Introduction – You state at the start that many of Shakespeare’s
convetions are presented through his plays – they all are, otherwise they
wouldn’t be his conventions. Change this. There are some changes of wording etc
as written on your draft. Change these.
Paragraph 1 – I’ve put a good few notes at the side of this
paragraph to help you along. There is a part in Act 1 where Beatrice discusses
her views on being single, where she talks to her uncl about being sent to
heaven with the other single people etc. Find that, and use it as an example of
her views on being single. You can then expand a lot on why she is totally
different to women of her time, and how the audience of the time would have
reacted compared to modern audiences.
Paragraph 2 – The wording of your first sentence needs work.
This whole paragraph seems like a bit of a ‘stem’ of a much larger point. You’ve
done well to give credit to Shakespeare
and his deliberate use of deception. However, this links to the much
larger issue of deception within the play. The play, after all, is called ‘much
ado about nothing’, which implies that a lot of fuss takes place around not
much activity. There are many acts of deception
and misunderstanding within the play such as the plot to woo Hero, the
plot to SHAME Hero, the plot to join Beatrice and Benedick in romance, the
masks etc. In this paragraph, you could give examples of all of these types of
deception and have a big discussion about why Shakespeare does this – How these
types of deception might be seen as different by audiences of different eras
etc. As I’ve said in my notes on your draft, look at the structure of the scene
also. The way the characters are ‘rotated’ around the stage as they speak in
turn is a very clever device from Shakespeare as it shows the many levels of
misunderstanding with in the play and how they all begin. It is also worth
mentioning that the women seem to be very much in the ascendency in this scene,
something that we would not expect in Elizabethan times. What is Shakespeare
trying to say about the role of women here? Outspoken when masked, but timid
(with the exception of Beatrice) when in public. There is so much more to
discuss, so do it!
Paragraph 3 – In order to get the best out of this point,
you need to talk about the structural significance of how the main characters, including Benedick, are
introduced. Firstly, it is important that the play is set within the walls of
Messina, cut of from the outside world. This gives the impression of a ‘new
beginning’ in act one, and makes the way the characters are introduced seems
far more significant. For example, look at how the other characters
characterise Benedick (the things they say about him) . This ensures that the
audience see Benedick as a witty womaniser with nothing but contempt for
marriage. If you can find one of his speeches which is elevated in its
importance by Iambic Pentameter, even better! This, then, is why it is so funny
when, by the intervention of chaso and confusion by the playwright, he changes
his principles so quickly. Make this clear! Also, what is Shakespeare saying
about love and marriage? That they are fickle? Would this amuse an audience
also? Would this have changed over time?
Paragraph 4 – You need to expand hugely on this point about
Dogberry and the watch. If you look closely at the malapropisms which he
speaks, you will notice that many of them are antonms for what he meant to say.
This means that the meaning of what he tried to say is reversed. You must
exemplify this in detail. This would amuse people who saw him as being an
authority figure who does not have a clue. Also, this ties in well with the ‘Superiority
theory of comedy’ which we looked at in lesson. Read up on that a bit. You need
to include a lot of evidence and explanation here.
Paragraph 5 – (ending ‘this looks not like a nuptial)
This is a particularly amusing device as what Benedick is
doing is interacting with the audience, a device which, structurally, adds an
elements of informality to the play, making is more comedic. He also does this
in the garden after the song is played, and Benedick says ‘Were he a dog, he
would have been hung’ or something to that effect. He is ‘breaking the fourth
wall’, which means that he is speaking to audience members when, in reality,
the character shouldn’t know that the audience are there. It is another way of
Shakespeare interfering with the plot and the play. You also need to point out
why he wedding is so important. The wedding should have been a happy ending,
but actually ends up displaying many features of a tragedy with the breakdown
of the relationship and the ‘death’ of Hero. So, how does Shakespeare ensure it
remains a comedy? There are 2 points:
1.
Shakespeare has Dogberry appear at the start.
Dogberry is a comedy character, but also, we know that Dogberry knows the truth
about the plot against Hero, so we are safe in the knowledge that, eventually,
the truth will come out.
2.
Hero has not really spoken much at all (you can
find evidence for this) which means that we are not really attached to her as a
character, and can focus more on the plot. You go on to mention is in….
Paragraph 6 – But you need to explain further and provide
further evidence!
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