Essay on Love and War Unite in Leonato's Home: Claudio and Hero's Romance

The play begins by a scene where his friends from war visit Leonato and this includes Don Pedro and other two soldiers named Claudio and Benedick. Among the guests is also Don John, Don Pedro's stepbrother, who is always bitter and causes trouble for everyone. As the soldiers are being received at Leonato's home, Claudio falls in love Hero the daughter of the host. The two confess their affection for one another, and they decide to get married. However, Beatrice and Benedick engage in exchange as their norm as they have carried the insults form the past. As the crowd waits for the time to get married, they decide to play a game and also work for a plan to make Beatrice and Benedick stop arguing and begin their journey of love because they belong to each other. The ploy works, and the two falls in love as planned by their friends.

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On the other hand, Don John has decided to cause trouble and plans a deception to ruin the perfect relationship between Claudio and Hero. He sets a trap where he brings Margaret Hero's maid to make love Borachio in the dark at the window of Hero and brings Don Pedro and Claudio to watch. Don John convinces Claudio that it is Hero cheating on him. It creates an ugly scene as Hero is left in the alter waiting for Claudio. The play, however, has a happy ending as the truth is found and the two couples Hero and Claudio, as well as Beatrice and Benedick, have a double wedding. The paper will, therefore, explore the concept of comedy as opposed to tragedy as expressed in the play.

Comedy in plays can be traced back to the ancient times as there were two types of genres, and they included tragedy and comedy. However, over the years, playwrights have come up with different styles as opposed to the two that were initially in existence. Ancient Greece is believed to be the source of the two genres; that is comedy and tragedy. It is important to note that critics have also come with their ways of categorizing comedy and is a continuous debate from other scholars.

The primary characteristic of comedy include; battles of genders, mistaken identity, jumping into conclusion, the presence of a hero or heroine, the presence of an ordinary world and a happy ending. The Hero or heroine has to be comic in character. A comic hero or heroine has to be made of every person; that is they need to be a little evil, a little dumb, and a little saintly. In essence, they have to portray every character, and they o not need to make people laugh out loud to be considered comical, but they need to bring an element of joy and perhaps a smile. A comic character also needs to be a prey of delusion that puts people on the odds while in the natural world. The illusion can be internal for instance a role taking up a task they think they can handle or external where there is a deception, and the character pretends to be in a given setting, for instance, to be in school.

Much Ado about Nothing is a comedy and not a tragedy because of various reasons. Regarding the features of a comedy play, there has to be a battle between sexes, Hero or a heroine and in this regard, the Beatrice and Benedick are the heroes who depict the comic character in the play. In looking at the other characters Hero and Claudio are too virtuous, Don Pedro is extremely elegant, Don John is also evil, and Dogberry is humorous but too dumb to be a hero. Beatrice and Benedick are the ideal characters for the comical position because they are both rascals, witty, and they end making the audience cheer them up even before the first scene is done. They are constantly bickering and aggressive towards each other, but theirs is a battle of wits. It is confirmed when Leonato states, "You must not, sir, mistake my niece. There is a kind of merry war betwixt Signor Benedick and her. They never meet, but there's a battle of wit between them."(Shakespeare I.I.3.). He mentions that although the two never meet, there is an act of humor between the two. Similarly, once Benedick enters the city Beatrice in a witty manner challenges him about his manhood. In answering Beatrice, he also uses tricky words just as she did. Although the two despite each other, there are signs that it is a lady and a man who are in love with each other, but none of them wants to admit.

Another battle of sexes that has been portrayed in the play is between Princess Leia and Han Solo, who are constantly bickering and in conflict with each other. When one sees them fighting, they can think they are enemies and utterly hate one another, but in the real sense, the two have a desire for each other. For them, it is also a battle of wits, and they are in constant denial, and they are viewed as people who are opposite of each other.

Another aspect that characterizes the play as a comic and not a tragedy is the delusion in it. Beatrice and Benedick are deceived by their friends, and the deception comes from an illusion that they can evade love and marriage. It delusion is depicted by Benedick of complains that no woman is good enough and that he would never marry. It is an issue that puzzles the audiences and amuses them at the same time because they eventually watch him fall in life and getting married. They are tricked into love by their friends. Don Pedro says, "Claudio, the time shall not go dully by us. I will in the interim undertake one of Hercules' labors, which is to bring Signor Benedick and the Lady Beatrice into a mountain of affection, the' one with the' other." (Shakespeare 2.1). In the statement, Don Pedro swears to deceive Benedick and Beatrice into love, and it eventually came to pass, and they get married. As part of the features of comic plays, there is no direct reason for the animosity between the characters who are considered funny. For instance, Benedick and Beatrice are continually fighting, but there is no evidence of their hatred that has depicted or stated anywhere. As the play unfolds, each of the characters is made to believe that they are in love with the other and because of the claims of the people their hearts become open to love and they eventually fall deeply in love.

