Much Ado About Nothing Act Summary

Act 1

In Act 1 of Much Ado About Nothing we are introduced to all the major charachters of the book. The play starts out at the house of Leonato, where he receives news of the approching arrival of heroes froma recent war Don Pedro, Benedick, Claudio and John the Bastard (who is Don Pedro's half brother). All these people arrive and are housed by Leonato. Immediately Benedick and Beatrice begin snipping at one another, proving their animousity which is a very prevelant issue in the play. Also, just as instantaneously Claudio falls head over heals for Hero, Leonato's daughter. After the introductions are over and Benedick and Beatrice's "merry war" is finished, Claudio approaches Benedick for advice on how to woo his new love. Unfortunately, Benedick makes it very clear that he does not believe in the sacrament of marriage and wishes "to die a bachelor". By the hand of Cupid, Don Pedro joins the conversation and vouches for love by offering to woo Hero and even getting approval fom Leonato in the name of Signior Claudio.

Now this news spreads extremely fast to the people in Leonato's house. Leonato's brother, Antonio, and Leonato go for a walk and Antonio explains the situation of Claudio's love for Hero. Leonato has no problem and even goes one further to tell his daugter, Hero in advance.

Alas not everyone hearing this news is thrilled. Borachio, a follower of John the Bastard overheard Antonio and Leonato's discussion and reported it to John the Bastard. Being such a hateful person, John the BAstard begins to devise a plan to sabotage his brother's good intentions and ruin Claudio and Hero's happy ending.

Act 2

In Act 2 of Much Ado About Nothing all of the characters plans are put into motion. Leonato hosts a big masquerade ball for the vistors and everyone uses it to their advantage. Beatrice manages to insult Benedick yet again without even knowing that it was Benedick she was talking to. Don Pedro also used his to disguise to woo Hero  in the name of Claudio, which was working perfectly until John the Bastard and his follower Borachio intentionally approached Claudio and pretended to think that he was Benedick  to tell him that Don Pedro is planning to woo Hero for himself. Claudio was persuaded but not for long because later on that night when the masks were lifted the good ews of Hero and Claudio's betrothal was announced to all. Claudio was estatic again. Don Pedro was also happy that his plan had succeeded too. He was so proud he decided to endevour on another trial, getting Benedick and Beatrice together. He plotted and planned with the others and they went to work.

Seeing that their plan didnt quite exactly work out, Borachio and John the Bastard devised another attempt to ruin the joy of the newlyweds. They proposed a plan to have Margaret dress in Lady Hero's clothes and be caught in promiscuous positions infront of her window in order to frame poor Hero.

Don Pedro's plan was also set in motion, he Leonato and Claudio had a very long discussion amongst themselves ( intentionally within the earshot of Benedick) about the undying love that they swear poor Beatrice has for Benedick and yet cannot admit. And Benedick willingly takes it all as the law from God above and is immediately smitten and believes that a marriage is possible with such a fair woman as the lady Beatrice. Benedick convinces himself that she has all the attributes that he is looking for in a woman and completely ignores the "merry war" of which they contantly partake.

Act 3

In Act 3 of Much Ado About Nothing the master plan of Don Pedro is continued, where the ladies now confess the maddening love that Benedick has professed about Beatrice. Hero and Ursula conversed on what Claudio had allegedly told Hero. But the words of Benedick love was so moving that even Beatrice was willing to "tame her wild heart at his hands". Beatrice just as easily took the mere gossip as the word of God and believed it.

John the Bastard's plan moved along quite swiftly as well he managed to meet Don Pedro, his brother, and Claudio taking a mere stroll. And he proceeded to lead them to the window of fair Hero where Margaret dressed in Hero's clothes was seen through the window, making love with Borachio. This broke Claudio's heart and they (Claudio and Don Pedro) decided to shame Hero the next day at the wedding service as revenge for her "treachery".

After the deed is done, Borachio proceeds to tell Conrade the tale while walking late at night but he does not realize the guards are listening to every word after Borachio has finished telling his story the gurads quickly rush them and hold them until there boss returns.

