Much Ado About Nothing - "Big Ideas"

In Shakespeare’s time, some of the qualities that people aspired to were:

In Shakespeare’s time, some of the qualities that people aspired to were:

• Moderation

• Balance/harmony

• order

• restraint

• pragmatism / relative morality

Why were intellect and reason valued?

Civilised people were those who used their intellects and reason, while those who gave into their passions were often looked down upon. This is because reason is one of the characteristics that distinguishes humans from other animals, while impulsive, emotional behaviour is something we have in common with other mammals.

In Shakespeare’s time, some of the qualities that were avoided were:

• Extreme views

• emotional outbursts

• chaos

• impulsive behaviour

• perfectinism / absolute morality

What is the purpose of the two marriages at the end of the play?

The end of the play (with its two marriages) arguably signifies order being restored where previously there was chaos. Characters have also learnt the value of comproise, forgiveness and tolerance, all Christian virtues that support balance and harmony.

What is the purpose of marriage in most of Shakespeare’s play?

Shakespeare’s play often seem to have messages that promote marriage as a way of reconcilling and moderating baser human instincts. Moreover, Male and Female were seen as binary opposites, so their union brings about harmony/balance.

Honour, Loyalty and reputation

Honour and reputation feature heavily in Shakespeare plays and he often seems to suggest that the ideas associated with these concepts are often problematic. In Much Ado we see both the fragility of female reputation adn the misguided faith in male honour.