Epitaph

Words written in memory of a dead person, often placed on a tomb.

Words commemorating someone who has died, often written on a tomb.

At the church, Claudio reads an epitaph at Hero’s supposed tomb: ‘Done to death by slanderous tongues / Was the Hero that here lies’ (Act 5 Scene 3). ‘Tongues’ stands for the people whose speech injured her. The phrase ‘Done to death’ treats language as a destructive force rather than harmless gossip.

A piece of writing commemorating someone who has died, often placed on a tomb.

Analyse the rhyme running through Act 5 Scene 3: the short epitaph lines, Claudio’s promise in a couplet and Don Pedro’s ABAB dawn quatrain give mourning and renewal a formal shape.

Leonato also requires an epitaph and a song at her tomb. Finally, Claudio must marry the woman presented as Antonio’s daughter, supposedly almost identical to Hero. This moves the plot away from revenge and towards another wedding.

Claudio must place an epitaph on her tomb, sing there that night and marry the woman presented as Antonio’s daughter the following morning. Leonato replaces revenge through violence with actions intended to restore honour and family relationships.

Words written in memory or praise of someone who has died, often placed on a tomb.

Leonato also requires Claudio to place an epitaph on Hero’s tomb, sing there that night and marry the woman he presents as Antonio’s daughter the following morning. This supposed niece is really Hero. The arrangement replaces the threatened duel with mourning, public correction and renewed marriage.

Words commemorating someone who has died, often placed on a tomb.

A spoken or written tribute to someone who has died, often placed on a tomb.

Definition

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AQA GCSE English Literature · 8702

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Edexcel GCSE English Literature · 1ET0

OCR GCSE English Literature · J352

Eduqas GCSE English Literature · C720