"Much Ado About Nothing" Essay

In most story lines, love is a main component. Whether it be happy or sad, everything can usually be traced back to the love between two characters. Claudio and Benedick are both dealing with love in Much Ado About Nothing, but they both handle it in different ways.
Claudio, a fickle, young soldier in Don Pedro's army, is in love with Hero, the daughter of the governor of Messina, Leonato. He declared his feelings for her at first sight and wasted no time in arranging to marry her. Even through false accusations involving Hero and Borrachio, a servant of Don John's, Claudio still marries her and they lead a happy life together.
Benedick, another soldier in Don Pedro's army, has a completely different outlook on love. When Claudio tells Benedick of his intentions to marry Hero, he begins to rant about what a stupid idea it is and how he will never get married. This point is further proven by his constant bickering with Beatrice, Hero's cousin. However, on the inside, Beatrice and Benedick actually love each other. They come to realize their true feelings through the manipulation of Don Pedro, Leonato, Claudio, Hero, and other citizens of Messina. Once the truth is out in the open, Benedick immediately and publicly decides to marry Beatrice.
From the very beginning, Claudio decides to marry Hero. Although his loyalty wavers when Don John makes him believe that Hero is cheating on him with Borrachio, their love wins in the end. Benedick's outlook on love is very different from Claudio's in the beginning. He despises the very idea of marriage, especially marriage to Beatrice. Even though he doesn't consciously know, the audience can tell that he really loves her, and he just uses sarcasm to cover up his feelings. Once he realizes that he really loves her, he doesn't waste any time in deciding to marry her. By the end of the story, Claudio and Benedick are both madly in love with Hero and Beatrice, respectively.
In conclusion, while Claudio and Benedick start out with opposite outlooks on love, they each end up falling in love and getting married.