The Presentation of the Relationship Between Beatrice and Benedick in Shakespeare’s Much Ado about Nothing

The Presentation of the Relationship Between Beatrice and Benedick in Shakespeare’s Much Ado about Nothing

Beatrice is the niece of Leonato, a wealthy governor of Messina. She

is feisty, cynical, sharp and witty. Benedick has recently returned

from fighting in the wars. He is also witty, and like Beatrice is

always making jokes and puns. They both continue a ‘merry war’ against

each other, in which Beatrice often wins the battles. ‘They never met

but there’s a skirmish of wit between them’, as Leonato says. They

both appear content never to marry and swear never to fall in love.

Beatrice then describes their last fight, when ‘four of his five wits

went halting off’, and she continues teasingly to mock Benedick. The

similarities in Beatrice’s and Benedick’s personalities and opinions

are sure to bring them together from the beginning. They both rebel

against the social ‘rules’ followed by most of the other characters

when it comes to their opinions about love and marriage. Ironically,

the effort they put into fighting creates the opportunity for them to

become closer.

One theme in the play is the taming of wild animals, which is the

imagery that appears throughout the play. In the scene where Claudio

and Don Pedro tease Benedick about his hatred of marriage, he is

compared to a wild animal. Don Pedro states, ‘in time the savage bull

doth bear the yoke’. This could mean Benedick will be tamed and, in

time, will fall in love. Benedick mocks this statement and claims he

will never give himself to any woman.

In the plot involving Beatrice and Benedick, the symbol of a tamed

animal symbolizes the social calming that must happen for both...

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...know each other so well. They also

have the confidence that they will be able to keep each other

entertained with their similar wit. Benedick tells Beatrice, ‘I take

thee for pity’, to which Beatrice replies, ‘I yield upon great

persuasion, and partly to save your life’. This shows their ability to

mock themselves at how they used to act and promises the audience that

the ‘merry war’ between them will carry on beyond marriage. The name

Beatrice means she who blesses and Benedick means he is to be blessed,

which is significant, as it shows they are meant to be together. At

the end Beatrice compares marriage to joyful dances, ‘wooing, wedding

and repenting is as a Scotch jig, a measure, and a cinquepeace’. By

including references to dances, the play presents itself as pure

entertainment, which is aware of its own drama.