Themes of Much Ado About Nothing

“Much ado” essay

The play "Much Ado About Nothing" is not about nothing. It shows themes in the areas of deception and love. The play is also streaked with metaphors brining in the taming of wild animals. These ideas make proving themes and issues and easy and convincing argument.

The plot of the play is based upon deliberate deceptions, some bad natured and others well mannered. The deception of Claudio and Don Pedro results in Hero's disgrace, while the hoax of her death prepares the way for her redemption and reconciliation with Claudio. Lines like "men were deceivers ever" bring about the fact that the deception is a key theme in the play. Nothing shows that deceit is essentially evil, but in the play it is sometimes difficult to distinguish between good and bad deception

This is evident as Don John plots and succeeds in fooling Claudio and Don Pedro into thinking that Hero has been sleeping with other men before their marriage, but backfires when her "death" is staged and Claudio and Hero are reunited and even more in love after Claudio deeply apologises.

Another turning point in the play is where Beatrice and Benedick are fooled into thinking that each loves the other, but actually does fall in love as a result.

But even though there is deception, love is still strong and this play there is two types of love. A developed love is shown where Beatrice and Benedick are first fooled into thinking the other loves them, but in the end it doesn't even matter because there love for each other has been nurtured into the point of commitment and marriage. The other type of love is where Claudio and Hero fall in love purely though the love their eyes has for each other, rather then the love their heart has for the other. This could also be a deceived love as their eyes have been captured by the others appearance, rather then their true feelings for each other.

The power of love in the play almost rivals that of the power of words. Several times, throughout the play, visible turning points in the play have been achieved by a few words. Firstly, the power of Beatrice's words changed Benedick's mind from thinking of their exchanges as a game to a serious, in love commitment. Further on though, in perhaps what was the most catching scene, is where Hero's reputation as a moral, pure girl is destroyed as she is accused of having an affair. This is so serious to the point where her own father, Leonato disowns her. This shows that through a few words, the love of a family can be changed and the thoughts about another person can be reversed.

Another element in this play is the metaphor of taming wild animals. In the case of the courting of Beatrice and Benedick, this symbol of a tamed savage animal represents the taming, socially that one must undergo, for untamed souls to be ready