William Shakespeare · Much Ado About Nothing, Act 2, Scene 3. 259 spoken words · approximately 2–3 minutes. Prose.
At a glance
- Character: Benedick — Male character.
- Useful for: Young adults and adults.
- Rehearsal challenge: Intermediate: a sustained comic prose argument.
- Text: The complete uninterrupted speech identified below, extracted from the public-domain source edition. It is one speech within a longer play.
Timing is an estimate, not an audition guarantee. Time your own delivery with pauses and reactions. The character description explains the play; actors of any gender may explore the role in practice, subject to the requirements of a particular production or audition.
What happens immediately before this speech?
Don Pedro, Claudio and Leonato have staged a conversation for the hidden Benedick to overhear. They claim Beatrice is in love with him but would be hurt by his pride. When they leave, he steps forward and treats the invented story as fact. The speech ends when he sees Beatrice approaching.
Speaking to: Himself, with the audience sharing the reasoning; the last observation responds to Beatrice's arrival.
What the character wants: Give himself permission to love Beatrice without feeling defeated by his earlier claims about bachelorhood.
A change to explore: Concern for a supposedly lovesick woman becomes an inventive defense of changing his own mind.
The complete speech
Benedick · Much Ado About Nothing, Act 2, Scene 3
This can be no trick: the conference was sadly borne. They have the truth of this from Hero. They seem to pity the lady: it seems her affections have their full bent. Love me! why, it must be requited. I hear how I am censured: they say I will bear myself proudly, if I perceive the love come from her; they say too that she will rather die than give any sign of affection. I did never think to marry: I must not seem proud: happy are they that hear their detractions and can put them to mending. They say the lady is fair; 'tis a truth, I can bear them witness; and virtuous; 'tis so, I cannot reprove it; and wise, but for loving me; by my troth, it is no addition to her wit, nor no great argument of her folly, for I will be horribly in love with her. I may chance have some odd quirks and remnants of wit broken on me, because I have railed so long against marriage: but doth not the appetite alter? a man loves the meat in his youth that he cannot endure in his age. Shall quips and sentences and these paper bullets of the brain awe a man from the career of his humour? No, the world must be peopled. When I said I would die a bachelor, I did not think I should live till I were married. Here comes Beatrice. By this day! she's a fair lady: I do spy some marks of love in her.
Source: Much Ado About Nothing, Act 2, Scene 3 in MIT’s Complete Works of Shakespeare. The spoken wording follows that edition; stage directions are omitted. Verse line breaks are retained. Prose is displayed as a paragraph. Other editions may differ in spelling, punctuation or line division.
The thought in plain English
The conversation sounded serious, so it must be true. If Beatrice loves me, I ought to love her back. I can correct my pride. She is beautiful, good and wise, and any jokes about my old opposition to marriage should not control me. People change their tastes; I can change too. Here she comes, and I can already see signs that she loves me.
This CueRoom paraphrase is a study aid. The rehearsal demo uses Shakespeare’s wording above.
Words and phrases to understand
- sadly borne
- Conducted seriously, not sorrowfully.
- censured / detractions
- Judged / criticisms of someone's character.
- full bent
- Full force or extent.
- quips and sentences
- Witty remarks and pointed sayings.
- humour
- An inclination or disposition.
Acting questions
- Why do you need the conversation to be genuine?
- At what point does defending Beatrice become defending your own desire?
- Which imagined friend's joke threatens your confidence most?
- What ordinary thing does Beatrice do that you now interpret as a sign of love?
A rehearsal experiment
Give a skeptical imaginary friend one objection after each beat. Answer the objection with the next part of the text. On a second run, let Benedick enjoy how persuasive he thinks he is; avoid signaling to the audience that you know the story is a trick.
Keep the scene playable
This is prose. The source website wraps it into short display lines, but those breaks are not verse line endings. Follow complete thoughts and the energy of the changing argument; there is no need to impose an iambic beat.
Rehearse Benedick’s monologue free in CueRoom
The real rehearsal app opens with this exact speech divided into 7 thought beats. Choose Practice my lines to recall each beat, or Listen to the recording to hear the prepared reading. Prompt plays the current beat; bookmarks help you return to a difficult transition.
No account, purchase or replay credits required. The Studio reading is recorded once. Unlimited replays and prompts use those saved files.
Fixed text and voice; changes stay in this tab. Manual advance and timed hands-free practice are available. Voice Control depends on browser support and optional microphone permission. The reading offers one interpretation, not an authoritative pronunciation or performance guide.
How to memorize this speech
Make a chain of reasons rather than memorizing a comic tone: the evidence is serious, love deserves a return, pride can be corrected, Beatrice is worthy, tastes change, and her arrival seems to confirm it all.
Try recalling a beat before revealing it, check the exact wording, and then connect it to the following beat. Once the sequence holds, run the whole speech with a listener and intention. Use the monologue preparation plan for a short deadline or the line-learning guide for a longer rehearsal routine.
Choosing it for an audition or class
A longer comic selection. If an audition requires a cut, preserve enough of the argument for the reversal about marriage to make sense. The free demo uses the complete speech shown here.
Read the surrounding scene and check the audition’s period, duration and edition requirements. Make any permitted cut before learning it. This public demo always uses the complete selected speech shown above.
Related Shakespeare monologues
- Beatrice: What fire is in mine ears? — After overhearing a conversation arranged for her benefit, Beatrice decides to put aside scorn and return Benedick's supposed love.
- Olivia: What is your parentage? — After Cesario leaves, Olivia replays their conversation and discovers how quickly attraction has disrupted her self-control.
- Rosalind: And why, I pray you? — Rosalind interrupts Phebe's rejection of Silvius, then becomes the unexpected target of Phebe's interest.
Compare all 12 Shakespeare speeches → · Explore the whole monologue library →
Text and rehearsal-note credits
Speech by William Shakespeare. MIT states that its HTML Shakespeare texts are placed in the public domain. Selection, context, plain-English explanation and rehearsal exercises on this page are prepared for CueRoom. The Shakespeare text is not an original CueRoom monologue or a modern copyrighted edition.
Compare this male Shakespeare character with contemporary originals in Monologues for Men, with playing-age guidance and contrasting rehearsal pairs.
Bring your own script into rehearsal
The prepared demo stays free. The full CueRoom app lets you import material you have permission to use, choose reader voices and keep your own script library.
Considering this piece for an audition? Compare it with the audition monologue shortlist, including source requirements, time-limit checks and contrasting-pair suggestions.