Hero, Margeret, Beatrice and Ursula spend the next scene getting ready for the wedding that Hero is about to have to Claudio. Hero is completely oblivious to the shame she is about to recieve.

All  the while the boss of the gurad Dogberry tries to go to Leonato for him to inspect Borachio and Conrade so that he may see exactly what lies they have to tell him but sadly Leonato took no time to see what "trivialities" Dogberry had to offer he had a wedding to go to as far as he was concerned. If only he had done the inspection the sotry would have had a different outcome.

Act1 The Movie vs.The Book

Act 1 in the Book

In the actual published book. Act 1 was an introduction the characters of the book. We met the major characters such as Don Pedro, Leonato, Claudio, Hero, Don John, Benedick and Beatrice.We were even introduced to the major conflicts that shall take place throughout the book i.e. the "merry war" between Benedick and Beatrice and the scheming ways of John the Bastard. Although, sad to say, it was a bit lacking in description and due to the language of Shakespeare's time it was a bit difficult to truly grasp the meaning and ideas of the characters. That could be a result of the actual persons who read but even reading to oneself proved difficult at times.

Act 1 in the Movie

In the movie on the other hand, the description and detail of surroundings and scenery was extremely exquisite. It helped me to add more details to the story that i had already read. Also the actors added to the expression of the words and feelings by their emotive gestures, vocalics, choremetics and phonics. All these features helped grab my attention even more than the book could. The music also dramatically changed the way that i viewed the play. Through listening to the music i was able to be intertwined into the play and i personally got emotive reactions from jus listening to the music. I think the movie does a better job at portraying the true ideas of the book

The Life & Times of William Shakespeare

     William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminant dramatist. Shakespeare was born and raised in Stratford-upon-Avon to John Shakespeare and Mary Arden. His actual birthdate remains unknown, but is traditionally observed on 23 April and he was baptised in Stratford-upon-Avon on 26 April 1564. Shakespeare began his career as an actor, writer and part owner of a play company called the Lord's Chamberlain Men (later known as the Kings Men) in London. Few records of Shakespeare's private life exist.

     Most of Shakespeare's work was produced between 1589 and 1613, this included 38 plays(including Merchant of Venice, Much Ado About Nothing, Romeo & Juliet and Macbeth), 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems(Venus & Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece) and several other poems. His early plays were mainly comedies and histories, genres he raised to the peak of sophistication and artistry by the end of the 16th century. He then wrote mainly tragedies until about 1608, including Hamlet, King Lear, and Macbeth, considered some of the finest works in the English language. In his last phase, he wrote tragicomedies, also known as romances, and collaborated with other playwrights. Most of the plays were performed in the Elizabethan theatres of that Era.
     In his later years, Shakespeare became part of the ownership of the famous Globe Theatre where many of his plays were later performed.  The Globe opened in autumn 1599, with Julius Caesar one of the first plays staged. Most of Shakespeare's greatest post-1599 plays were written for the Globe, including Hamlet, Othello and King Lear.William Shakespeare died on April, 1616. However, written upon his tomb stone is an appeal bearing a curse to anyone who were to move his bones. It read:
"Good friend, for Jesus´ sake forbeare
To digg the dust enclosed here!
Blest be ye man that spares thes stones
And curst be he that moues my bones."
Shakespeare has been commemorated in many statues and memorials around the world, including funeral monuments in Southwark Cathedral and Poet's Corner in Westminster Abbey.

Questions about Brother Man

1. The major conflicts in the book are:

• Papicita and Girlie who constantly battled as Girlie struggled with Papacita's blatant infidelity. External 
• Cordelia where she struggles with her sanity. Internal
• Papacita and Minette where Papapcita was tryong to "woo" Minette but Minette constantly refused his advances.External
• Minette, as she battles between her love for Brother Man and what she should do because he shows no interest. Internal
• Papcita & Brother Man, Papicita competes with Brother Man for the love of Minette (even though Brother Man doesnt see Minette in that way. External
• Brother Man & Cordelia, Cordelia believes that Brother Man is purposely not healing her son. External
• Brother Ambo & Brother Man, Brother Ambo is jealous of Brother Man's success. External

