When Don John informs Claudio and Don Pedro about Hero’s infidelity, they do not hesitate to believe him. Don John has created a plan with Borachio, where Claudio
and Don Pedro quickly fall into the trap. Through Borachio’s conclusion, we know that
Claudio and Don Pedro confused Margaret with Hero. It is very surprising and at
the same time disturbing how neither man took a moment to approach Hero that
same night at her balcony. The men must have been at a great distance to not
have noticed the differences in the women, in regards to their voice, language
and features. The men only wanted to believe what they had already been told.
Claudio seems to only care about what he can do to get back at Hero. It is astonishing to note how quickly his love to her has become mere hatred. It is difficult to understand his change of feelings after he publicly humiliates her at the altar. His actions symbolize his youth. Another individual, one that is mature and experienced would have probably handled the situation differently. The best way to have handled a similar situation would have been to approach Hero or her father Leonato in private. Hero deserved to have the
opportunity to defend herself.
Unfortunately for Hero, she has to go through a representation of death and rebirth to erase way the sin she was wrongly accused of. The sin of adultery ruins her reputation and
that of her family. This process of death will allow Hero to be valued for the good qualities she should be remembered by. Her rebirth is a symbol for a new beginning. After all that has happened Hero marries Claudio because she truly loves him and realizes that their love was tested by a misunderstanding.
The ending of this play has a fairytale ending of happily ever after. In a discussion
from another English class, the majority of readers know how the ending of a text will end. However, recent studies show that readers are more intrigued to know how the characters and their drama get to that ending. It is more interesting for some people to read about finding the solution to the conflict rather than to read how happy everybody becomes.
Older literature is full of scenes in which observers do not see what’s in front of them. In part, I have think we have to recognize how really DARK it gets when there is no street lighting. New Yorkers never experience the utter blindness that accompanies night in the non-urban, non-modern world. Because we know that Dogberry et al have unwittingly discovered the evidence that will clear Hero, we do, as Natalie says, anticipate the fairy tale ending. We will talk about how we get there.