Character Analysis #2: Foil Characters

     In my first Character Analysis blog post, I spoke about the character Beatrice. Beatrice has many qualities that, must I say, are not very good qualities. Some qualities include her independent nature, her wit, and her negativity. This character's foil, or opposite, is Hero. Beatrice and Hero differ with one other greatly.
     There are many qualities of these two characters which led me to believe that they are each other's foil. First of all, Hero is polite and kind. Beatrice is not; she is rude and witty. Second, Hero wants love. Beatrice, on the other hand, definitely does not want love and has quite cynical views of love. Hero is positive and loving, while Beatrice is negative and hateful towards others. Beatrice holds grudges, unlike Hero, who is forgiving.
     The following quote demonstrates how Hero is compassionate towards others, unlike Beatrice: "God give me joy to wear it, for my heart is exceeding heavy." A quote which demonstrates Beatrice's qualities is in the first scene, in which she is having a battle of wit with Benedick. Beatrice says, "I thank God and my cold blood I am of your humor for that. I had rather hear my dog bark at a crow than a man swear he loves me." These two quotes demonstrate why Beatrice and Hero are foil characters because they both show each individual's qualities pretty clearly, which contrast greatly. These characters contribute to the plot because they both enhance the qualities of one another, adding great variation in character personalities. This makes it more interesting because the variation makes the story more realistic.