William Shakespeare's infamous romantic comedy, Much Ado About Nothing, seeks to unearth and question the common trends within Elizabethan society. Utilising the two primary romantic plots, the great playwright analyses the utmost importance of marriage in order to be socially accepted in the patriarchally dominated society. The contrast between Hero and Claudio’s relationship, which is more formal and arranged as a sort of business transaction, and Beatrice and Benedick’s relationship, which is heavily based upon raw love and faith in each other, assists Shakespeare in showcasing the differences between both approaches to finding a potential suitor in Elizabethan England.
The first romantic relationship introduced in Much Ado About Nothing is an arranged marriage between Hero, the daughter of a man of power, and Claudio, a man who is initially shown to be a noble warrior, who “in the figure of a lamb, [undertakes] the feats of a lion.” Despite the fact that Claudio turns out to be deceptive
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However, through the use of additional characters such as Don Pedro and Hero, Shakespeare brings the two together and rekindles their once-shattered relationship with one another. Unlike Claudio and Hero, this relationship is informal and relies more on faith and love than anything else. While societal views on this relationship are not explicitly mentioned, it can be implied that the contention of marriage being pertinent to social acceptance remains true throughout the drama. The primary indicator of this is the fact that they make plans to marry each other nearing the end of the play. It is Shakespeare’s way of explaining that marriage is important to society and in order to be formally accepted as a couple, they need to have a legally binding ceremony that advertises to everyone else that they have found their