Additionally, there is an issue of mistaken identity as another reason that justifies the play to be a comedy and not tragedy. The first case of mistaken identity is depicted by Don John's evil plan to falsely set up Hero and cause chaos between her and her fiance Claudio. Margaret is mistaken for Hero by Claudio and Don John. She is seen making love to another man in the dark an issue that angers Claudio yet it is not valid. The mistaken identity leads to Claudio leaving Hero at the altar, but eventually, the truth is revealed, and Claudio is rewarded by a big surprise of marrying the love of his life. Don Pedro is also mistaken by Don John as wanting Hero, yet he was playing a part in making it possible between Claudio and Hero. It is clearly depicted that he has been mistaken because from his words Don Pedro states "Thou wilt be like a lover presently And tire the hearer with a book of words If thou dost love fair Hero, cherish it, And I will break with her and with her father, And thou shalt have her. Was 't not to this end That thou began' st to twist so beautiful a story?"(Shakespeare I. I.245)

The case of mistaken identity is also depicted by Antonio Leonato's elder brother who disguises himself so that he is not identified by Ursula Hero's maid, but unfortunately, she gets to see through the disguise. In alerting him that she has seen through the veil and note Antonio Ursula states, " Come, come, do you think I do not know you by your excellent wit? Can virtue hide? Go to, mum, you are he. Graces will appear, and there's an end (Shakespeare II.I.99). It is a clear indication that she has noted him. Similarly, while Benedick is masked, he is also unknowingly insulted by Leonato's niece who says "Why, he is the Prince's jester, a very dull fool, only his gift is in devising impossible slanders. None but libertines" (Shakespeare, II.I.113). It is a case where Benedick is mistaken and abused, yet he was not the fool being referred.

Furthermore, the aspect of young lovers overcoming obstacles is a clear indication that the play is a comedy rather than tragedy. A perfect example is the issue of Hero and Claudio who despite going through trying moments where distrust separates them but based on deception, they overcome the obstacle. They eventually get married in a happy ceremony cheered by their friends. It is a happy moment for Claudio because the masked gift comes as a surprise to him.

Also, Benedick and Beatrice overcome the challenge that there is no love, and marriage is not possible. Benedick laments that he would not get married because there are no good women left. In the long, their friends organize for their love to work, and indeed it happens as planned, implying that the two overcome the obstacle. Similarly, it is a comedy because the play is set to occur in an ordinary world, and this is one of the features of funny games. An ordinary world in this sense means a world where ordinary and everyday problems are experienced, for instance, trouble with love and cheating, employment, the desire for money, betrayal, and deception among others. The ordinary nature of the world in the play is shown by how things happen, for instance, Don Pedro and his team are from war, and they are welcome at Leonato's home for a feast. Also, Claudio falls in love with another ordinary thing that happens in real life. There is also extensive use of plot twists and turns so that the audience or readers are not aware of what to expect from the different scenes. They are meant to create, which makes the reader or the viewer to critically think before they get the real meaning of a word.

The play also has happy ending moments despite what takes place in between, for instance. Claudio and Hero's chaos after deception by Don John ended happily as they celebrate a wedding. Claudio becomes the happiest because he gets a gift that is the love of his life. He is surprised to find out the hidden gift was his love Hero. Similarly, Benedick and Beatrice end up being happily married despite having opposing opinions as seen in their fighting and bickering. Finally, another essential element of comedy in the play is the use of the concept of jumping into conclusions, and this implies that before confirmation of something a person concludes it to be true. A good case is where Claudio jumps into end when Don John tells him that one of the people making love in the night is Hero and before he confirms whether it is true or false he concludes and decides to leave her at the altar as a sign of showing pain from betrayal.

Conclusion

It is important to note that the play is a comedy that a tragedy because of the different happenings in various scenes in the game. The significant features of a comic play include; happy ending, the presence of a hero or heroine, the use of mistaken identity concept, the presence of ordinary world activities, the idea of jumping into conclusions and the use of twists and turns in the play among others. Shakespeare has used the concept as his portrayal of the comic sense in the game as depicted by different characters. The playwright has used different aspect to clearly distinguish comedy from tragedy through the use of Renaissance period events and ideas. In the play, the comic Hero and heroine if Benedick and Beat. A comic hero or heroine has to be a conglomerate; for instance, they have to be a combination of different elements such as evil, a little dumb, and pious. They have to depict every character, and they do not need to crack jokes that are intended to make people laugh aloud, but through their actions, joy is manifested, and this can be through a little smile. They also need to be victims of the illusion that puts peop...