Much Ado About Nothing

I'm in a Shakespeare class this semester. I don't like Shakespeare very much, which probably makes me a sort of bad English major. But I can't help it. I try to like it, though, because Sandra Goddess Looney is my professor and disappointing her would be more painful than just about anything.

So, I have some thoughts about Much Ado About nothing. When I shared them with the Goddess, she gave me and A and said that my "writing has energy right out of the gate to the the finish. That's a gift. And when you are impassioned, as you are about Beatrice, all elements--energy, stile, and grace--work together." And if Dr. Looney thinks that, I might as well share them with you:

Beatrice is hands down the best character in Shakespeare's play, "Much Ado About Nothing." I believe so fiercely that she is the best character that I would be willing to challenge any body who would dare to disagree. And while she is often seen only for her clever wit, she has so much depth to her which underlies each snarky remark and quick comeback.

One of the reasons Beatrice is my favorite character is that her character breaks barriers for women, not only during Shakespeare's time, but still today. She is independent and assertive and says and does what she wishes. She refuses, from her first line to her last, to be a shy woman living in a "man's world." In Act I Scene I, her first line interrupts a conversations between Leonato and a messenger.

When she says, "I pray you, is Signior Mountanto return'd from the wars or no?" she refuses to be the quiet, well-behaved observer women--like Hero--at the time were supposed to be (I.i.30-31). Her last line in the play, "I would not deny you, but by this good day, I yield upon great persuasion, and partly to save your life, for I was told you were in a consumption," further points to her independence (V.iv.94-96). She loved Benedick, but agreed to marry him after Hero displayed the love letter she wrote for him, essentially forcing her to admit her true feelings.

Even in admitting she loves him, she does so with sass and humor by not allowing him the power most men had over their wives at the time. In the production of "Much Ado About Nothing" that I watched (the 2011 version with David Tennant) did a wonderful job portraying Beatrice in this way. The actress was funny and bold and never seemed to be dependent on anyone. My favorite part of the production was in Act V when Benedick is singing and then Beatrice enters. The two have their expected back and forth soft insults, which then turns to a serious conversation about Hero. I feel it could have been easy for a director to feed into Shakespeare's romantic line, "Serve God, love me, and mend." (V.ii.93). Instead, in the production, when Benedick delivers the line to Beatrice, she gives him a little smirk, quickly followed by rolling her eyes and making a funny face at him.

I think most people might argue that Beatrice deciding to marry Benedick takes away her independence, but I would argue the opposite. While she may be a little bit softer than she was at the beginning of the play, just because she and Benedick love each other does not make her any less strong as a woman. In fact, I would even argue that her strength and independence is one of the things Benedick loves most about Beatrice. The comic role Beatrice is trapped in requires her to be on top of her game at all times, but in reality, I think her wit and autonomy is simply a way to help her cover and cope with pain--especially the pain of losing her family. The play cleverly ends with Benedick becoming her new family. So, it is my hope that her marriage helps take away some of the pain, because I cannot even imagine how wonderful a completely happy version of Beatrice would be.

//065