero’s family fake her death after she is shamed at the wedding.

Hero

Leonato’s daughter, considered beautiful and virtuous. She is in love with Claudio and agrees to marry him.

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Beatrice

Leonato’s niece, cousin and best friend to Hero. She is clever and loving but has a sharp tongue and swears that she will never marry. She has a long-standing battle of

wits with Benedick.

Margaret

One of Hero’s serving women. Margaret unwittingly helps Don John in his scheme to make Hero seem unfaithful.

Benedick

An aristocrat and soldier under Don Pedro. He cheerfully maintains his prickly relationship with Beatrice and also swears he will never marry.

Don Pedro

Prince of Aragon and longtime friend of Leonato. He woos Hero on Claudio’s behalf and comes up with the idea of tricking Benedick and Beatrice into confessing their love for

one another.

Don John

Don Pedro’s illegitimate brother. He hates Don Pedro and Claudio, and schemes to ruin their happiness by making it seem as though Hero has been unfaithful.

Dogberry

Messina’s earnest Master Constable. He blunders a lot and acts like a fool, but ultimately helps straighten everything out at the end of the play.

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Name: ________________________________________ English 2H

BRUSH UP YOUR SHAKESPEARE

REFERENCE SHEET

Below are some commonly used, but unfamiliar, Shakespearean words.

addition - title

affined - bound by duty

alarum - call to arms with

trumpets

anatomize - to analyze in detail

ancient - ensign

anon - until later

arrant - absolute

aroint - begone

assail - to make amorous siege

attend - to await

aye - yes

baffle - to hang up (a person) by the heels as a

mark of disgrace

baggage - strumpet, prostitute

balk - to disregard

barm - the froth on ale

belike - maybe

belov’d - beloved

blank - a target

bolted - refined

brach - bitch hound

brake - bushes

Cousin ,’coz - relative, good friend

chuck - term of endearment, chick

clout - a piece of white cloth

cog - to deceive

coil - trouble

cousin - any close relative

descant - improvise discourses – speaks

dispatch - to hurry

e’en - evening

enow - enough

fare - thee-well -goodbye

fie - a curse

fustian - wretched

got - begot

grammarcy - thank you

halter - noose

honest - chaste, pure

heavy - sorrowful

housewife - hussy, prostitute

impeach - dishonor

list - listen

mayhap - maybe

mess - meal, food

mew - confine

passing - surprisingly,

exceedingly

perchance - maybe

perforce - must

politician - schemer

post - messenger

power - army

prithee - please

quest - a jury

recreant - coward

resolve - to answer; reply to

but soft - be quiet

soundly - plainly

stale - harlot

subscription - loyalty,

allegiance

tax - to criticize; to accuse

troth - belief

teem - to give birth

thee – you (informal)

thou – you (informal)

thy – your (informal)

tucket - trumpet flourish

verge - edge, circumference

verily - truly

villain – common person, not

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Name: ________________________________________ English 2H

brave - fine, handsome

bum - backside, buttocks

caitiff - a wretched humble

person

catch - song

character – handwriting

minister - servant

moiety - portion

morrow - day

nay - no

ne’er - never

office - service or favor

oft - often

noble

want – lack of, don’t have

well-a-day - alas

wherefore - why

yea - yes

zounds - by his (Christ’s)

wounds

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Name: ________________________________________ English 2H

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Name: ________________________________________ English 2H

GO GIRLS!

“O God, that I were a man! I would eat his heart in the market-place.”

Beatrice, Act 4, scene 1

In Shakespeare’s time, the decision to marry was in the hands of a girl’s father: A father chose his daughter’s husband, and it was considered dishonorable and disrespectful of her to communicate her desires in the process. When a woman married, all of her personal property became the property of her husband, and she had no say in how it was spent. Women were regarded as chattel (property) to be married off to improve the family fortune or make political alliances. Elizabethans thought women needed a male caretaker (remember, females could not have careers). However, Shakespeare lived during the time of the Renaissance, which was a turbulent and exciting period of history in which many old and accepted ideas were being questioned, examined, and reinterpreted. Shakespeare is known for creating female characters that are just as complex, intelligent, and powerful as the males. Beatrice is one of the prime examples of this.

In Much Ado About Nothing, men expect to take the lead in most areas of social decision-making. Leonato has the power to decide when, who, and how Hero marries, and Claudio has the power to reject her at his will. Beatrice has to demand Benedick to challenge Claudio to a duel since she has never been allowed the training or experience to do so herself. It is men, in other words, who own all the choices. But Beatrice makes her choices in this play, through her use of her intelligence and wit. She displays the verbal inventiveness that makes the kind of woman she is—unmarried, unparented—an acceptable reality in that society.

