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  • Title: Much Ado About Nothing (Quarto 1, 1600)
  • Editor: Gretchen Minton
  • ISBN: 978-1-55058-516-2

    Copyright Gretchen Minton. This text may be freely used for educational, non-profit purposes; for all other uses contact the Editor.
    Author: William Shakespeare
    Editor: Gretchen Minton
    Not Peer Reviewed

    Much Ado About Nothing (Quarto 1, 1600)

    Much adoe
    no addition to her wit, nor no great argument of her follie, for
    I will be horribly in loue with her, I may chaunce haue some
    odde quirkes and remnants of witte broken on me, because I
    haue railed so long against marriage: but doth not the appe-
    1060tite alter? a man loues the meate in his youth, that he cannot in-
    dure in his age. Shall quippes and sentences, and these paper
    bullets of the brain awe a man from the carreere of his humor?
    No, the world must be peopled. When I saide I woulde die a
    batcheller, I did not think I should liue til I were married, here
    1065comes Beatrice: by this day, shees a faire lady, I doe spie some
    markes of loue in her.
    Enter Beatrice.
    Beatr. Aganst my will I am sent to bid you come in to din-
    1070ner.
    Bene. Faire Beatrice, I thanke you for your paines.
    Beat. I tooke no more paines for those thankes, then you
    take paines to thanke me, if it had bin painful I would not haue
    come.
    1075Bene. You take pleasure then in the message.
    Beat. Yea iust so much as you may take vppon a kniues
    point, and choake a daw withall: you haue no stomach signior,
    fare you well. exit.
    Bene. Ha, against my will I am sent to bid you come in to
    1080dinner: theres a double meaning in that: I took no more paines
    for those thanks thẽ you took pains to thank me, thats as much
    as to say, any pains that I take for you is as easy as thanks: if I do
    not take pitty of her I am a villaine, if I do not loue her I am a
    Iew, I will go get her picture,
    exit.
    Enter Hero and two Gentlewomen, Margaret, and Vrsley.
    Hero Good Margaret runne thee to the parlour,
    There shalt thou find my cosin Beatrice,
    1090Proposing with the prince and Claudio,
    Whisper her eare and tell her I and Vrsley,
    Walke in the orchard, and our whole discourse
    Is all of her, say that thou ouer-heardst vs,
    And bid her steale into the pleached bowere
    1095Where hony-suckles ripened by the sunne,
    Forbid