Much Ado About Nothing Analysis

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Much Ado About Courtship In all of William Shakespeare’s plays, there is no theme more often used than that of love. Shakespeare deals with it at some level in nearly all of his plays. Although the use of this theme varies in many of his works, from its tragedy in Hamlet to its superficiality in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, two of his works employ it in very similar ways. These works are Much Ado About Nothing and The Taming of the Shrew. In the first of these, Much Ado About Nothing, Shakespeare spins a tale of two couples who have to overcome numerous obstacles ranging from a malicious prince willing to go to great lengths to sabotage them to the pitfall of their own pride. The second, The Taming of Shrew, is quite another story.…show more content…
Both plays imply that love is not something that comes without work, but that it grows with the effort that is put into it. At the onset of The Taming of the Shrew, the relationship between Petruchio and Katharina is far from loving. For most of the play, in fact, their courtship seems to be doomed to failure, as Petruchio continues to behave in the most peculiar of ways and Katharina shows no signs of coming around. However, by the end of the novel, Katharina realizes that Petruchio does indeed love her, and she returns that love to him. Similarly, in Much Ado About Nothing, Beatrice and Benedick begin the novel is bitter rivals, “huddling jest upon jest” at each other consistently competing to outdo the other’s wit. They seem almost to hate each other. However, when they are tricked into believing that the other is in love with them, they begin to court. And, again paralleling The Taming of the Shrew, it is not until the end when they surrender their pride and submit to their love for each other. This portrays clearly the idea that Shakespeare is trying to convey in both stories — that a loving relationship comes not without hard…show more content…
In both stories, the play begins by highlighting a relationship between an attractive man and a desirable woman. These couples appear to be perfect for each other and are immediately in love. Shakespeare seems to allude that these relationships will continue to be the focus of the play for its remainder. This is not the case, however, as, in both plays, the focus shifts midway through to a second couple. This secondary relationship, though much less compatible, will ultimately become the primary focus of the play. And as Shakespeare makes his way to the end of the plays, the once less compatible couples end up in a loving relationship that has a strong foundation. The other couples, though also ending up together, lack that foundation. Thus, Shakespeare illuminates to his readers his belief that a relationship grown with dedication produces love in a way that a relationship without that dedication can never
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