The Shakespeare Book

158

M

uch Ado About Nothing

presents “seeming” in

several guises. The

wordplay on nothing/noting in the

title would have alerted the play’s

first audience to the theme of

observation. And the messenger’s

reports in the first scene make it

clear that Messina is a society

where appearances matter. But

what’s built on appearance, report,

and hearsay is fragile, open to

conflicting interpretations, and

easily destroyed.

Appearing and observing

Both love stories in the play hinge

on appearance and observation.

Claudio has fallen in love with Hero

because she seems to him a sweet,

modest young woman. But he’s

unsure of his own judgment and

seeks confirmation from the older

Benedick and Don Pedro. Benedick

differentiates between noting Hero

and looking at her. His replies draw

attention to the subjectivity of

perception, as simply looking at her

does not reveal any extraordinary

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING

traits in the young woman;

Claudio’s noting, however, marks

her as priceless: “Can the world

buy such a jewel?” (1.1.171).

With no assurance for his budding

love from Benedick, Claudio is

reluctant to reveal his admiration

for Hero to Don Pedro. Only when

the Prince insists that he’s serious

in thinking “the lady is very well

worthy” (1.1.207–208) does

Claudio admit his love.

The courtship of Claudio and

Hero follows a very formal pattern.

First the lovers admire each other

from a distance. Claudio does not

even woo Hero himself, but leaves

this to the Prince. The lovers do

not speak to each other until their

elders have agreed on the marriage

and Leonato has given his blessing.

Even at this point, Hero doesn’t

have any lines, although the text

suggests that she takes the liberty

of kissing Claudio in public.

Constrained by the formality

of their courtship, Claudio and

Hero hardly know each other.

It’s not surprising, therefore, that

Claudio’s faith in Hero is easily

shaken when Don John tells him

that his brother has wooed her

for himself. Claudio does not

doubt for a minute that Hero

IN CONTEXT

THEMES

Social codes and status,

love, marriage, deception

SETTING

Messina, a port city in

Sicily under Spanish rule

SOURCES

There are no direct sources.

The Hero plot, based on an old

tale, is indirectly indebted to:

1516 Ludovico Ariosto’s

Orlando Furioso (Italian verse

translated into English, 1591)

1554 Matteo Bandello’s

Novelle (Italian prose adapted

into French, 1569).

LEGACY

1613 The play is staged to

celebrate the marriage of King

James’s daughter Elizabeth.

1662 William Davenant’s The

Law Against Lovers combines

parts of Much Ado About

Nothing and Measure for

Measure. The play influences

many Restoration comedies.

1861 Hector Berlioz’s opera

Béatrice et Bénédict portrays

the witty sparring of the

eponymous older couple in

sparklingly jazzy syncopations.

1993 Kenneth Branagh’s film

moves the play to the Tuscan

hills, giving it an easy-going

holiday atmosphere.

1996 Michael Boyd’s RSC

production makes great use of

mirrors, frames, and portraits

to bring out the theme of

appearance versus reality.

Friendship is constant

in all other things

Save in the office and

affairs of love.

Therefore all hearts in love

use their own tongues.

Let every eye negotiate

for itself,

And trust no agent.

Claudio

Act 2, Scene 1

And there shall appear such

seeming truth of Hero’s

disloyalty that jealousy shall

be called assurance.

Borachio

Act 2, Scene 2