Just like Beatrice, Queen Elizabeth defied the expectations for women of her time. She never married because she realized early in her reign that marriage meant loss of power. Even though the general opinion of the time was that women’s minds were weak and that a female head of state was “an offense against nature”, she ruled with great political skill and cunning.

Hero, on the other hand, represents a very conventional woman of wealth of her time, barely speaking a word in the play, especially when compared to the other characters. By putting two such opposite kinds of women side-by-side in the play, Shakespeare reflects the changing world of his time.

For Students: What about Margaret?

There is uproar when it is suspected that Hero has had an affair. But when it is discovered that Margaret was mistaken for Hero, all is well. No one seems to be upset over Margaret’s behavior. Why? (Hint: Look at the rigid class structure of England at the time.)

THINK & DISCUSS: WHAT ABOUT MARGARET?

There is uproar when it is suspected that Hero has had an affair. But when it is discovered that Margaret was mistaken for Hero, all is well. No one seems to be upset over Margaret’s behavior. Why? (Hint: Look at the rigid class structure of England at the time.)

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Name: ________________________________________ English 2H

INQUIRY LEARNING QUESTIONSDirections: You will Act I, Scene 1

Major Events in Scene

Comprehension Questions

Answers

Messenger to Leonato: Don Pedro of Aragon is passing through Messina.

What is the status of Leonato?

Don Pedro is victorious in battle.

What can the audience infer about Don Pedro’s personality traits?

Beatrice asks if Benedick is part of the group returning. She hides her interest with rude comments against Benedick.

How might Beatrice feel about Benedick? What details support this?

Beatrice and Benedick trade witty arguments, saying love is only for fools.

Do you agree or disagree with the idea that “love is only for fools?” Explain.

Claudio is attracted to Hero’s beauty and feels that he is in love.

Evaluate Claudio’s response to Hero’s beauty. Is this an acceptable reason to fall in love? Explain.

Claudio asks Benedick for his impressions of Hero. Benedick states over and over his disapproval of marriage and womankind.

Do you believe Benedick’s statements against marriage and women? Why?

Don Pedro supports Claudio’s pursuits of Hero, and offers to speak to her and her father, at the masked ball that night.

What can you infer about the marriage traditions of Messina, and/or Elizabethan England at that time?

Act I, Scene 2Major Events in

SceneComprehension

QuestionsAnswers

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Name: ________________________________________ English 2H

Antonio reports to Leonato that Prince Don Pedro told Claudio that he is in love with Hero.

How might Leonato feel about Don Pedro’s interest in Hero? Explain.

Leonato plans to wait to see what will happen.

What does Leonato’s decision to ‘wait and see” tell you about his character?

Act I, Scene 3Major Events in

SceneComprehension

QuestionsAnswers

Don John hides his malicious nature, waiting to cause problems between his brother (Don Pedro) and Claudio.Don John believes that Don Pedro favors Claudio over his own brother.Don John would like to cause mischief, as Claudio desires to ask Hero to marry him.

Act II, Scene 1Major Events in

SceneComprehension

QuestionsAnswers

Leonato, Hero and Beatrice are all ready for the masked ball to begin.Beatrice complains that no man can match her spirit.Hero agrees with her father (Leonato) and his wishes that she accept Claudio’s wooing.All partygoers wear

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Name: ________________________________________ English 2H

masks to the party.Don Pedro talks to Hero privately.Benedick and Beatrice exchange insults behind their masks.Don John tells Claudio that Don Pedro plans to wed Hero himself.Don Pedro announces to Claudio that he has completed the match of Hero and Claudio.Some of the characters start to plot out ways to trick Beatrice and Benedick into falling in love.

Act II, Scene 2Major Events in Scene Comprehension

QuestionsAnswers

Don John and Borachio develop a scheme to stop Claudio’s intentions to marry Hero.Borachio makes plans to meet Margaret that night.Hero is completely unaware of Don John and Borachio’s scheme.

Act II, Scene 3Major Events in Scene Comprehension

QuestionsAnswers

Benedick is in the garden, venting about how love has changed Claudio.

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Name: ________________________________________ English 2H

Benedick states his views on marriage and what type of woman he would be interested in, as a wife.Don Pedro, Claudio and Leonato have a discussion about Beatrice, knowing that Benedick is hiding in the arbor.Beatrice calls Benedick in for dinner, and he looks at her differently now.Beatrice speaks to Benedick, in the same manner and tone as always, but he now hears it in a different light.

