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Much Ado About Nothing Feminist Analysis

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Equal treatment of the sexes is a cause many have been fighting for, for decades, and in this case, centuries. Slight rebellious acts of women bending gender norms can be seen as far back as Shakespearean plays, in particular, Twelfth Night and Much Ado About Nothing. Olivia from Twelfth Night, and Beatrice from Much Ado About Nothing showcase characteristics of being opinionated, assertive, and strong-willed; qualities that were rarely seen during that time period. Much Ado About Nothing was written around 1598 and Twelfth Night was written around 1601, which was the Elizabethan era. During the Elizabethan era, women were raised to think that they were inferior to men. The church also believed this notion and would quote Genesis: "...thy …show more content…

Hero, Beatrice’s cousin appears as a foil to Beatrice. Hero is sweet, naive, gentle and is willing to do whatever the people in her life command. She does not initiate anything on her own or make decisions. Beatrice is known for being outspoken and for her sharp-witted and comical remarks she makes towards Benedick. The two have been in a "merry war" and have refused to marry. Hero, nevertheless, falls in love with Claudio the first time she laid eyes on him and was ready to tie the knot, as that was the expected thing to …show more content…

Would it not grieve a woman to be overmastered with a piece of valiant dust? To make an account of her life to a clod of wayward marl? No, uncle, I’ll none. Adam’s sons are my brethren, and truly I hold it a sin to match in my kindred.” (Shakespeare, “Much Ado” Act 2, Scene 1). Beatrice not only stands out as a character in Much Ado but in all of Shakespeare's plays because she is unrestricted by the expectation of her gender, especially, considering the time period.
During the Elizabethan Era, Queen Elizabeth, also known as The Virgin Queen, was not married. Her reasons to remain spouseless are unclear, but if she were to marry, there could have been an instability in politics, she would have to share her throne and conform to obeying her husband. Conceivably, Olivia and Beatrice's refusal to marriage was a reflection of the Queen's actions. It can be hypothesised that Shakespeare was testing the waters to break gender norms and perceiving women as independent, dominant and powerful beings through his

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503 Words | 3 Pages

While they are conversing, Beatrice plainly states that she wants Benedick to “kill Claudio...a villain, that hath slandered, scorned, dishonoured [her] kinswoman (Shakespeare 74-75).” Beatrice makes very bold actions, and she is not afraid of doing so. This shows how Beatrice and Hero are foils of each other because Hero takes actions that are safe and pleasing to others, while Beatrice does what she wants and doesn’t care about what others think of her actions. Another example of this occurs during the Masquerade Ball. Beatrice talks with Don Pedro and is quoted to have said, “My cousin tells him in his ear that he is in her heart (Shakespeare 27).”

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878 Words | 4 Pages

(2.3.231) The next scene is the final part of their plan, to convince Beatrice that she is in love with Benedick. Hero, Margaret and Ursula talk together while Beatrice is listening. Their conversation is fairly similar to the one the guys had. After the girls are done deceiving Beatrice and leave Beatrice comes to the realization that maybe she does love Benedick after all.

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1143 Words | 5 Pages

In Much Ado About Nothing, the relationship between Benedick and Beatrice develops throughout the course of the play. As their relationship develops from hatred to friendship to romance, these characters are forced to make sacrifices in order to make room for the new love in their lives. Benedick, in particular, makes a sacrifice out of love that shows the powerful impact of love on his life. Benedick’s willingness to sacrifice his friendship with Claudio for Beatrice demonstrates the emboldening, life-changing impact that love has on a person’s values and loyalties. Benedick’s loyalties completely shift from his fellow soldiers to Beatrice after he and Beatrice profess their love for each other.

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1090 Words | 5 Pages

Before Benedick and Beatrice decided to marry each other or start a relationship at all, they took a period of time to ponder their feelings and realize the best solution, something Claudio and Hero completely ignored. Once they decided to finally start a relationship, their joking nature didn 't change, displaying their friendship and love for each other as a main component that has not wavered. Even when announcing their relationship, a serious matter, Benedick joked, “But by this light, I take thee/ for pity”(5.4.92-93). It is obvious that Benedick does not actually think Beatrice is ugly, but their relationship is so strong that he can jokingly insult her. In contrast, Hero and Claudio had to remain respectful towards each other in order to not risk the marriage.

