In class on Wednesday, we spoke about Benedick and Beatrice’s apparent sudden change of heart regarding their feelings for one another. When Benedick “overhears” Don Pedro, Claudio, and Leonato discussing how Beatrice is mad with love for him, and Beatrice “overhears” Hero and Ursula speaking of Benedick’s own love for her, they immediately say they find themselves able to love one another. But just as these apparent changes of heart reflect obvious long dormant feelings for each other, there are other instances of suddenness in Much Ado that are reflective of other characters’ own personality traits.
One somewhat concerning example is how easily Claudio is willing to believe that Hero would make a fool of him by having relations with another man. With no proof or prior suspicion, Claudio immediately takes Don John at his word when Don John speaks of Hero’s alleged infidelity. We spoke in class about how old we suspect each character to be, and I think this naivete proves that Claudio cannot be anything but a young teenager.
Claudio is also buying into this sense of bravado that we have seen from many of the other male characters, perhaps in an effort to seem like his older fellow soldiers. The men have many times referred to how they would rather die than be made a cuckold, with frequent references to having a woman make them wear (metaphorical) horns. So when Claudio hears what Don John has to say, he is so afraid of being made a cuckold himself that he cannot see clearly enough to give Hero the benefit of the doubt.
The fact that Margaret, the servant, poses as Hero during this tryst also proves that Claudio doesn’t even really know his fiancee that well – even from a distance, one would think that a man would know the woman he supposedly loves. I believe he is just so afraid of being made a fool of that he already begins planning how to shame her back (the later scene that he makes at the wedding altar) before he even sees this show Don John has put together for him.
Good tagging and a good reflection on the problematic nature of male bonding in this play. Is there any possibility of redemption for the slandering of Hero? How successful does one feel the whole last act is in setting things to right?
I also had wondered how Claudio could have been so easily fooled to believe the lady he loved were a cheating woman if it wasn’t for the fact that he did not know her well enough to say he truly loved her. At least with Benedick and Beatrice we have references that they knew each other well before Benedick left for war. Whereas with Claudio and Hero we do not sense that. Also, take notice on how passive he is after the truth was revealed. For someone who has supposedly cause the death of his “significant other” with false accusations and mistrust he takes the news rather calmly. I would have been distraught but I guess the war has made Claudio a bit callous…No not true since we’ve seen him break down before when he suspected Don Pedro had wooed Hero for his own interest. I think he was too relieved to detach himself from this stigma of having been with an unfaithful woman that he forgot to reflect on the consequences of his actions and words towards Hero. Similar to Hero’s father, his reputation was at stake so his ego would not have that.
Similarly to Mary, I found it very strange that Claudio never questions Don John word and he is very quick to believe that the woman he is about to marry has betrayed him. I think it has to do with the special bond between the men in Much Ado. We have to remember that Claudio has just returned from a war. As a soldier he has to trust and support his colleagues in order to survive and win the battle. The bond between them is very strong even after the war; they stick to one another maybe because they are afraid of the unknown – women. Women can also be seen as an enemy to the male’s honor, since they have the power to make the men wear “horns”. Many times through the play the men express their fear of being made a cuckold.
In the name of his own honor Claudio accuses Hero of infidelity, humiliates her by rejecting her in front of the altar. He publicly shames her in front of the guests and her father. It is very cruel way to treat the woman that he loved. It seems that honor and respect among his male friends was more important to him than anything else.
I find it quite interesting that Claudio can easily believe that Hero is having a secret affair with another man although now I can understand why, with Urzula’s comment about the men’s strong bond. But people are easily fooled by words. As Claudio was fooled by Don John’s story, Benedick was also fooled by Don Pedro, Claudio, and Leonato’s story about Beatrice’s love for him and Beatrice was fooled by Hero’s and Ursula’s story about Benedick’s love for her. No one thought to ask the other if any story was true.
I think it is important to note that although Hero did not know that Claudio was tricked into believing that she was seen with another man, she was the one herself who stated that affection can easily be destroyed with nasty words: “One doth not know How much an ill word may empoison liking” (3.1.85-86).
If Claudio would have given her the chance and more time to explain about the “mysterious man” beneath her window, she would have been able to integrate him about where he received this information from. She would have then repeated the same line to him as she did to Ursula; Don John’s ill word has purposely ruined their relationship. Hero might have been able to convince Claudio to investigate the situation (and Claudio would then find out that Don John has fled the country) and the wedding would continue successfully.