Shakespeare#3

THIS PLAY IS FAR TOO PREDICTABLE! Benedick and Beatrice confess their love, and Benedick challenges Claudio to a duel. I doubt that Benedick is even going to follow through with his challenge, because Hero and Claudio are probably going to get married. I don't like plays that are predictable, because they are cheesy. CHEESY=BAD! Besides, Don John is a bad character because he has no motivation other than the fact that he is a bastard. We cannot possibly know what he truly wants out of life, because all he wants are bad thing that lead to him suffering along with the rest of the world. He loses wars. He has to run away after he frames Hero. What does he want from life?! DON JOHN NEEDS MOTIVATION!

Shakespeare#2

In scene 3, Shakespeare used the word 'note' a lot again. For example Balthasar says, "Note this before my notes: There's not a note of mine that's worth the noting."(2.3.56-57). I find it hard to believe that a character such as Balthasar would use words like that, especially when Benedick and others have already placed so much emphasis on it. It must be a conspiracy! Either that or Shakespeare was just using words to make the play sound better. (Ok, obviously it's the latter, but conspiracy theories are more fun).
Also note in scene 2, when Borachio is outlining his plan, he includes in the list of hoped-for outcomes the death of Leonato (see 2.2.29). Why is this, I wonder?
It is also interesting to note how Shakespeare places a certain emphasis on the difference between military life and civilian life, without describing the military life. In the first scene of the play, the characters are returning from a military action, so Shakespeare emphasizes the change a little bit at that time. Now, at the beginning of scene 3, act 2, he states it again, through Benedick: "I have known when there was no music with him but the drum and the fife, and now had he rather hear the tabor and the pipe;..."(2.3.13-15). It is interesting that throughout (most of) the rest of the play, Shakespeare scrutinizes the frivolity of civilian life, particularly that of the upper class.

Shakespeare's wordplay

Shakespeare used words to his advantage. For example, in his play, "Much Ado About Nothing," he uses the word 'note' quite frequently. It is interesting to note that in Shakespeare's time, the words 'noting' and 'nothing' were homophones. The play emphasizes the way the characters notice each other and how it shapes their relationships. For example, in response to Claudio's inquiry as to whether he had noted Hero, Benedick says, "I noted her not, but I looked on her." (1.1.160). In some of the later acts, Shakespeare uses the word 'note' is other contexts, including referring to music and messages.
Also, as Benedick and Beatrice spar, Shakespeare points out how the English language can be used in humorous ways. For example, when Beatrice is talking with the messenger about Benedick:
"Messenger: I see, lady, the gentleman is not in your books.
Beatrice: No. An he were, I would burn my study." (1.1.76-78)
Just a few of the ways Shakespeare emphasized the different meanings of words.