act i, scene iii
Scene III.

Another room in Leonato's house.

[Enter Sir John the Bastard and Conrade, his companion.]

Con.
What the goodyear, my lord! Why are you thus out of measure sad?

John.
There is no measure in the occasion that breeds; therefore the
sadness is without limit.

Con.
You should hear reason.

John.
And when I have heard it, what blessings brings it?

Con.
If not a present remedy, at least a patient sufferance.

John.
I wonder that thou (being, as thou say'st thou art, born under
Saturn) goest about to apply a moral medicine to a mortifying
mischief. I cannot hide what I am: I must be sad when I have
cause, and smile at no man's jests; eat when I have stomach, and
wait for no man's leisure; sleep when I am drowsy, and tend on no
man's business; laugh when I am merry, and claw no man in his
humour.

Con.
Yea, but you must not make the full show of this till you may do
it without controlment. You have of late stood out against your
brother, and he hath ta'en you newly into his grace, where it is
impossible you should take true root but by the fair weather that
you make yourself. It is needful that you frame the season for
your own harvest.

John.
I had rather be a canker in a hedge than a rose in his grace, and
it better fits my blood to be disdain'd of all than to fashion a
carriage to rob love from any. In this, though I cannot   be said
to be a flattering honest man, it must not be denied but I am a
plain-dealing villain. I am trusted with a muzzle and
enfranchis'd with a clog; therefore I have decreed not to
sing in my cage. If I had my mouth, I would bite; if I had my
liberty, I would do my liking. In the meantime let me be that I
am, and seek not to alter me.

Con.
Can you make no use of your discontent?

John.
I make all use of it, for I use it only.

[Enter Borachio.]

Who comes here? What news, Borachio?

Bora.
I came yonder from a great supper. The Prince your brother is
royally entertain'd by Leonato, and I can give you intelligence
of an intended marriage.

John.
Will it serve for any model to build mischief on?  What is he for
a fool that betroths himself to unquietness?

Bora.
Marry, it is your brother's right hand.

John.
Who? the most exquisite Claudio?

Bora.
Even he.

John.
A proper squire! And who? and who? which way looks he?

Bora.
Marry, on Hero, the daughter and heir of Leonato.

John.
A very forward March-chick! How came you to this?

Bora.
Being entertain'd for a perfumer, as I was smoking a musty room,
comes me the Prince and Claudio, hand in hand in sad conference.
I whipt me behind the arras and there heard it agreed upon that
the Prince should woo Hero for himself, and having obtain'd her,
give her to Count Claudio.

John.
Come, come, let us thither. This may prove food to my
displeasure. That young start-up hath all the glory of my
overthrow. If I can cross him any way, I bless myself every way.
You are both sure, and will assist me?

Con.
To the death, my lord.

John.
Let us to the great supper. Their cheer is the greater that I am
subdued. Would the cook were o' my mind! Shall we go prove what's
to be done?

Bora.
We'll wait upon your lordship.
                                [Exeunt.]






