Lesson 4, Thought question 4: Pick Your Poison.

Claudio's reaction to finding out that Hero was innocent was a bit strange. He said that while Dogberry was telling what was what, that he had "...drunk poison whiles he uttered it." The imagery of poison in Shakespeare usually symbolizes death or deception, sometimes both. Borachio used it when hatching the evil scheme with Don John. Both times poison symbolism was used in the play it symbolized death, the near death of Claudio and Hero's marriage, and the death of Don John's deception.