Act III, Scene 1Major Events in Scene Comprehension

QuestionsAnswers

Hero arranges for Beatrice to overhear a conversation about Benedick’s love sickness, and his true feelings.Beatrice listens to Hero and her waiting lady discuss how Beatrice would most likely treat Benedick.Beatrice’s feelings towards Benedick change, and she vows to act on them.

Act III, Scene 2Major Events in Scene Comprehension

QuestionsAnswers

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Name: ________________________________________ English 2H

Don Pedro, Claudio and Leonato tease Benedick about his pale melancholy.Benedick asks Leonato to talk to him privately.Don John joins Don Pedro and Claudio and accuses Hero of being unfaithful.Don John promises to prove this unfaithfulness, to Don Pedro and Claudio, that very night.Claudio promises to shame Hero at their wedding, if this proves to be true.

Act III, Scene 3: Comic Relief - Why?

Major Events in Scene Comprehension Questions

Answers

The night watch assembles and gets muddled instructions from Dogberry and Verges.They overhear Borachio brag to Conrade that he just earned a thousand ducats.Borachio explains how he was with Margaret, Hero’s maid, that very night.The night watch arrest Borachio and Conrade for this treachery.

Act III, Scene 4Major Events in Scene Comprehension

QuestionsAnswers

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Name: ________________________________________ English 2H

Hero is nervously preparing for the wedding.Beatrice acts lovesick and melancholy.Margaret teases Beatrice that she might be in love, just like Benedick.

Act III, Scene 5Major Events in Scene Comprehension

QuestionsAnswers

Constable Dogberry tells Leonato that the Watch took two prisoners over night.Leonato is in a hurry to get to the church with Hero.Leonato can’t make sense of Dogberry’s and Verges’ foolish speech, so he orders them to examine the prisoners.

Act IV, Scene 1Major Events in Scene Comprehension

QuestionsAnswers

Everyone arrives at the church to witness the marriage of Hero and Claudio.The Friar asks Claudio if he is here to marry the lady, and he states that he is not.Claudio orders Leonato to take Hero back; she’s a “rotten orange.”

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Name: ________________________________________ English 2H

Claudio states that he knows that Hero is unchaste, while Leonato and Hero both react.Beatrice, Benedick, Leonato and the Friar all try to make sense of this accusation.The Friar creates a plan, in order to find out what is really going on here.Benedick privately confesses his love to Beatrice, who admits that she loves him too.Beatrice makes a request of Benedick and he agrees.

Act IV, Scene 2: Comic Relief - Why?

Major Events in Scene Comprehension Questions

Answers

The Constables convene the assembly to interrogate the prisoners.Dogberry creates much confusion with his fractured and garbled vocabulary.The Sexton accuses Borachio and Conrade of plotting against Hero.

Act V, Scene 1Major Events in Scene Comprehension

QuestionsAnswers

Leonato is enraged over the slander against Hero and refuses to be comforted by Antonio.

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Name: ________________________________________ English 2H

Leonato challenges Claudio to a duel, in order to regain the honor of his daughter.Antonio joins in the challenge, however, Don Pedro and Claudio refuse to fight.Benedick challenges Claudio to a duel, for the honor of Hero, as well.Benedick tells Don Pedro that his brother fled Messina and killed an innocent lady.The Constables reveal the scheme of Don John to Don Pedro and Claudio.Claudio remembers his first love of Hero.Leonato hears the revelation, but declares to all that Don Pedro and Claudio are the true villains here.Leonato charges Don Pedro and Claudio to announce Hero’s innocence to the people. Claudio must marry Beatrice the next day.

Act V, Scene 2Major Events in Scene Comprehension

QuestionsAnswers

Benedick meets with Beatrice to declare his love again, and to tell her that he challenged Claudio.

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Name: ________________________________________ English 2H

Ursula, Beatrice’s gentlewoman, comes in and tells them the news of Don John’s scheme.

Act V, Scene 3Major Events in Scene Comprehension

QuestionsAnswers

At the family monument of Leonato, Claudio recites an epitaph to Hero.Claudio keeps vigil throughout the night.

Act V, Scene 4Major Events in Scene Comprehension

QuestionsAnswers

Leonato waits for Claudio.Benedick asks the Friar to marry him and Beatrice.The women, Beatrice and Hero, come forward masked.Claudio declares himself husband to the woman, who stands beside him.Hero reveals herself to Claudio.Beatrice and Benedick argue over whether they really love each other.Their friends show off the love poems that Beatrice and Benedick have been writing to each other.Beatrice and Benedick kiss, and all are joined together in a dance to celebrate both marriages.

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Name: ________________________________________ English 2H

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Background of Historical Marriage Customs

Name: ________________________________________ English 2H

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