Examples Of Much Ado About Nothing As A Tragic Comedy

William Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing is labeled as a comedy. A comedy is a play that is built around something entertainingly funny. The tragedy genre is a story built around something awful that happened. This play is built up of both which would make this a tragic-comedy. Even though there are funny parts, there are also some sad/unfortunate parts. Much Ado About Nothing should be labeled as a tragic-comedy because there is a faked death caused by humiliation, and heartbreak in the play.
First off, Claudio thought that Hero was cheating on him with some other person. So he made a plan to humiliate her on their wedding day. His friends made it look like Hero was cheating, even though she wasn’t, just so that he could have ‘evidence’
when rejecting her during the wedding. When Friar asks Claudio if he would take Hero as his wife, he said no, but she said yes. In Act 4 Scene 1, Claudio says, “Would you not swear - all you that see her - that she were a maid, by these exterior shows? She knows the heat of a luxurious bed. Her blush is guiltiness, not modesty” (Shakespeare 66). He is saying that she may look pure on the outside, but she really isn’t. Also, he says that she has been having an affair, and her blushing is showing how she is guilty of committing the affair, instead of it being from embarrassment. When Claudio is done saying that, he says, “Not to be married, not to knit my soul to an approved wanton” (Shakespeare 66). He is saying that you does not want to be married to a woman who has already given herself away. After Claudio keeps calling her out and everyone is angry at her, Hero faints. This is a tragic part of the play because a death of someone close can take a huge toll on a person. Especially if you are the person that caused it. This is not a part of the play where you laugh. A comedy is entertaining. There is nothing to laugh at about someone fainting and then their death being faked. That is why this is a leading cause as to why it should be a tragic-comedy,
Furthermore, there are so many heartbreaks.
The situation described above is a pretty big heartbreak, but there is more agony between Beatrice and Benedick. In the beginning, you learn that Benedick broke Beatrice’s heart. He was known for dating around and kind of using the women. In Act 1 Scene 1, Beatrice says, “He set up his bills here in Messina, and challenged Cupid at the flight; and my uncle’s fool, reading the challenge, subscribed for Cupid and challenged him at the bird-bolt. I pray you, how many hath he killed and eaten in these wars? But how many hath he killed” (Shakespeare 2). She is saying that he dated many different girls and broke each one of their hearts. At the end, she is asking how many has he hurt because she most likely wants to know that she is not the only one that has had her heart broken by Benedick. Since Benedick was known for going from woman to woman, she had her own heart broken by him. After they break up, Benedick does not go on to date anyone else because he still thinks he loves her. This is another piece of evidence that shows why this play should not be called a comedy. Also, in Act 4 Scene 1, Beatrice and Benedick are talking and she says, “Kill Claudio” (Shakespeare 74). She said this because Benedick told her that he loved her. If he really loved her, he would kill the man that almost killed her beloved cousin. This leads to agony between them because Benedick doesn’t want to do that. This almost leads to them breaking up.
Heartbreak is nothing to laugh about, and this play should not be labeled as only a comedy.
In conclusion, this play is not only a comedy. It also has melancholy parts that can make you feel bad for the character(s). That is why it is inappropriate to label this a comedy only. Much Ado About Nothing should not be in the comedy category for plays because there is a faked death and heartbreaks. This is not a play that you laugh at all the way through which is why it is categorized incorrectly.