Beatrice's Monologue
Original Monologue
Is he not approved in the height a villain
that hath slandered, scorned, dishonored my
kinswoman? O, that I were a man! What, bear her in
hand until they come to take hands, and then, with
public accusation, uncovered slander, unmitigated
rancor—O God, that I were a man! I would eat his
heart in the marketplace.
Talk with a man out at a window! A proper
saying.
Sweet Hero, she is wronged, she is slandered, she is
undone.
Princes and counties! Surely a princely testimony,
a goodly count, Count Comfect, a sweet
gallant, surely! O, that I were a man for his sake! Or
that I had any friend would be a man for my sake!
But manhood is melted into curtsies, valor into
compliment, and men are only turned into tongue,
and trim ones, too. He is now as valiant as Hercules
that only tells a lie and swears it. I cannot be a man
with wishing; therefore I will die a woman with
grieving.
Introduction
This speech by Beatrice occurs in the fourth act of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing. Hero, Beatrice’s cousin, was about to marry Claudio, who has been tricked by Don John who yearns to destroy their marriage and shows Claudio that someone disguised as Hero was having a sexual relation with another man. Claudio has just publicly slandered Hero during their wedding for not being a virgin, which caused her to faint from horror. Beatrice, a powerful and witty woman, firmly believes in Hero’s loyalty and is infuriated by Claudio for defaming Hero without consulting her. In the monologue, Beatrice expresses her exasperation calling Claudio the greatest villain for not only distrusting Hero but also hiding his intention before the wedding and slandering Hero in public.
Analysis - Outrage: Beatrice's Monologue in Act 4, Scene 1
Beatrice’s monologue opens with a rhetorical question. The verb usages including “slandered”, “scorned”, “dishonored” imply Beatrice’s anger to Claudio for accusing Hero of not being a virgin during the wedding. The repeated exclamatory of “O, that I were a man!” shows how societal gender roles limit Beatrice's retribution. She is eager to procure justice for Hero, but her gender restricts her from doing so, demonstrating that a woman as strong and powerful as Beatrice is still restricted under the patriarchal society. Men would be expected to fight it out in a question of honor, but women do not have that opportunity. Beatrice proposes the possibility of Hero “talking with a man out at a window” and is infuriated by Claudio for not confirming the truth of the story with Hero. Beatrice sarcastically scoffs at Claudio's supposed nobility by describing his slander as “a princely testimony.” She firmly believes in Hero’s innocence and therefore feels very bitter about Claudio’s discredit to Hero. Beatrice employs similes to describe Claudio as a dishonest Hercules who “only tells a lie and swears it.” Although Claudio is a man of high social status, he does not have the right to slander Hero publicly. Beatrice feels guilty for not being able to take action to kill Claudio and even wants to “die a woman with grieving.” This plot exhibits Beatrice’s bravery while justifying that women are subordinate to men in Elizabethan society and are deprived of various socio-economic opportunities. Therefore, the fact that Beatrice entertains the possibility of acting like a man is significant because it does—in word, if not in deed—press back against societal expectations of women. Beatrice is a firecracker, and her monologues hint at possibilities, if not realities.
