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How women are portrayed in shakespeares plays
How women are portrayed in shakespeares plays
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Inconstancy in Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing
The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) explains inconstancy as the recurrent and generally unexpected or impulsive change from one condition to another. It is the state or quality of being inconstant and unfaithful by virtue of being undependable or deceitful. Set in Messina, Sicily, Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing is a very popular play generally viewed as one of his happiest comedies and is often performed in theatres. However, the playfulness and cheerfulness of the play is haunted by a cloud of melancholy which tells readers of the potential dangers and pain that can result from miscommunication, deceit and treachery. This play has two entwining plots; one revolves around the wooing of Hero by Claudio, which is momentarily disturbed by Don John, the villain in the play. The other plot revolves around Beatrice and Benedict who are in love with each other but keep engaging in witty arguments and “merry war” (Cook 190). The play mainly focuses on the problematic relationship between Claudio and Hero unlike that of Benedict and Beatrice which is more reliable. False reports, hearsay and rumours play a major role in the development of the play’s dual plots. This paper looks into the successive theme of inconstancy of the human nature in Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing and remarks on how a person can make foolish and regrettable decisions when they fail to make sober considerations.
In this play, women continuously get poor judgment from men and are portrayed as victims of inconstancy. Despite the great admiration that Don Pedro feels for Hero and Beatrice, he is completely ready to accept that Hero has been unfaithful to Claudio based on very little proof presented by Don ...
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... first time. He justifies his rush decision by saying that initially, his “soldier’s eye” has never looked upon a
Works Cited
Auden, Wystan Hugh. “Much Ado About Nothing.” In W. H. Auden: Lectures on Shakespeare, reconstructed and edited by Arthur Kirsch, pp. 113-23. Princeton N.J.: Princeton University Press, 2000.
Bevington, David. “The complete works of Shakespeare.” Fifth Edition, New York: Pearson Longman, 2004, 218.
Cook, Carol. “‘The Sign and Semblance of Her Honor’: Reading Gender Difference in Much Ado about Nothing.” Publications of the Modern Language Association of America (1986): 186-202. Print.
Daalder, Joost. “The ‘pre-history’ of Beatrice and Benedict in Much Ado about Nothing.” English Studies 85.6 (2004): 520-527. Academic Research Premier. Web. 3 April, 2014.
Shakespeare, William. Much Ado About Nothing. Vol. 12. Classic Books Company, 2001.
“And when I lived, I was your other wife, And when you loved, you were my other husband(Shakespeare 60).” In the beginning of the play it was overwhelming, steeped in love at first sight between Hero and Claudio, until Don John’s evil-manner took a role in ruining the love between them. And because of this a conflict developed between them, but was resolved when their vigorous love for one another overcame the conflict. In Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare, Hero serves as the foil character of Claudio because of Hero’s dignified, well-mannered, eminent reputation is illuminated through Claudio’s insecure, accusing, and doubtful weakness; thereby, interminably influencing the conflict in the plot.
William Shakespeare is known for his use of dramatic irony and complicated story lines. In Much Ado About Nothing, he also adds in the element of disguise to what the characters know, or what they think they know. There are multiple characters trying to ensnare others in different facades, whether it be for better or for worse. The deception and illusion in the play can either assist the characters or completely shatter the situation, but in both cases, Shakespeare advises us to infer about what we hear or see before we jump to conclusions.
In précis, through comparing and contrasting the inclusion of certain themes and textual features, and their transformations, the main motifs behind these alterations are clearly established. These transformations are influenced by the author’s social and cultural context, as well as their present defined social order, which is extensively reflected in BBC’s adaptation of the Shakespearean play, “Much Ado about Nothing”.
"Much Ado About Nothing: Entire Play." Much Ado About Nothing: Entire Play. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2014. .
In William Shakespeare’s play ‘Much Ado about Nothing’, there are many instances of trickery and deception, which seem to surround the whole of the play.
I shall endeavour to explore and analyse how women are presented in Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet”, Marvell’s “To His Coy Mistress” and Duffy’s “Human Interest”.