2. Internal Conflict is a mental or emotional struggle that occurs within character whereas External Conflict is a struggle between the protagonist and another character against nature or some outside force

 

 

3.The 3 types of iroy are:

• Situational Irony
• Verbal Irony
•  Dramatic Irony

4. The basic idea of irony is to say or imply something and mean or do something else. This most evident in the character of Brother Man and his nteraction with the residents of Orange Lane, especially those who he help significantly. In the early stages of the novel, the reader sees that Brother Man is the epitome of a Saviour, namely Jesus Christ. Brother Man, having been converted to the faith from a 'bad' youth, was conpassionate and understanding, having experience some similar cases as people in the lane, he helped emotionally spiritually as well as financially. To the rude display of gratefulness by the people inb the lane by pelting Brother Man to a pulp near death after his help this very people who abse him now.

Angry Citizen

Crosbies

St. John's

Antigua

5th November 2010

Editor             

of Jamaica Sun

Tivoli Gardens

Jamaica          

West Indies   

Dear Editor,

                   I am writing to report a civil indecency that I witnessed on Orange Lane. I witnessed a savage vengeful crowd descend upon one poor citizen by the name of John Power or more famously hailed "Brother Man". The crowd rusheed this citizen out of pure ignorance and prejudice and it saddens me to have to report it.

                  The crowd was enraged because a few days prior a brutal homocide occured in which a man with dreadlocks murdered a young couple. Since then the people got the mentality that all people with dreadlocks or rastafarians are murderes or essentially bad people. This is so far from the truth and I am crestfallen that people in this day and age are so one-minded and thick headed. Have we not grown past the stereotyping and irrational prejudism? In these times it cannot be acceptable that people have the mentality that "one rasta is a murderer so they all must be murderers too". Also our society doesnt condone citizens who take the law into their own hands and exercise vigilante justice. We as a society have established a legal system capable of prosecution for offenders, therefore it is unnecessary and illegal for citizens to take the law into their own hands.

                 In my opinion, Rastafarians are not any diffrent from regular people. Rastafarianism is a monotheistic religion that believes who worship Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia, former Emperor of Ethiopia as God incarnate, the Second Advent. Rastafari is not a highly organized religion; it is a movement and an ideology. Although the religion and beliefs for Rastas are different, it does not mean that they are extremists or murderers. The only "criminal" belief that rastas have iz the fact that they use cannabis on a regular basis for spiritual purposes while most Christians societies beleive cannabis is an illegal substance. So it can now be seen that Rastafarians are not that much different from Christians. Furthermore, i reiterate the fact that even if one Rasta did have an "extremist" mentality it does not mean that all Rastas share in his ideals.

                It saddens me to have to write this letter to you Mr. Editor but i just felt that I should share my opinions and concerns, thank-you for your time.

                               

Yours Thankfully,

Zachary Phillips

Questions on Brother Man

1. Some of the Narrative techniques used in the novel Brother Man are:

• Point of View-Roger Mais strategically uses this narrative technique. He consistently changes the persona in each chapter thus, giving different perspectives and views of the events of the story. He often writes in omniscient so as to express every character involved in the book's thoughts and feelings in the first person.
• Foreshadowing-The tension between Brother Man and Brother Ambo in the early scenes of the book shows that there will be some kind of conflict towards the end of the novel. Papacita and Girlie's dysfunctional relationship also foreshadows a gruesome outcome for the couple.
• Theme-There are several themes displayed in the book due to the fact that Roger Mais takes the time to involve everyone to express their views. The fact that  as the chapter changes a new persona is introduced is a leading factor to the variety of themes.
• Setting.
• Characterization-Characters such as Brother Man, Minette, Girlie,Cordelia, Jesmina are all model examples of characters within the novel that would attract a reader's sympathy. Meanwhile characters such as Papacita and Bra Ambo definitely are exempt from this bunch
• Plot-there are many varying & intricate plots within this story

3. The setting of Brother Man is a poor slum meighbourhood in Kingston, Jamaica. The first publishing of Brother Man was done in the 1950's so the time era is presummably the 1950's aswell.

