{"id":4275,"date":"2014-12-09T21:59:53","date_gmt":"2014-12-10T02:59:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateofshakespeare.com\/?page_id=4275"},"modified":"2014-12-09T22:02:28","modified_gmt":"2014-12-10T03:02:28","slug":"much-ado-about-nothing-act-i-scene-i","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/stateofshakespeare.com\/?page_id=4275","title":{"rendered":"Much Ado About Nothing: Act I, Scene i"},"content":{"rendered":"

Much Ado About Nothing \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Act 1, Scene 1. \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Beatrice<\/strong><\/p>\n

(This text is featured in our\u00a0interview with Marion Adler<\/a>)<\/p>\n

Click here for a First Folio\u00a0version<\/a><\/p>\n

BEATRICE<\/b>
\n31. I pray you, is Signior Mountanto returned from the
\nwars or no?<\/p>\n

Messenger<\/b>
\n32. I know none of that name, lady: there was none such
\n33. in the army of any sort.<\/p>\n

LEONATO<\/b>
\n34. What is he that you ask for, niece?<\/p>\n

HERO<\/b>
\n35. My cousin means Signior Benedick of Padua.<\/p>\n

Messenger<\/b>
\n36. O, he’s returned; and as pleasant as ever he was.<\/p>\n

BEATRICE<\/b>
\n37. \u00a0He set up his bills here in Messina and challenged
\n38. \u00a0Cupid at the flight; and my uncle’s fool, reading
\n39. the challenge, subscribed for Cupid, and challenged
\n40. him at the bird-bolt. I pray you, how many hath he
\n41. killed and eaten in these wars? But how many hath
\n42. he killed? for indeed I promised to eat all of his killing.<\/p>\n

LEONATO<\/b>
\n43. Faith, niece, you tax Signior Benedick too much;
\n44. but he’ll be meet with you, I doubt it not.<\/p>\n

Messenger<\/b>
\n45. He hath done good service, lady, in these wars.<\/p>\n

BEATRICE<\/b>
\n46. You had musty victual, and he hath holp to eat it:
\n47. he is a very valiant trencherman; he hath an
\n48. excellent stomach.<\/p>\n

Messenger<\/b>
\n49. And a good soldier too, lady.<\/p>\n

BEATRICE<\/b>
\n50. And a good soldier to a lady: but what is he to a lord?<\/p>\n

Messenger<\/b>
\n51. A lord to a lord, a man to a man; stuffed with all
\n52. honourable virtues.<\/p>\n

BEATRICE<\/b>
\n53. It is so, indeed; he is no less than a stuffed man:
\n54. but for the stuffing,–well, we are all mortal.<\/p>\n

LEONATO<\/b>
\n55. You must not, sir, mistake my niece. There is a
\n56. kind of merry war betwixt Signior Benedick and her:
\n57. they never meet but there’s a skirmish of wit
\n58. between them.<\/p>\n

BEATRICE<\/b>
\n59. Alas! he gets nothing by that. In our last
\n60. conflict four of his five wits went halting off, and
\n61. now is the whole man governed with one: so that if
\n62. he have wit enough to keep himself warm, let him
\n63. bear it for a difference between himself and his
\n64. horse; for it is all the wealth that he hath left,
\n65. to be known a reasonable creature. Who is his
\n66. companion now? He hath every month a new sworn brother.<\/p>\n

Messenger<\/b>
\n67. Is’t possible?<\/p>\n

BEATRICE<\/b>
\n68. Very easily possible: he wears his faith but as
\n69. the fashion of his hat; it ever changes with the
\n70. next block.<\/p>\n

Messenger<\/b>
\n71. I see, lady, the gentleman is not in your books.<\/p>\n

BEATRICE<\/b>
\n72. No; an he were, I would burn my study. But, I pray
\n73. you, who is his companion? Is there no young
\n74. squarer now that will make a voyage with him to the devil?<\/p>\n

Messenger<\/b>
\n75. He is most in the company of the right noble Claudio.<\/p>\n

