Critical Interpretations Relevant to Act 2 Scenes 1-3
'The theatre (SIC) audience's assumption of its own privileged position as caves dropper is undercut by the frequency with which the play's characters are deceived by their assumptions that eavesdropping offers unproblematic access to truth'. Nova Myhill 1999
'The theatre (SIC) auidience is denied direct access to the pivotal moments in Don Pedro and Claudio's courtship of Her- Don Pedro's wooing of her at the masked ball and the scene of Margaret and Barachio at Hero's window- and instead must cope with the multiple and contradictive narratives' Nova Myhill 1999
With these Myhill criticisms consider WHY Shakespeare might wish to deceive us. For so long we derive humour from situational irony (knowing more than the characters) yet now we become embroiled in the deception.
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