Much Ado About Nothing

Leonato is the governor of Messina, Hero’s father, and Beatrice’s uncle.  A benevolent patriarch, he willingly extends his hospitality to Don Pedro and his entire entourage. While some editions of the play list a non-speaking wife in the dramatis personae, he appears as single, probably widowed, in most productions.

At the beginning of the play, it is clear that Leonato takes pleasure in surrounding himself with people: he tells Don Pedro that “when you depart from me, happiness takes his leave and sadness abides.” He delights in playing the perfect host – even to the villains of the piece. In contrast to Benedick and Beatrice, he represents the conventional noble establishment: he gives his daughter away like a commodity to a man she barely knows and scolds Beatrice that “thou wilt never get thee a husband, if thou be so shrewd of thy tongue.” While he never expresses any unkindness towards his niece, it’s clear that her feisty spirit and independence sets him on edge.

The true tragedy of Leonato’s character is his obsession with reputation: after Hero is slandered and faints, he remarks that “death is the fairest cover for her shame.” Even to an Elizabethan audience, this is shocking: Leonato is saying he would rather Hero were dead than her reputation be damaged. He rails against his daughter, barely giving her time to draw breath and deny the accusations. Of course, this is partly motivated by the devastation of his social and financial legacy: Hero is his sole heir, and if she is no longer eligible to be married, that would mean the end of his noble dynasty. Further, his idealised image of his daughter as a virginal, pure woman has been destroyed. The Prince and Claudio, he feels, cannot be lying – his respect for Don Pedro’s noble authority precludes this; therefore Hero must be tainted.

After his violent outburst at the aborted wedding, Leonato becomes more contemplative and sad, perhaps under the influence of the clever friar. He confides in his brother that “my soul doth tell me, Hero is belied,”, becoming more open to the possibility of a mistake and enraged at Claudio. Generosity, however, or perhaps respect for social convention, prevents him from exacting revenge: he accepts that Claudio was duped and gives away Hero once again. For Leonato, the auspicious marriage proves more important than the events that preceded it and he delights in celebrating the happy occasion with his reputation intact