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1587 Words | 7 Pages

The feminist theory is based on finding and exposing negative attitudes toward women in literature. Their goal is to reveal the reality of how women get portrayed in literature due to the fact that most literature presents an inaccurate view of women and are most of the time minimized. In the Catcher in the Rye there is a few female characters such as Sunny, the girls at the club, and Sally who are put in situations that show nothing but stereotypes and puts them in a bad spot throughout the novel. J.D Salinger decides to put some of the female characters in situations that can cause those who read this novel to think bad or leave readers with a bad image of women. This bad image on women is due to the fact that he decided to portray some of

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787 Words | 4 Pages

It’s no surprise, that Shakespeare’s Macbeth was clearly constructed as a rebellion against femininity roles of the time. During the Elizabethan era, women were raised to believe they were inferior to men since men obtained desired masculine qualities such as strength, and loyalty, whereas women were viewed as figures of hospitality (1; 6; 28-31). Obviously, not being tempted by the luxury of subservient women, William Shakespeare rebuked this twisted belief, applying that women deserve more respect than their kitchen tables.

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1898 Words | 8 Pages

“And though she be but little, she is fierce” -William Shakespeare. In today’s day and age, one of the greatest topics of debate is gender roles. It is evident everywhere, from cyberspace to the streets of home, from online petitions to marches across the country such as the Women’s March. Shakespeare lived in the Elizabethan Era of England, where Queen Elizabeth I, the virgin queen ruled.

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922 Words | 4 Pages

It was a set up marriage and she would just try to make the male proud. Relationships, in the modern day, are more egalitarian than they use to be. This allows Benedick and Beatrice to represent more of a modern time ideal couple, than Claudio and Hero. A great quote about relationships is “ Respect is as important as love in a relationships”

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1551 Words | 7 Pages

It may seem like Shakespeare treats his female characters worse than his male characters, but it is his female characters that drive the plot

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743 Words | 3 Pages

In the first scene of the play, Beatrice makes a joke about Signior Bendick’s fighting abilities by comparing him to Signior Mountanto which can be translated to as “Fancy Fighter”. Hero, knowing the kind of person Beatrice is and knowing that she admires Signior Benedick more than she makes known, explains

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713 Words | 3 Pages

Men were seen as masculine and powerful. Shakespeare heavily illustrates the sixteenth century stereotypical gender roles throughout his play, Twelfth Night. During Shakespearean times, women were prohibited from performing on stage, instead, men played their roles. In Twelfth Night, the imitation of the opposite gender originates from necessity and fear. Viola dressed as a man named Cesario to protect herself when she arrives upon foreign land.

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778 Words | 4 Pages

Their tough archetypes were always present in many plays and reinforced the idea of male superiority. This fact held true, especially for a certain tragic classic by William Shakespeare. There was a misogynistic mentality towards women in Romeo and Juliet, evident through the way women were shown as objects, portrayed as weak, and made to seem unable to dictate their own lives. Men in Romeo and Juliet could be seen acting like owners towards women. Women were seen as nothing more than possessions, as illustrated when Romeo first described Juliet as, “My lady…/my love” (II.ii.10).

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818 Words | 4 Pages

Whenever the slightest portrayal of sexism is seen, feminists are quick to react and correct what is wrong. The solution to sexism is not to blatantly ignore it and say it does not exist anywhere; the solution is to stand up for what is right and implement the actions that need to take place. In “Bad Feminists” by Roxane Gay, it was stated that “[her] favorite definition of a feminist is one offered by Su, an Australian woman who...described them simply as ‘women who don't want to be treated like shit’” (Gay 169). That is basically essential for all bad feminists.

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1338 Words | 6 Pages

During the Elizabethan period, the role of women in society was very different from what it is today. According to the system of patriarchal society that dictated that women were inferior to men, they had to obey the male figures in their lives. The woman was seen as the weaker sex either physically or emotionally which meant that it was entirely dependent on her husband if married and members of his family if single. Moreover, in the Elizabethan theater, women were not allowed to play because of this hierarchy. Therefore, they were replaced by men disguised as women.

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792 Words | 4 Pages

When Hero and Claudio relationship fell apart from a very ridiculous reason, Benedick and Beatrice stayed strong by each other side. Beatrice even though always believe in the independent life now she finally admits to Benedick that she loves him when she states, “As strange as the thing I know not. It wee as possible for me to say I loved nothing as well as you, but believe me not, and yet I lie not, I confess nothing, not I deny nothing. I am sorry for my cousin. ”(4,1,283-287).

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