Much Ado About Nothing

Like Beatrice, Benedick uses his quick wit as a shield. He has a reputation for notable physical courage, acquitting himself well as a soldier fighting alongside Don Pedro. However, he is more fragile than Beatrice: He loves the sound of his own voice and he is easily hurt when he senses that other people don’t enjoy his jokes as much as he does. Over the course of the play, he comes to value Beatrice’s feelings and conviction deeply enough that he is willing to duel his oldest friend for her sake, showing that he is more than the “jester” she teases him for being in Act II.

Beatrice’s quiet, virtuous cousin Hero does not say much, but when she speaks, she makes her words count. When taking part in the scheme to trick Beatrice into falling in love with Benedick, Hero takes the opportunity to drop in a few barbed insults, indirectly chiding her cousin for acting overly proud and superior. Hero is also strong enough to stand up for herself in the direst of circumstances: When Claudio publicly ruins her reputation on their wedding day, she insists on her innocence right up until she faints, overcome. On the surface, Hero might seem like a virtuous damsel in distress, but she also demonstrates a fundamental intelligence and fortitude.

Claudio is Benedick’s rash, impulsive friend. A very young man, new to Don Pedro’s army, he is known both for his bravery and his good looks. He is impetuous, one moment falling in love with Hero at first sight, and the next publicly shaming her. By the end of the play he realizes his own folly, mourns his bad behavior, and earns a second chance—at least in Leonato’s eyes—to be worthy of Hero’s love.

The powerful, influential Don Pedro, prince of Aragon, rides into Messina like a celebrity after a military victory, bringing a passel of attractive young noblemen and a party atmosphere with him. He remains removed from romantic intrigue himself, and instead involves himself in directing and arranging other people’s love lives—for instance, offering to woo Hero on Claudio’s behalf, half-seriously proposing to Beatrice, and supporting Claudio when he interrupts his wedding to Hero. When Benedick remarks that Don Pedro looks “sad” at the end of the play, his comment invites the audience to wonder if the prince’s proposal to Beatrice was less of a joke than it seemed.

Don John is Don Pedro’s illegitimate brother. When the play begins, he already has a history of bad behavior and has only just rejoined his brother’s retinue after a serious falling out between them. He is determined not to change his ways to please others, and lives only to spread chaos and misery. Proclaiming himself a “villain,” Don John more a plot device than he is a rounded character. However, he also reminds the audience that the play’s concerns with sex, marriage, and cuckoldry have real-world consequences: as an illegitimate child, Don John has few legal rights, and his anger and desire to make trouble stem from his discomfort with relying on Don Pedro’s good will in order to get by.

Hero’s father and Beatrice’s uncle, Leonato is the Governor of Messina and a general paterfamilias. He is a loving, affectionate father (and father figure), but his mood can turn on a dime, as when he immediately believes Claudio’s accusations against Hero. His general good humor, fairness, and love for his family win out in the end. Leonato is also instrumental in the plot to bring Beatrice and Benedick together, and finds the behavior of the young people around him funny.