4. Some of the themes in Brother Man are:

• religion
• betrayl
• abuse
• poverty
• jealousy
• greed
• revenge
• love
• infidelity

5. First, it is evident at the beginning of the novel that Brother Man and Brother Ambo have a rivalry of sorts and are already some conflict is displayed. Bra' Ambo being the community's obeah man was known to have some items within his household which weren't exactly legal at the time. Knowing that the police were going to search his house he decided to go to Brother Man in the hopes of him storing the items in his house for a while. However, Brother Man refuses to hold any unholy items in his household and turns Bra' Ambo away. Thus, making Bra' Ambo very angry.
Papacita is a young man who apparently doesn't like hard work and is a well-known 'Cassonova' to most girls in the village. He is involved in a counterfeit scheme - A scandal where both he and a man named Fellows make and use counterfeit cash. When the police (Corporal Jennings) seem to be catching on, Fellows flees the scene immediately.
Girlie and Papacita seem to have a dysfunctional relationship. They are constantly bickering with each other. This is because of Papacita's constant flirting and infidelity. Papacita leaves Girlie and decides to live elsewhere with the thought of Minnette in his mind. Girlie of course being distraught and emotionally unstable about this decision follows him and ends up committing murder.
Cordelia, in the beginning, is very ill. Brother Man heals her and she is very grateful. However, a few days later her child is sick. Cordelia calls Brother Man to heal her baby boy, but this time, his prayer's are unanswered. He gives her money and tells her to take the baby to the hospital. However, after going to the hospital only once, she decides to get involved with obeah and goes to Bra' Ambo. In the end, she is driven to   insanity and she ends up suffocating her child and then killing herself.
 Brother Man is a very religious but when a murder takes place and the murderer was said to have long hair and a beard like Brother Man, Persons begin to ostracize bearded men with long hair classifying them as murderers. In the end, Brother Man is stoned by several persons who believe the theory that all bearded men with long hair are murderers and Minnette saves him .

Jesmina returns home only to find that someone has broken into her house asking for the whereabouts of her husband, Shine and the weed. Jesmina quickly maneuvers out the window before the man could cause any bodily harm to her and stays with Brother Man and Minnette for a while.

6. Foreshadowing refers to a suggestive peice in a literary work which begins to develop an idea before it actually occurs. In this way it serves as an introduction to a few of the book's main characters. Foreshadowing is evident in the "Chorus of the People in the Lane" like at the beginning of the book. On page eleven, there is mention of Bra Ambo. We get the sense that he is someone of great influence but are still not quite made aware of his purpose in the novel. His predictions are taken seriously by the villagers but the reader doesn't yet know why. In the chorus of the people in the lane Cordelia's name also appears and is related to her boyfriend who has been taken up by the police for drugs. This signifies Cordelia's problematic position even at the very start of the book. This continues throughout the book and only gets worst. From the series of foreshadowing among the villagers we also learn that they respect Bra Man as a godly man stating that he shows the gospel way. In the same respect there is already some comparison drawn between himself and Bra Ambo. The contradiction between them is shown when someone says that they'd rather follow Bra Ambo's way. Already Mais is letting the reader know that there is some difference between both Brother Man and Bra Ambo.

7. Some examples of flashbacks are the scene were Brother Man tells Minette of his past and when Minette returns the favour and divulges her past to Brother Man.

Brother Man

1. Roger Mais who was born in Kingston in 1905 and died in 1955 was a Jamaican journalist, novelist, poet, and playwright. He was born to a middle-class family in Kingston, Jamaica.Mais launched his career as a journalist and contributor for the weekly newspaper, Public Opinion from 1939 to 1952, which was associated with the People's National Party. He also wrote several plays, reviews, and short stories for the newspaper,in fact, Mais has published over a hundred short stories.  He wrote three novels "the Hills were Joyful Together"(1953),"Brother Man"(1954) and "Black Lightning"(1955). By 1951, Mais had won ten first prizes in West Indian literary competitions. His integral role in the development of political and cultural nationalism is evidenced in his being awarded the high honor of the Order of Jamaica in 1978.

