Much Ado About Nothing
By William Shakespeare and Sheba Blake
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About this ebook
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was born in April 1564 in the town of Stratford-upon-Avon, on England’s Avon River. When he was eighteen, he married Anne Hathaway. The couple had three children—an older daughter Susanna and twins, Judith and Hamnet. Hamnet, Shakespeare’s only son, died in childhood. The bulk of Shakespeare’s working life was spent in the theater world of London, where he established himself professionally by the early 1590s. He enjoyed success not only as a playwright and poet, but also as an actor and shareholder in an acting company. Although some think that sometime between 1610 and 1613 Shakespeare retired from the theater and returned home to Stratford, where he died in 1616, others believe that he may have continued to work in London until close to his death.
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Much Ado About Nothing - William Shakespeare
MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING
BY
WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
Copyright © 2017 by William Shakespeare.
All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations em- bodied in critical articles or reviews.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organiza- tions, places, events and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
For information contact :
Sheba Blake Publishing
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Book and Cover design by Sheba Blake Publishing
First Edition: January 2017
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PERSONS REPRESENTED
ACT I.
SCENE I.
SCENE II.
SCENE III.
ACT II.
SCENE I.
SCENE II.
ACT III.
SCENE I.
SCENE II.
SCENE III.
SCENE IV.
SCENE V.
ACT IV.
SCENE I.
SCENE II.
ACT V.
SCENE I.
SCENE II.
SCENE III.
SCENE IV.
PERSONS REPRESENTED
DON PEDRO, Prince of Arragon.
DON JOHN, his bastard Brother.
CLAUDIO, a young Lord of Florence.
BENEDICK, a young Lord of Padua.
LEONATO, Governor of Messina.
ANTONIO, his Brother.
BALTHAZAR, Servant to Don Pedro.
BORACHIO, follower of Don John.
CONRADE, follower of Don John.
DOGBERRY, a Constable. VERGES, a Headborough.
FRIAR FRANCIS.
A Sexton.
A Boy.
HERO, Daughter to Leonato.
BEATRICE, Niece to Leonato.
MARGARET, Waiting-gentlewoman attending on Hero.
URSULA, Waiting-gentlewoman attending on Hero.
Messengers, Watch, Attendants, &c.
ACT I.
SCENE I.
Before LEONATO'S House.
SCENE. Messina.
[Enter LEONATO, HERO, BEATRICE and others, with a Messenger.]
LEONATO. I learn in this letter that Don Pedro of Arragon comes this night to Messina.
MESSENGER. He is very near by this: he was not three leagues off when I left him.
LEONATO. How many gentlemen have you lost in this action?
MESSENGER. But few of any sort, and none of name.
LEONATO. A victory is twice itself when the achiever brings home full numbers. I find here that Don Pedro hath bestowed much honour on a young Florentine called Claudio.
MESSENGER. Much deserved on his part, and equally remembered by Don Pedro. He hath borne himself beyond the promise of his age, doing in the figure of a lamb the feats of a lion: he hath indeed better bettered expectation than you must expect of me to tell you how.
LEONATO. He hath an uncle here in Messina will be very much glad of it.
MESSENGER. I have already delivered him letters, and there appears much joy in him; even so much that joy could not show itself modest enough without a badge of bitterness.
LEONATO. Did he break out into tears?
MESSENGER. In great measure.
LEONATO. A kind overflow of kindness. There are no faces truer than those that are so washed; how much better is it to weep at joy than to joy at weeping!
BEATRICE. I pray you, is Signior Mountanto returned from the wars or no?
MESSENGER. I know none of that name, lady: there was none such in the army of any sort.
LEONATO. What is he that you ask for, niece?
HERO. My cousin means Signior Benedick of Padua.
MESSENGER. O! he is returned, and as pleasant as ever he was.
BEATRICE. He set up his bills here in Messina and challenged Cupid at the flight; and my uncle's fool, reading the challenge, subscribed for Cupid, and challenged him at the bird-bolt. I pray you, how many hath he killed and eaten in these wars? But how many hath he killed? for, indeed, I promised to eat all of his killing.
LEONATO. Faith, niece, you tax Signior Benedick too much; but he'll be meet with you, I doubt it not.
MESSENGER. He hath done good service, lady, in these wars.
BEATRICE. You had musty victual, and he hath holp to eat it; he is a very valiant trencher-man; he hath an excellent stomach.
MESSENGER. And a good soldier too, lady.
BEATRICE. And a good soldier to a lady; but what is he to a lord?
MESSENGER. A lord to a lord, a man to a man; stuffed with all honourable virtues.
BEATRICE. It is so indeed; he is no less than a stuffed man; but for the stuffing,--well, we are all mortal.
LEONATO. You must not, sir, mistake my niece. There is a kind of merry war betwixt Signior Benedick and her; they never meet but there's a skirmish of wit between them.
BEATRICE. Alas! he gets nothing by that. In our last conflict four of his five wits went halting off, and now is the whole man governed with one! so that if he have wit enough to keep himself warm, let him bear it for a difference between himself and his horse; for it is all the wealth that he hath left to be known a reasonable creature. Who is his companion now? He hath every month a new sworn brother.
MESSENGER. Is't possible?
BEATRICE. Very easily possible: he wears his faith but as the fashion of his hat; it ever changes with the next block.
MESSENGER. I see, lady, the gentleman is not in your books.
BEATRICE. No;an he were, I would burn my study. But, I pray you, who is his companion? Is there no young squarer now that will make a voyage with him to the devil?
MESSENGER. He is most in the company of the right noble Claudio.
BEATRICE. O Lord, he will hang upon him like a disease: he is sooner caught than the pestilence, and the taker runs presently mad. God help the noble Claudio! If he have caught the Benedick, it will cost him a thousand pound ere a' be cured.
MESSENGER. I will hold friends with you, lady.
BEATRICE. Do, good friend.
LEONATO. You will never run mad, niece.
BEATRICE. No, not till a hot January.
MESSENGER. Don Pedro is approached.
[Enter DON PEDRO, DON JOHN, CLAUDIO, BENEDICK, BALTHAZAR, and Others.]
DON PEDRO. Good Signior Leonato, you are come to meet your trouble: the fashion of the world is to avoid cost, and you encounter it.
LEONATO. Never came trouble to my house in the likeness of your Grace, for trouble being gone, comfort should remain; but when you depart from me, sorrow abides and happiness takes his leave.
DON PEDRO. You embrace your charge too willingly. I think this is your daughter.
LEONATO. Her mother hath many times told me so.
BENEDICK. Were you in doubt, sir, that you asked her?
LEONATO. Signior Benedick, no; for then were you a child.
DON PEDRO. You have it full, Benedick: we may guess by this what you are, being a man. Truly the lady fathers