Beatrice and Benedick Question

[Lauren81492]

At the party on the night the soldiers arrive, does Beatrice know she's talking to Benedick? It's never really said, but the way she acts makes me wonder...

[Page1000]

The common concensus seems to be that by putting on a mask and pretending to be someone else Benedick is completely unrecognizable!

From what I've been taught and looking at the play around and after Act 2 Scene 1, she didn't seem to recognize him and thought he was someone else (she has to ask who he is at one point) and she only starts insulting Benedick because Benedick himself kept on asking about himself, to her, to see what she would say.

But on the other hand, plenty of questions I've seen asked do say something along the lines of "Do you think Beatrice and Benedick know each other when they speak behind their masks?" so I guess it's debatable.

[libbylovebug]

YES!! Beatrice is VERY much aware that the man in the mask IS INDEED Benedick. Though Bendick doesn't realize that she does know

I am currently in MUCH ADO.....soo I know alot about the story, etc!

[hibz]

yeeehh ofcoz she duz know.. same... i'm reallly wid da play.. analysing it...

[lulunjue]

yeah she knows...I mean the way she talks so sarcastically just to irritate him.

[Little_Miss_:)]

I would say yes, she knows, by of the way she taunts and teases him. I actually never realised that it doesn't say whether she knows him or not - I always assumed that's how it was written. Is Beatrice wearing a mask at the time? He knows who she is, so it makes sense that she would know him. Although trust him and his ego not to realise that.

[xman]

Although you can make the active choice while playing that Beatrice knows it's Benedick, but there is nothing empirical to say it must be so. In fact, since Shakespeare gives us everything we need with his text and no other character ever uncovers another's disguise in Shakespeare, we should conclude that Bea doesn't know it's Ben. That said, making the choice that she does know doesn't impact the play directly, but it does raise the questions, "why doesn't she know who anyone else is"? and "why doesn't anybody else discover any other character in a disguise"?

So Shakespeare clearly intended for her not to know, but you can play it the other way if you like.

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