shmoop
Don John meets with Conrade . Don John is being a his usual negative self, and Conrade tries to placate him with platitudes. Don John wonders how Conrade can be a regular Charlie of the Chipper Brigade when he's supposed to be born under Saturn . Don John doesn't bother with silver linings; when he's cranky, he's not going to hide it. Don John says he eats only when he's hungry, sleeps only when he's drowsy, and isn't going dance like he's some clown when he's not feeling like a dancing clown. Conrade's pretty serious though, and says Don John has to get his attitude in check, because he's still treading on delicate ground. Don John only recently reconciled with his brother, Don Pedro, but the reconciliation is worthless if Don John can't get it together and stop acting like a villain. Like any good villain, Don John points out that he acts like a villain because he is a villain, and he doesn't care whether he's hated. Then he strokes his standard villain-issued white cat. Don John notes that while he seems to be in the good graces of his brother, he's actually more like a muzzled dog tied to a block than a trusted guy. Don John doesn't deny, though, that his brother's precautions are reasonable ones, as he would like to do some mischief as soon as he gets the chance. In the meantime, Don John isn't going to join the "Vote For Don Pedro" squad, no matter how much people try to convince him it's a good idea. Borachio enters and delivers to Don John news of an impending marriage. Borachio was perfuming a smelly room by burning some incense when he heard Claudio and Don Pedro approach, deep in conversation. Borachio got the gist of the conversation correctly about Don Pedro's plan to court Hero on Claudio's behalf. This is kind of a Tarantino approach to the wooing of Hero, which we now see is the focus of approximately eight million schemes from her dad, Don John, and of course Claudio and Don Pedro. Don John is elated to hear news of this little plan between Don Pedro and Claudio, especially as he blames Claudio for playing a large part in overthrowing him in a vaguely-mentioned rebellion. The men exit, plotting their mischief, though we think Shakespeare may be gearing up with a lot of sardoodledom .
sparknotes
Elsewhere in the house, Don John converses with his servant, Conrad. Conrad asks Don John why he appears angry and melancholy. Don John replies that he is naturally depressed and somber; he lacks the skills--or the willpower--to change his face to suit other people. Conrad reminds Don John that Don Pedro has only very recently started to be friendly with him again, and if Don John wants to remain on good terms with his powerful brother, he ought to show a more cheerful face. But, bitter that he must depend both socially and economically on his much more successful and highly ranked brother, Don John bristles at having to conform to Don Pedro's expectations. Borachio, another of Don John's servants, enters to tell Don John that he has overheard rumors of the upcoming marriage between Claudio and Hero. Borachio, like Leonato's servant, has also overheard Don Pedro and Claudio making plans, but Borachio correctly understands what he has heard. He realizes that Don Pedro plans to court Hero in order to give her to Claudio. Don John, who hates Claudio for being so well loved and respected, decides to try to use this information to make trouble for Claudio. Conrad and Borachio swear to help him
Act I, scenes ii-iii  Overhearing, plotting, and misunderstanding occur frequently in Much Ado About Nothing, as characters constantly eavesdrop or spy on other characters. Occasionally they learn the truth, but more often they misunderstand what they see or hear, or they are tricked into believing what other people want them to believe. In these scenes, Antonio's servant and Don John's associate both overhear the same conversation between Don Pedro and Claudio, but only Borachio understands it correctly, while Antonio's servant  misunderstand. He carries this incorrect information onward, first to Leonato and then to Hero. It appears that Don John has no strong motive for the villainy he commits and that his actions are inspired by a bad nature, something he acknowledges fully: "though I cannot be said to be a flattering honest man, it must not be denied but I am a plain-dealing villain" . Yet, the fact that Don John is Don Pedro's bastard brother--that he is of a much lower station than Don Pedro and possesses little chance of rising in society because of his bastard birth--suggests that there is more to his behavior than his evil character. He most likely resents Don Pedro, the most powerful figure in the play's social hierarchy, for claiming the authority and social superiority of a legitimate heir. His jealousy of his brother's success is most likely what drives him to wreak havoc on Claudio and Don Pedro. His insistence on honesty in this scene might appear admirable, but he lies to many people later on, casting his statements here about being harmless into doubt. To understand Don John's claim of natural evil, we should remember that he stands in a very difficult position. As the illegitimate brother  of Don Pedro, Don John is labeled "the Bastard." Illegitimate sons of noblemen found themselves in a tricky position in Renaissance England. Often, their fathers acknowledged them and gave them money and an education, but they could never be their fathers' real heirs, and they were often excluded from polite society and looked upon with disdain. In plays, bastard sons were sometimes admired for their individualism, enterprise, and courage, but in Shakespeare's works, their anger about their unfair exclusion often inspires them to villainy. Like Edmund in Shakespeare's tragedy King Lear, Don John seems to be a villain at least in part because he is a bastard, and like Edmund he is determined to cross his legitimate brother in any way that he can. In Much Ado About Nothing, Don John is in the difficult position of having to behave well and court favor with his more powerful brother, Don Pedro, while at the same time being excluded from the privileges Don Pedro enjoys because of his illegitimacy. Don John is bitter about the restrictions imposed upon him: "I am trusted with a muzzle, and enfranchised with a clog. Therefore I have decreed not to sing in my cage" . He complains, in essence, that he is not trusted at all and not given any freedom; he rails against the constraints of his role, refusing to "sing" in his "cage," or make the best of things. Instead, he seems to want to take out his frustrations by manipulating and hurting other people for his own amusement. Don John's claim that he hates Claudio because he is jealous of Claudio's friendship with his brother seems questionable; it seems more likely that Don John simply hates anyone happy and well liked and thus wants to exact a more general revenge upon the world.