BEATRICE<\/b>
\n76. O Lord, he will hang upon him like a disease: he
\n77. is sooner caught than the pestilence, and the taker
\n78. runs presently mad. God help the noble Claudio! if
\n79. he have caught the Benedick, it will cost him a
\n80. thousand pound ere a’ be cured.<\/p>\n

Messenger<\/b>
\n81. I will hold friends with you, lady.<\/p>\n

BEATRICE<\/b>
\n82. Do, good friend.<\/p>\n

LEONATO<\/b>
\n83. You will never run mad, niece.<\/p>\n

BEATRICE<\/b>
\n84. No, not till a hot January.<\/p>\n

Messenger<\/b>
\n85. Don Pedro is approached.<\/p>\n

Enter DON PEDRO, DON JOHN, CLAUDIO, BENEDICK, and BALTHASAR<\/i><\/p>\n

DON PEDRO<\/b>
\n86. Good Signior Leonato, you are come to meet your
\n87. trouble: the fashion of the world is to avoid
\n88. cost, and you encounter it.<\/p>\n

LEONATO<\/b>
\n89. Never came trouble to my house in the likeness of
\n90. your grace: for trouble being gone, comfort should
\n91. remain; but when you depart from me, sorrow abides
\n92. and happiness takes his leave.<\/p>\n

DON PEDRO<\/b>
\n93. You embrace your charge too willingly. I think this
\n94. is your daughter.<\/p>\n

LEONATO<\/b>
\n95. Her mother hath many times told me so.<\/p>\n

BENEDICK<\/b>
\n96. Were you in doubt, sir, that you asked her?<\/p>\n

LEONATO<\/b>
\n97. Signior Benedick, no; for then were you a child.<\/p>\n

DON PEDRO<\/b>
\n98. You have it full, Benedick: we may guess by this
\n99. what you are, being a man. Truly, the lady fathers
\n100. herself. Be happy, lady; for you are like an
\n101. honourable father.<\/p>\n

BENEDICK<\/b>
\n102. If Signior Leonato be her father, she would not
\n103. have his head on her shoulders for all Messina, as
\n104. like him as she is.<\/p>\n

BEATRICE<\/b>
\n105. I wonder that you will still be talking, Signior
\n106. Benedick: nobody marks you.<\/p>\n

BENEDICK<\/b>
\n107. What, my dear Lady Disdain! are you yet living?<\/p>\n

BEATRICE<\/b>
\n108. Is it possible disdain should die while she hath
\n109. such meet food to feed it as Signior Benedick?
\n110. Courtesy itself must convert to disdain, if you come
\n111. in her presence.<\/p>\n

BENEDICK<\/b>
\n112. Then is courtesy a turncoat. But it is certain I
\n113. am loved of all ladies, only you excepted: and I
\n114. would I could find in my heart that I had not a hard
\n115. heart; for, truly, I love none.<\/p>\n

BEATRICE<\/b>
\n116. A dear happiness to women: they would else have
\n117. been troubled with a pernicious suitor. I thank God
\n118. and my cold blood, I am of your humour for that: I
\n119. had rather hear my dog bark at a crow than a man
\n120. swear he loves me.<\/p>\n

BENEDICK<\/b>
\n121. God keep your ladyship still in that mind! so some
\n122. gentleman or other shall ‘scape a predestinate
\n123. scratched face.<\/p>\n

BEATRICE<\/b>
\n124. Scratching could not make it worse, an ’twere such
\n125. a face as yours were.<\/p>\n

BENEDICK<\/b>
\n126. Well, you are a rare parrot-teacher.<\/p>\n

BEATRICE<\/b>
\n127. A bird of my tongue is better than a beast of yours.<\/p>\n

BENEDICK<\/b>
\n128. I would my horse had the speed of your tongue, and
\n129. so good a continuer. But keep your way, i’ God’s
\n130. name; I have done.<\/p>\n

