Study Questions for Much Ado About Nothing

  1. This play contains considerably more prose than other plays by Shakespeare.  What is the effect of this on you as you read the play?  What do you think the effect of this is on a theater audience?
  2. Does this play seem more realistic than plays such as A Midsummer Night's Dream?  What, specifically, is realistic about the play?
  3. This play doesn't have a "green" world--what is the effect of this on the characters and their actions?
  4. Do you feel that the metatheatrical dimension of this play is less evident than in other plays we've read?  Why do you think Shakespeare refrains from extensive metatheatrical commentary in this play?
  5. How does this play handle the themes of love and marriage differently than other works we've read?