Much Ado About Nothing Identity

In Much Ado About Nothing, Shakespeare plays with his characters’ conceptions of identity. The comedy centers around noting; and mistaken identities sequentially move the plot forward. Throughout the play, Shakespeare manipulates clothing to conceal both the character’s identity and insecurities. And, like armor, this trope protects the characters from getting hurt and wounding their pride. In this regard, Shakespeare’s characters change their firmly held opinions as if they were changing clothing. The following exploration will argue that these characters utilize clothing as a form of self-protection from heart break. By analyzing the following examples from the text, one will find that the characters’ insecurities are exposed. For the characters who are preoccupied with love (Beatrice, Benedict, Claudio, Hero and Don Pedro), their biggest insecurity is blemishing their reputation by having their heart broken. In several
This is so because the characters’ insecurities relate directly to reputation and pride. Several characters are made susceptible to poorly imagined schemes when their pride is wounded - as pride is often the first causality in love’s war. For instance, Claudio’s and Leonato’s wounded pride utterly devastates them after they are told of Hero’s apparently soiled reputation. Their reactions to their wounded pride breaks down their armored veneer of security, exposing their anxieties and uncertainties that accompany insecurity. In reaction to this, Benedick uses a clothing metaphor to describe the confounding nature of being fooled once more: “I am so attired in wonder, // I know not what to say” (IV.i.144-5). In addition, the nature of Benedick and Beatrice’s love exposes their insecurities in pride and commitment. They are both inspired to love each other when their friends accuse them of being far too prideful to do