Act III of Much Ado About Nothing
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Act III of Much Ado About Nothing is a pivotal section of Shakespeare’s comedy in which deception intensifies, romantic misunderstandings deepen, and Don John’s villainous plot against Claudio and Hero moves toward its crisis.
Statements (49)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
act of a play
ⓘ
part of a Shakespearean comedy ⓘ |
| author | William Shakespeare NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| chronology |
follows Act II of Much Ado About Nothing
ⓘ
precedes Act IV of Much Ado About Nothing ⓘ |
| containsScene |
Act III, Scene i
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Act III, Scene ii ⓘ Act III, Scene iii ⓘ Act III, Scene iv NERFINISHED ⓘ Act III, Scene v NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| dramaticFunction |
advances Don John’s plot against Claudio and Hero
ⓘ
builds toward the crisis of the play ⓘ develops romantic misunderstandings ⓘ intensifies deception ⓘ |
| featuresCharacter |
Beatrice
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Benedick NERFINISHED ⓘ Borachio NERFINISHED ⓘ Claudio NERFINISHED ⓘ Dogberry NERFINISHED ⓘ Don John NERFINISHED ⓘ Don Pedro NERFINISHED ⓘ Hero NERFINISHED ⓘ Leonato NERFINISHED ⓘ Margaret NERFINISHED ⓘ The Watch NERFINISHED ⓘ Ursula NERFINISHED ⓘ Verges NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| firstPerformanceApproximateYear | circa 1598–1599 ⓘ |
| genre | comedy ⓘ |
| includesSubplot |
Don John’s slander of Hero
ⓘ
arrest of Borachio and Conrade ⓘ gulling of Beatrice ⓘ gulling of Benedick ⓘ |
| language | Early Modern English NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| notableEvent |
Beatrice is tricked into believing Benedick loves her
ⓘ
Benedick overhears that Beatrice loves him ⓘ Borachio and Conrade are overheard by the Watch confessing the plot ⓘ Borachio describes to Don John how he will stage Hero’s apparent unfaithfulness ⓘ Don John informs Don Pedro and Claudio of Hero’s supposed infidelity ⓘ |
| partOf | Much Ado About Nothing NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| setting | Messina, Sicily NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| structuralPosition | middle act of Much Ado About Nothing ⓘ |
| theme |
appearance versus reality
ⓘ
deception ⓘ gulling and eavesdropping ⓘ honor ⓘ love ⓘ |
| tone |
comic
ⓘ
increasingly dark ⓘ |
Referenced by (2)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.