Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare

Shakespeare Project 2020

Maybe its the heaviness of the world and with it my heart, but I didn't enjoy this one as much as I thought I would as it was a revisit and one I recall enjoying tremendously.

In reading ALL of Shakespeare at one time I find myself getting highly annoyed with the female characters not being believed over the deceptive male characters time and time again.

But, this was a comedy so let's find the funny!

The banter between Beatrice and Benedick makes the entire play. And of course they are after my own heart - Benedick vows to remain a fun-loving bachelor and never fall in love:

I.1. Benedick: "Prove that ever I lose more blood with

love than I will get again with drinking, pick out mine

eyes with a ballad-maker's pen, and hang me up at the door

of a brothel-house for the sign of blind Cupid."

and Beatrice, well...

I.1 Beatrice: "I had rather hear my dog bark at a crow than a man swear he loves me."

When Beatrice enters the hall where Benedick is, he pleads to be sent on any mission, any mission:

II.1 Benedick: "Will your Grace command me any service to the

world's end? I will go on the slightest errand now to the

Antipodes that you can devise to send me on; I will fetch

you a toothpicker now from the furthest inch of Asia;

bring you the length of Prester John's foot; fetch you a

hair off the great Cham's beard; do you any embassage

to the Pigmies - rather than hold three words' conference with

this harpy."

Benedick does worry he may succumb to the charms of love:

II.3 Benedick: I do much wonder

that one man, seeing how much another man is a fool

when he dedicates his behaviors to love, will, after he

hath laugh'd at such shallow follies in others, become the

argument of his own scorn by falling in love;...May I be so converted, and see

with these eyes? I cannot tell; I think not. I will not be

sworn but love may transform me to an oyster; but I'll

take my oath on it, till he have made an oyster of me he

shall never make me such a fool."

And is Beatrice susceptible as well?

II.3 Don Pedro: "...I would have thought her spirit had been invincible against all

assaults of affection."

Oh but their banter:

V.2 Beatrice: "...what hath pass'd between you and Claudio."
Benedick: "Only foul words; and thereupon I will kiss thee."

Beatrice: "Foul words is but foul wind, and foul wind is but

foul breath, and foul breath is noisome; therefore I will

depart unkiss'd."

Some other gems I enjoyed in Much Ado:

I.1. Leonato: "A kind overflow of kindness. There are no faces

truer than those that are so wash'd. How much better is it

to weep at joy than to joy at weeping?"

III.3 Borachio: "Thou shouldst rather ask if it were possible any

villainy should be so rich; for when rich villains have need

of poor ones, poor ones may make what price they will."

IV.1. Friar: "...That what we have we prize not to the worth 

Whiles we enjoy it, but being lack'd and lost,

Why, then we rack the value, then we find

The virtue that possession would not show us

Whiles it was ours."

V.4. Don Pedro: "Why, what's the matter

That you have such a February face,

So full of frost, of storm and cloudiness?"