Much Ado About Nothing

Hero and Claudio represent the Elizabethan norm in marriage. Claudio is the shrewd, hardheaded fortune hunter and Hero is the modest maiden of conduct books and marriage manuals, a docile young woman. It is important to note that Claudio is more concerned with advancement in Don Pedro's army than he is with love. Therefore, Shakespeare illustrates to the reader through the near tragedy of mistaken identity that Claudio must learn that marriage is more than …

…generous, and loving" (Slights 240). Both women address the inequalities of 16th c. marriage and they attack the patriarchal nature of marriage in society. After establishing their disapproval for the social structure of marriage, they both consent to marriage, determining that marriage will allow them to live the best possible life in their society. Marriage was for Beatrice and Portia, a logical choice to make the best out of a possibly undesirable social situation for women.