Much ado about nothing?

Question

Im studying this play, but what does the title actually mean?
It seems rather ambiguous to me...

thanks
xxx

Answer 1

A couple of the people above got it - in Shakespeare's day, the word nothing referred to female genitalia, so the title definitely was much ado about something. More importantly though, Shakespeare's audience (during his lifetime at least) was aware of this, and so would have had a better idea about the play's content prior to seeing it than most people in the 21st century. As the play's primary plot focuses on the relationships between men and women (Benedick and Beatrice, Claudio and Hero, etc.) and the problems that spring from them, the title is very fitting. Claudio's problems arise when he decides to marry Hero. Benedick's problems come from loudly and publicly speaking out against marriage, only to fall in love midway through the play. Don Pedro, in love with and rejected by Beatrice, chooses to act on behalf of Claudio; when Hero's supposed infidelity is discovered, he again counsels him. Although the actions of the men within the play cause most of the problems, it is the driving force behind their actions - the women - that gives the play its title.
I've given a link below to a book that I read, provides a lot of insights to Shakespeare's plays, particularly things that would have been obvious to a 17th century audience, but have been lost to us over the years. If you can find it at your local library, I'd highly recommend it.

Answer 2

Apparently the sexual double entendre is actually there:

"As Shakespeare's title ironically acknowledges, both vagina and virginity are a nothing causing Much Ado." Quote from Gordon Williams, "A Glossary of Shakespeare's Sexual Language".

The word "nothing" also was pronounced the same as "noting", so the title also refers to various sorts of criticism, communications, notes, etc. that appear in the play.

Answer 3

the two people who replied first nailed it ...

It is when something small is blown out of proportion by people who don't know all the facts .. as Claudio did when he accused Hero of being unfaithful based on what he was told by Don John

my daughter just lent over my shoulder and said that there is another theory concerning the title and that is that shakespeare often used the reference of NOTHING to mean female genitalia .. NOW I HAVE NO IDEA IF THAT IS TRUE but she read it on a site re the play.

Answer 4

Much Ado about Nothing centers on social expectations and performance, which is itself a form of disguise. In order to be popular and well-liked, Benedick presents the persona of the perfect courtier, but it is not infrequently apparent that he suffers from insecurities about his romantic and physical prowess. Why would he be so reluctant to marry or to fight Claudio if he were fully confident in his abilities? Benedick and the other characters hide their true, vulnerable selves under a veneer of nonchalance which is stripped away in rare moments, but returns without fail. Only Don John refuses to wear a social disguise, instead opting to practice outright deceit.

Woven into the over-all theme of disguise are several scenes of literal concealment and deception. The masquerade ball in Act II: Scene 1 has characters in masks pretending to be other than themselves. Don Pedro impersonates Claudio, while Beatrice pretends not to recognize Benedick. Even Antonio claims that he is not Antonio when directly asked by Ursula. During offstage time in Act III, Margaret unwittingly masquerades as Hero, deceiving Don Pedro and Claudio into believing Hero habitually has strange men in her room at night. In Act IV: Scene 1, Friar Francis himself recommends and applies a ruse to repair Hero’s damaged reputation. Additionally, in the most complex case of concealment and trickery in the play, Benedick and Beatrice, in Act II: Scene 3 and Act III: Scene 1 respectively, hide in the garden while their closest friends, who are fully aware of the eavesdropping, lie about the two having confessed loving each other.


Infidelity
A theme common to Much Ado about Nothing and many other of Shakespeare’s works is cuckoldry, or wifely infidelity. Several of the characters seem to be obssessed by the idea that a man has no way to know if his wife is unfaithful, and therefore women can take full advantage of that fact. Don John plays upon Claudio’s pride and fear of cuckoldry, which leads to the disastrous first wedding scene. Because of their mistrust of women’s sexuality, many of the males easily believe that Hero is impure, and even her father readily condemns her with very little proof. This motif runs through the play, most often in references to horns, which were a well-known symbol of cuckoldry.
For more information go to the web site below

Answer 5

In Shakespearean times, "nothing" was a slang word to represent a female's genitalia, connotations of abscence etc.
Here is a link to a really interesting article which really goes into detail about the meaning of the title:
http://www.hull.ac.uk/renforum/v2no1/lucking.htm

Good Luck :-)

Answer 6

There's a lot of nothing to do . Old English version.Shakespeare

Answer 7

A lot of fuss over very little

Answer 8

A lot of Chaos for such a small thing

Answer 9

much fuss about nothing