Theme Of Deception In Much Ado About Nothing

Not all forms of deception are negative, although they are not all positive either. People have various reasons for deceiving others in real life, as well as in literature. William Shakespeare wrote many memorable plays during his time living. One of those plays was Much Ado About Nothing, which presented themes which are still relevant to our modern society. In Much Ado About Nothing, some of the protagonists, such as Don Pedro and Benedick, have good intentions when deceiving others, but others, like Don John, deceive others purely out of hatred. Shakespeare reveals the theme that people deceive others out of love, embarrassment, and hatred. All evidence comes from Much Ado About Nothing. Love makes people act less rationally than they would normally behave. In this case, Claudio has fallen in love with Leonato’s daughter, Hero. In this love-dazed state, Claudio seems thoroughly confused at Don Pedro’s plan to win Hero over on his behalf, due to being lied to about the actual plan by Don John. After Claudio asked him how he planned on doing that, Don Pedro states, “I will assume thy part in some

Benedick spent quite a while saying that he would never get married; he even went as far to say that he would “die a bachelor,”(II.iii.25). But, after overhearing Don Pedro, Claudio and Leonato discuss Beatrice’s love for him, his perception on the idea of marriage changed, which they were quite aware of. While commenting on Benedick’s appearance, Claudio states, “I hope he be in love,”(III.ii.28) to which Benedick replied, “ I have the toothache,”(III.ii.28). It is clear that Benedick was trying to change the subject to avoid discussing his interest in Beatrice out of embarrassment for his feelings. Despite believing that Claudio, Don Pedro and Leonato do not know of his love for Beatrice, it was they who planted it in his mind that Beatrice loved him first, but they play along to make him feel