Explore the presentation of marriage in 'Much Ado About Nothing'

Explore the presentation of marriage in 'Much Ado About Nothing'

1. Status/image

   • marriage for the sake of climbing the social ladder is very common
     • Claudio asks Don Pedro whether Hero is Leonato's only child
   • Couples marry very quickly, loving but non-married relationships are looked down upon?

2. Sought after constantly

   • Marriage is the 'happy ending' in the play

3. Role of women and men

   • women like hero with a high status don't have a choice in the matter of marriage
     • women belong to fathers and then to husbands
       • Marriage does not make a couple equal
   • Betarice refuses Don Pedro

4. treated very lightly

   • Couples get married on a whim that they love eachother
     • very spontaneous and sudden
   • Weddings are not considered binding, ceremony is about singing and dancing rather than the uniting of a couple for the rest of their lives
     • Vows are very short

5. Beatrice and Benedick's views of marriage

   • They tease each other about marriage
   • believe it is an unecessary ceremony that ties you down

6. Deception

   • Deception (especially of a cheating wife) is the source of cuckoldry
   • Even to the last lines of the play, characters tease that adultery is an ever-present possibility
   • Fear of Deception drives Claudio to shame Hero at their wedding