Antilabes: Weapons of Poetic Construction?

I tend to dive a little deeper into the poetic aspects of the play during my second reading of the play, and Much Ado About Nothing is no different. And if you’ve read this blog for more than just a few months, you know that I love antilabes.

Antilabe?

What’s an antilabe?

The completion of one character’s poetic line (in Shakespeare, usually iambic pentameter) by another.

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Much Ado About… BOLO – Missing Persons

There’s some critical opinion that the texts we have of Much Ado About Nothing are drafts and not final versions. One of the supporting pieces of evidence to conclusion is the mention of characters early in the play only never to be mentioned again:

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Five Wits

In the first scene of Much Ado About Nothing, Beatrice talks about Benedick and his “wit”:

In our last conflict four of his five wits went halting off, and now is the whole man governed with one: so that if he have wit enough to keep himself warm, let him bear it for a difference between himself and his horse; for it is all the wealth that he hath left, to be known a reasonable creature.
  • I.i.60-6

So what are the “five wits”?

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Nothing: Everything’s on the table

Now that the plot, sources, and basic names are out of the way, I’m beginning to map out the direction of the discussion of Much Ado About Nothing. As a purely brainstorming exercise (meaning some of these might find their way into the blog, some may not, and others elbow their way in), here’s what I’ve got so far:

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Podcast 84: Much Ado About Nothing: the Intro and Plot Synopsis

This week’s podcast kicks off our two month-long discussion of Much Ado About Nothing, with a quick intro and a not-so-quick plot synopsis.

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Much Ado About … Sources

Given some of the common plot elements (including falsely accused allegedly false lovers and impersonation), Much Ado About Nothing has a number of possible sources.

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Act Five: Badass Old Men, A Callow Young One, Another Wedding, and an Improbable Happy Ending

The final act of Much Ado About Nothing begins with the old man Leonato being counseled by his even older brother Antonio to not “second grief // Against (him)self” (V.i.2-3), or else it will kill him.

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Act Three: Ear Fires, Achy Teeth, A Mouthful of Garbles, and a Stuffed Nose

Just as the second act of Much Ado About Nothing ended with the male half of the plan by the only love gods (and what a great band name that is!), the third act begins with the female half of the scheme.

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