... is the villain in a comedy, and does not mean to cause great harm. In the play Much Ado About Nothing, Don John is the bastard brother on Don Pedro, the Prince of Aragon. He, like many other bastards in the theater world during the Elizabethan Era, was assumed evil from the ... moment he enters the scene. The only words spoken to him by Leonato bring to mind a past indiscretion that caused a rift between Don John and the prince, being reconciled to the Prince your brother ... marry her. This plan is shown from almost the beginning that it will not succeed. This gives the audience a chan...

• Word Count: 2203
• Approx Pages: 9
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... in her final scene. This is not just a modern invention to reconcile an old play with a modern world and modern values; there is evidence that this was Shakespeare's intent. Many instances suggest that silence in women is a convention in renaissance theater that was to be understood by audiences as emotionally difficult for the character being portrayed. In Shakespeare's Othello, Iago says, ... these instances, the characters inability to express emotions leads to folly. Love, loss, joy, anger, and depression have all met muted silence in the comedies of Shakespeare. 7 Translating this ...

• Word Count: 1648
• Approx Pages: 7
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate