Humor is vital in any Comedy. Though Dogberry and his constables play a minor role in Much Ado Nothing their presence is vital. To what extent do you agree with this statement.
Humor, according to the Webster Encyclopedia dictionary, can be defined as ‘the tendency to provoke laughter and provide amusement’.
Comedy is seen as any humorous discourse generally intended to amuse. For a comedy to reach its maximum potential, humor has to be a part of it. In the Shakespearian novel “Much Ado About Nothing”, humor is displayed by the characters Dogberry and his constable Verges.
Dogberry and Verges are seen as two comics in “Much Ado About Nothing”. They bring laughter and enjoyment to both readers and viewers.
Dogberry brings laughter to the viewers by saying the utmost ridiculous things that doesn’t make sense. His misuse of words and grammatical errors in the play as well as his actions, brings joy and excitement to the drama.
For example, Dogberry amuses the viewers when he pretends to ride on his imaginary horse as the head and Verges as the tail. Also, there are simple things like his over exaggerated facial expressions and gesticulations. Additionally, his enthusiasm and the way in which he pushes around Verges.
The character Verges, is Dogberry’s constable and also plays a vital role in Much Ado About Nothing where humor is concerned. Verges is seen as a defenseless character that Dogberry is always man handling. He brings humor to the play by being with Dogberry and playing the tail of the donkey as well as making this ridiculous horn sound while they pretend to ride the donkey.
Their actions also impacts the people around them so that they too can appear as being hilarious. For example, in the play when the watchmen were to do their jobs and keep watch over the building. As Dogberry arrives on the scene, you could see the intimidation and the abruptness in the watchmen as if they were afraid of Dogberry. This brings humor because of the way they interact with Dogberry as if they were fools.
In closing, although Dogberry and Verges are seen as minor characters in Much Ado About Nothing, their characters display humor, which is a vital role in any comedy.
