Much Ado About Nothing

Hero is the daughter of Leonato, governor of Messina, and cousin to Beatrice. She is betrothed to Claudio until he ruins their wedding by denouncing her as unfaithful. Somewhat timid, Hero often seems to lack agency and her reputation proves more important to the plot than her feelings or beliefs. However, she shows great resourcefulness when gulling Beatrice into a romance with Benedick and it would be wrong to characterise her as a mere non-entity.

Although she is heir to Leonato’s estates, Hero seems to live in the shadow of her more vivacious cousin. In the opening scene, her only line of dialogue is to clarify something Beatrice said to the messenger. It is clear that the two cousins care deeply for one another: Hero later tells Don Pedro that “I will do any modest office... to help my cousin to a good husband.” She is Leonato’s sole heir, and often seems dominated by his wishes. For example, in the betrothal scene (Act 2 Scene 1), Leonato declares “Count, take of me my daughter, and with her my fortunes” – a timely reminder that this marriage is not only a love match but also a financial exchange between two noble families. Hero says nothing, her consent to the marriage not being needed or asked for. It is Beatrice who prompts her out of passivity, saying “speak, cousin, or (if you cannot) stop his mouth with a kiss, so he may not speak neither,” subtly undermining Claudio’s masculine authority.

While it’s easy to describe Hero as passive and meek in comparison to Beatrice’s brazen sass, her role in bringing Benedick and Beatrice together is not to be overlooked. In Act 3 Scene 1, her opening monologue (and the first time we have heard her speak at length) is full of imperatives to Margaret – “run thee to the parlour,” “whisper her ear,” and “leave us alone.” This indicates that Hero is using the soft power available to her as a woman to her advantage, determined not to be left out of the men’s amusing schemes. Further, it shows that Hero is not voiceless but rather accustomed to being spoken for, or about, by men. In this scene, we can also observe her excitement about her upcoming wedding; when Ursula asks when she is to be married, she replies “why every day tomorrow.” In modern English, this means ‘from tomorrow, I shall be a married woman every day!’ indicating her high spirits and optimism about the future as she rushes to.

As events escalate and Don John’s villainous scheme comes to fruition, Hero’s blackened name becomes more central to the scandal than Hero herself. See this exchange in Act 4 Scene 1:

Hero: Oh God defend me, how I am beset! What kind of catechising call you this?
Claudio: To make you answer truly to your name. Hero: Is it not Hero? Who can blot that name With any just reproach?

Note Hero’s references to God and catechism – a formal question and answer summary of Christian religious principles. This shows Hero desperately trying to assert her purity before God as her honour comes under attack. Claudio replies in the same vein – the first question in the Church of England catechism is ‘What is your name?’ Beyond religious ideals, Hero is aghast that, as an obedient noblewoman, she should be attacked and slandered in this way; her identity as Hero, Leonato’s daughter, along with her innocence, should be enough to save her from shame and “any just reproach.” However, within the play’s atmosphere of disguise and illusion, the notion of innocence is mutable, manipulated by Don John’s scheme and Claudio’s gullible noting. Hero’s subsequent counterfeit death, then, is not merely a trick to win back Claudio but also a representation of how shame impacts her: for someone who, up until this point, has been valued solely for her status as an eligible young heiress, slander is death.