SCENE IV. A room in LEONATO'S house. Much Ado About Nothing  Shakespeare homepage  |  Much Ado About Nothing  | Act 5, Scene 4 

 Previous scene  SCENE IV. A room in LEONATO'S house. 

 Enter LEONATO, ANTONIO, BENEDICK, BEATRICE, MARGARET, URSULA, FRIAR FRANCIS, and HERO  FRIAR FRANCIS  Did I not tell you she was innocent? 

 LEONATO  So are the prince and Claudio, who accused her 

 Upon the error that you heard debated: 

 But Margaret was in some fault for this, 

 Although against her will, as it appears 

 In the true course of all the question. 

 ANTONIO  Well, I am glad that all things sort so well. 

 BENEDICK  And so am I, being else by faith enforced 

 To call young Claudio to a reckoning for it. 

 LEONATO  Well, daughter, and you gentle-women all, 

 Withdraw into a chamber by yourselves, 

 And when I send for you, come hither mask'd. 



 Exeunt Ladies  The prince and Claudio promised by this hour 

 To visit me. You know your office, brother: 

 You must be father to your brother's daughter 

 And give her to young Claudio. 

 ANTONIO  Which I will do with confirm'd countenance. 

 BENEDICK  Friar, I must entreat your pains, I think. 

 FRIAR FRANCIS  To do what, signior? 

 BENEDICK  To bind me, or undo me; one of them. 

 Signior Leonato, truth it is, good signior, 

 Your niece regards me with an eye of favour. 

 LEONATO  That eye my daughter lent her: 'tis most true. 

 BENEDICK  And I do with an eye of love requite her. 

 LEONATO  The sight whereof I think you had from me, 

 From Claudio and the prince: but what's your will? 

 BENEDICK  Your answer, sir, is enigmatical: 

 But, for my will, my will is your good will 

 May stand with ours, this day to be conjoin'd 

 In the state of honourable marriage: 

 In which, good friar, I shall desire your help. 

 LEONATO  My heart is with your liking. 

 FRIAR FRANCIS  And my help. 

 Here comes the prince and Claudio. 



 Enter DON PEDRO and CLAUDIO, and two or three others  DON PEDRO  Good morrow to this fair assembly. 

 LEONATO  Good morrow, prince; good morrow, Claudio: 

 We here attend you. Are you yet determined 

 To-day to marry with my brother's daughter? 

 CLAUDIO  I'll hold my mind, were she an Ethiope. 

 LEONATO  Call her forth, brother; here's the friar ready. 



 Exit ANTONIO  DON PEDRO  Good morrow, Benedick. Why, what's the matter, 

 That you have such a February face, 

 So full of frost, of storm and cloudiness? 

 CLAUDIO  I think he thinks upon the savage bull. 

 Tush, fear not, man; we'll tip thy horns with gold 

 And all Europa shall rejoice at thee, 

 As once Europa did at lusty Jove, 

 When he would play the noble beast in love. 

 BENEDICK  Bull Jove, sir, had an amiable low; 

 And some such strange bull leap'd your father's cow, 

 And got a calf in that same noble feat 

 Much like to you, for you have just his bleat. 

 CLAUDIO  For this I owe you: here comes other reckonings. 



 Re-enter ANTONIO, with the Ladies masked  Which is the lady I must seize upon? 

 ANTONIO  This same is she, and I do give you her. 

 CLAUDIO  Why, then she's mine. Sweet, let me see your face. 

 LEONATO  No, that you shall not, till you take her hand 

 Before this friar and swear to marry her. 

 CLAUDIO  Give me your hand: before this holy friar, 

 I am your husband, if you like of me. 

 HERO  And when I lived, I was your other wife: 



 Unmasking  And when you loved, you were my other husband. 

 CLAUDIO  Another Hero! 

 HERO  Nothing certainer: 

 One Hero died defiled, but I do live, 

 And surely as I live, I am a maid. 

 DON PEDRO  The former Hero! Hero that is dead! 

 LEONATO  She died, my lord, but whiles her slander lived. 

 FRIAR FRANCIS  All this amazement can I qualify: 

 When after that the holy rites are ended, 

 I'll tell you largely of fair Hero's death: 

 Meantime let wonder seem familiar, 

 And to the chapel let us presently. 

 BENEDICK  Soft and fair, friar. Which is Beatrice? 

 BEATRICE  [Unmasking]  I answer to that name. What is your will? 

 BENEDICK  Do not you love me? 

 BEATRICE  Why, no; no more than reason. 

 BENEDICK  Why, then your uncle and the prince and Claudio 

 Have been deceived; they swore you did. 

 BEATRICE  Do not you love me? 

 BENEDICK  Troth, no; no more than reason. 

 BEATRICE  Why, then my cousin Margaret and Ursula 

 Are much deceived; for they did swear you did. 

 BENEDICK  They swore that you were almost sick for me. 

 BEATRICE  They swore that you were well-nigh dead for me. 

 BENEDICK  'Tis no such matter. Then you do not love me? 

 BEATRICE  No, truly, but in friendly recompense. 

 LEONATO  Come, cousin, I am sure you love the gentleman. 

 CLAUDIO  And I'll be sworn upon't that he loves her; 

 For here's a paper written in his hand, 

 A halting sonnet of his own pure brain, 

 Fashion'd to Beatrice. 

 HERO  And here's another 

 Writ in my cousin's hand, stolen from her pocket, 

 Containing her affection unto Benedick. 

 BENEDICK  A miracle! here's our own hands against our hearts. 

 Come, I will have thee; but, by this light, I take 

 thee for pity. 

 BEATRICE  I would not deny you; but, by this good day, I yield 

 upon great persuasion; and partly to save your life, 

 for I was told you were in a consumption. 

 BENEDICK  Peace! I will stop your mouth. 



 Kissing her  DON PEDRO  How dost thou, Benedick, the married man? 

 BENEDICK  I'll tell thee what, prince; a college of 

 wit-crackers cannot flout me out of my humour. Dost 

 thou think I  care for a satire or an epigram? No: 

 if a man will be beaten with brains, a' shall wear 

 nothing handsome about him. In brief, since I do 

 purpose to marry, I will think nothing to any 

 purpose that the world can say against it; and 

 therefore never flout at me for what I have said 

 against it; for man is a giddy thing, and this is my 

 conclusion. For thy part, Claudio, I did think to 

 have beaten thee, but in that thou art like to be my 

 kinsman, live unbruised and love my cousin. 

 CLAUDIO  I had well hoped thou wouldst have denied Beatrice, 

 that I might have cudgelled thee out of thy single 

 life, to make thee a double-dealer; which, out of 

 question, thou wilt be, if my cousin do not look 

 exceedingly narrowly to thee. 

 BENEDICK  Come, come, we are friends: let's have a dance ere 

 we are married, that we may lighten our own hearts 

 and our wives' heels. 

 LEONATO  We'll have dancing afterward. 

 BENEDICK  First, of my word; therefore play, music. Prince, 

 thou art sad; get thee a wife, get thee a wife: 

 there is no staff more reverend than one tipped with horn. 



 Enter a Messenger  Messenger  My lord, your brother John is ta'en in flight, 

 And brought with armed men back to Messina. 

 BENEDICK  Think not on him till to-morrow: 

 I'll devise thee brave punishments for him. 

 Strike up, pipers. 



 Dance 

 Exeunt 