Shakespeare’s Much Ado about Nothing is, on the surface, a typical romantic comedy with a love-plot that ends in reconciliation and marriage. This surface level conformity to the conventions of the genre, however, conceals a deeper difference that sets Much Ado apart. Unlike Shakespeare’s other romantic comedies, Much Ado about Nothing does not mask class divisions by incorporating them into an idealized community. Instead of concealing or obscuring the problem of social status, the play brings it up explicitly through a minor but important character, Margaret, Hero’s “waiting gentlewoman.” Shakespeare suggests that Margaret is an embodiment of the realistic nature of social class. Despite her ambition, she is unable to move up in hierarchy due to her identity as a maid. Her status, foiling Hero’s rich, protected upbringing, reveals that characters in the play, as well as global citizens, are ultimately oppressed by social relations and social norms despite any ambition to get out.
William Shakespeare said: “Women may fall when there's no strength in men” (Romeo and Juliet). Throughout history gender role have been a big, whether someone is a feminist or someone believes there is no equality between males and females; everyone has different opinions when it comes to the matter of gender roles. The same thing can be said about William Shakespeare who was a feminist (Shakespeare of Stratford). This ideology can be seen in his play Much Ado about Nothing. In this comedy Shakespeare focuses on two pairs of lovers named Claudio and Hero who are set to be married in a week but before their marriage day, they plan to conspire with Don Pedro, the prince of Aragon to trick their friends Beatrice and Benedick to admit their love for each other. Don John, the brother of Don Pedro, meanwhile plots to prevent marriage of Claudio and Hero by accusing Hero of being unfaithful. Don John initially succeeds in his plan as Hero is accused and ashamed at the marriage ceremony, but at the end Claudio and Hero are united and marry each other. Also, Beatrice and Benedick finally declare their love for each and dance at the end of the play. Shakespeare uses a lot of sources for this comedy and one of them is “Orlando Furioso” written in 1591, which gave Shakespeare the idea of Hero and Claudio’s marriage and Don John’s plot to prevent it. Another source Shakespeare used to write the play is the courtier written in 1588, which gave him the idea of the romance between Beatrice and Benedick. And also “La Prima de la Novelle” written in 1554 by Matteo Bandello gave Shakespeare the idea of putting the setting in Messina, Italy (Shakespeare in quarto). Because Shakespeare was a feminist, some of the women appear as supporting and central...
With its entangled double plots and eloquent use of words, Much Ado About Nothing is a story that has the ability to entertain the masses both young and old. Shakespeare’s use of figurative language along with situation creates such vivid imagery for which carries the drama from beginning to end. For example, when we look at Act 1 Scene 1 of the play ...
This misogynistic attitude is present in ‘Much Ado about Nothing’. In the play, Messina is presented as being a positive and cheerful community and the woman appear to have freedom, however those misogynistic attitudes of the time period are still demonstrated. When Leonato tells his daughter, Hero, “daughter, remember what I told you: if the prince do solicit you in that kind, you know your answer.” Don Pedro is b...
The comedy, “Much Ado About Nothing” depicts the story of a group of high-ranking soldiers who travel through a town called Messina. They had been to the town before, and this time Claudio confesses his love for the governor’s daughter, Hero. Because Leonato is so fond of Claudio, the wedding is set to be a few days away. This gives Don John, Claudio’s bastard brother, a chance to show his true hatred for Claudio. He comes up with a scheme to make Claudio think that Hero is cheating by dressing Margaret in her clothing and perching her near the window with another man. When Claudio sees this, he says that he will humiliate Hero instead of marrying her.
In the time of William Shakespeare where courtship and romance were often overshadowed by the need to marry for social betterment and to ensure inheritance, emerges a couple from Much Ado About Nothing, Hero and Claudio, who must not only grow as a couple, who faces deception and slander, but as individuals. Out of the couple, Claudio, a brave soldier respected by some of the highest ranked men during his time, Prince Don Pedro and the Governor of Messina, Leonato, has the most growing to do. Throughout the play, Claudio’s transformation from an immature, love-struck boy who believes gossip and allows himself to easily be manipulated is seen when he blossoms into a mature young man who admits to his mistakes and actually has the capacity to love the girl he has longed for.
Complete Works of Shakespeare. Ed. David Bevington. 4th ed. of the book.
Clark, W. G. and Wright, W. Aldis , ed. The Complete Works of William Shakespeare. Vol. 1. New York: Nelson-Doubleday
Much Ado About Nothing. The Riverside Shakespeare, 2nd ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1997. 366-398.