Beatrice and Benedick: ‘A Kind of Merry War’

Abstract

The popularity of Much Ado About Nothing is often attributed to the strength of the rôles of Beatrice and Benedick. On one level their merry war is interpreted as the amusing wit play of sparring partners who hesitate to acknowledge or even recognise their mutual attraction. An audience delights in their eventual pairing and it is easy to understand why Charles II wrote ‘Benedik and Betrice’ against the title in his copy of the Second Folio.