BEATRICE<\/b>
\n131. You always end with a jade’s trick: I know you of old.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Much Ado About Nothing \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Act 1, Scene 1. \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Beatrice (This text is featured in our\u00a0interview with Marion Adler) Click here for a First Folio\u00a0version BEATRICE 31. I pray you, is Signior Mountanto returned from the wars or no? Messenger 32. I know none of that name, lady: there was<\/p>\n [...]<\/a>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-4275","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","post-seq-1","post-parity-odd","meta-position-line-bottom","fix"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\n","aioseo_head_json":{"title":"Much Ado About Nothing: Act I, Scene i | The State of Shakespeare","description":"Much Ado About Nothing Act 1, Scene 1. Beatrice (This text is featured in our interview with Marion Adler) Click here for a First Folio version BEATRICE 31. I pray you, is Signior Mountanto returned from the wars or no? Messenger 32. I know none of that name, lady: there was","canonical_url":"https:\/\/stateofshakespeare.com\/?page_id=4275","robots":"max-image-preview:large","keywords":"","webmasterTools":{"google-site-verification":"UA-28965856-1","p:domain_verify":"d36dfa872cf08cb1686a0c207bca81df","miscellaneous":""},"schema":null,"og:locale":"en_US","og:site_name":"The State of Shakespeare","og:type":"article","og:title":"Much Ado About Nothing: Act I, Scene i | The State of Shakespeare","og:description":"Much Ado About Nothing Act 1, Scene 1. Beatrice (This text is featured in our interview with Marion Adler) Click here for a First Folio version BEATRICE 31. I pray you, is Signior Mountanto returned from the wars or no? Messenger 32. I know none of that name, lady: there was","og:url":"https:\/\/stateofshakespeare.com\/?page_id=4275","fb:admins":"100001614971768","og:image":"https:\/\/stateofshakespeare.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/stateofshakes_600x600.jpg","og:image:secure_url":"https:\/\/stateofshakespeare.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/stateofshakes_600x600.jpg","og:image:width":600,"og:image:height":600,"article:published_time":"2014-12-10T02:59:53+00:00","article:modified_time":"2014-12-10T03:02:28+00:00","article:publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/TheStateofShakespeare\/","twitter:card":"summary","twitter:site":"@stateofshakespe","twitter:title":"Much Ado About Nothing: Act I, Scene i | The State of Shakespeare","twitter:description":"Much Ado About Nothing Act 1, Scene 1. Beatrice (This text is featured in our interview with Marion Adler) Click here for a First Folio version BEATRICE 31. I pray you, is Signior Mountanto returned from the wars or no? Messenger 32. I know none of that name, lady: there was","twitter:image":"https:\/\/stateofshakespeare.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/stateofshakes_600x600.jpg"},"aioseo_meta_data":{"post_id":"4275","title":null,"description":null,"keywords":null,"keyphrases":null,"primary_term":null,"canonical_url":null,"og_title":"","og_description":"","og_object_type":"article","og_image_type":"default","og_image_url":null,"og_image_width":null,"og_image_height":null,"og_image_custom_url":null,"og_image_custom_fields":null,"og_video":"","og_custom_url":null,"og_article_section":"","og_article_tags":"","twitter_use_og":false,"twitter_card":"summary","twitter_image_type":"default","twitter_image_url":null,"twitter_image_custom_url":null,"twitter_image_custom_fields":null,"twitter_title":null,"twitter_description":null,"schema":{"blockGraphs":[],"customGraphs":[],"default":{"data":{"Article":[],"Course":[],"Dataset":[],"FAQPage":[],"Movie":[],"Person":[],"Product":[],"ProductReview":[],"Car":[],"Recipe":[],"Service":[],"SoftwareApplication":[],"WebPage":[]},"graphName":"","isEnabled":true},"graphs":[]},"schema_type":null,"schema_type_options":null,"pillar_content":false,"robots_default":true,"robots_noindex":false,"robots_noarchive":false,"robots_nosnippet":false,"robots_nofollow":false,"robots_noimageindex":false,"robots_noodp":false,"robots_notranslate":false,"robots_max_snippet":null,"robots_max_videopreview":null,"robots_max_imagepreview":"large","priority":null,"frequency":null,"local_seo":null,"breadcrumb_settings":null,"limit_modified_date":false,"ai":null,"created":"2021-01-04 18:36:21","updated":"2026-04-03 02:03:24","seo_analyzer_scan_date":null},"aioseo_breadcrumb":"

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