2.The concensus of the reviews of Roger Mais' Brother Man consider the book to be strongly religious with regards to the indepth nature of rastafariamism. Critque Annie Paul states in her review that "It’s interesting to read Brother Man today, when Rastas and things Rastafarian have acquired such cultural charisma that their image". She exaggerated the fact that rastafarianism has become a very prominent religion in society as it is was triggered in song by Bob Marley and the forms varied along with their founders but it was refreshing to have this religion in particular being exhibited in book, namely by Roger Mais.Other critiques note that the novel depicts a contrast from what culture in Jamaica had once been like in comnparison to what it is now. Imani claims in his review "(Brother Man) is not a mere historical artefact providing a window into Jamaica’s past, but shows an improvement in style, a sophistication in the development of themes and exploration of human character". He further explains that Mais' way of developing his characters also reflects the change or the growth into a new fashion.

3. Rastafarianism dates back to the 1930s and the black 'Back to Africa' movement, its adherents worship Haile Selassie, the former emperor of Ethiopia, under his precoronation name: Ras Tafari. Believers consider the emperor a divine being and champion of the black race, and await redemption in the form of repatriation to Africa. Although Rastafarians have evolved since the early 1930s from a fringe subculture into a trend-setting movement. Their reggae music and dreadlocks have become cultural icons. Devout Rastafarians have been known to reject Western medical treatment, contraception and legal marriage, while forbidding funerals, secondhand clothing and the eating of pork, among other taboos. But marijuana, also known as 'the holy herb' or ganja, took on the role of a religious sacrament as the movement gathered speed. Today, Rastafarians and their imitators are everywhere on Jamaica, an island of 2.6 million people. The religion of Rastafarianism has about 600 thousand followers. Yet sadly many still complain of workplace discrimination, snubs, and the government's refusal to grant them full religious rights.

Forms of Prose Fiction

• Novel- a story that fills a book
• Noveller-a piece of fiction that is shorte than a novel but longer than a short story
• Short story-is a piece of fiction that is shorter than a novel but less complicated in plot than a novel

Elements of Prose Fiction

• Narrative tevhniques-techniques used in telling a story. Essentially the means used in telling a story
• Characterization- the way in which a writer creates characters in a narrative to attract or repel our sympathy
• Setting-a background, scene, surrounding or environment in a narrative
• Theme- the subject about which a person, write ,speaks or thinks
• Plot- the plan of a literary  work especially of drams and novels
• Style-the way  something is done, made, said or written
• Imagery-use of words to produce images in the mind of the reader
• Symbols-obejects  which represent  something else
• Irony-saying the opposite of what you mean in order to emphasize it
• Satire-using humour or exxageration to show what is bad or weak about a person or thing
• Allusion- a passing reference in a work of literature to a historical event

Structual Devices

• Stream of conscienceness-a literary technique that presents the thoughts and feelings of a character as they occur.
• Interior monologue-an attempt to convey words the process of conscience or thoughts
• Juxtapostion-an act or instance of placing close together or side to side especially for comparison or contrast.
• Motif- a recurring significant event or subject in a narrative.
• Flashback- a literary device in which an earlier event is inserted into the normal chronological event of the narrative
• Foreshadowing-to present an indication or a suggestion of beforehand.
• Time frame-is a period during which something takes place or is projected to occur.

Types of Fiction

• action-adeventure
• detective
• fantasy
• horror
• romance
• science fiction
• thriller
• western

Context

• Cultural-the training and refinement of the intellect, interest, taste, skills and art.
• Intellectual-the ability to reason and understand or to perceive relationships.
• Ethnic-designating or of a population subgroup having a common cultural heritage as distinguished by customs, characteristics, language, common history.
• Social-of or having to do with human beings living together, as a group in a situation in which their dealing with one another affect their common welfare.
• Political-of or concerned with government, the statement of politics.
• Religious-characterized by adherence to religious or a religion, devout, pious, gladly.
• Moral- A practical lesson about right and wrong conduct.