c


.......Although the play is considered a comedy, it is probably better categorized as a tragicomedy (a play
with both comic and tragic elements). As a comedy, the play focuses on Christians whose problems have
a happy resolution. As a tragedy, the play focuses on the downfall of a Jewish moneylender, Shylock,
who is forced at the end to become a Christian and to forfeit property. He leaves the stage a broken man.

×

  
.......Shakespeare wrote the play in about 1596. It was first published in 1600 from Shakespeare's original
manuscript, which contained editing and proofreading insertions. It was published in its final form in 1623
as part of the First Folio, the first authorized collection of Shakespeare's plays.



.......The probable main sources for c

 



were 
  
(1378)by Giovanni
Fiorentino; 
   (Latin, 13th Century); oriental tales; and c


(circa 1590), by
Christopher Marlowe (1564-1593).

 

.
.......The action takes place in Venice, Italy, and Belmont, the site of Portia¶s estate. Shakespeare does
not identify the precise location of Belmont, but the stage directions refer to it as being ³on the Continent´
(Europe). Presumably, Belmont is not far from Venice. Venice (Venezia) is in northeastern Italy on the
coast of the Adriatic Sea. In late medieval and early Renaissance times, Venice was one of Europe¶s
greatest centers of commerce.

× 

.
    · Antonio, the Merchant
  c · Shylock, the Moneylender
"   · Shylock
" c · Antonio, Jessica, Portia

Î · Ruler who sits as the judge in the trial of Antonio, the merchant of Venice
"  · A merchant of Venice who borrows money from Shylock on behalf of his friend Bassanio.
Antonio agrees to pay a pound of flesh if he defaults on the loan.
 · Wealthy Jewish moneylender who seeks revenge for ill treatment by Christians. Because he is
a tragic figure±and the most compelling character in the play±the drama takes on overtones of tragedy.
· Wealthy heiress wooed by many suitors. Although often described by Shakespeare interpreters
as noble, upright, and benevolent, a close reading of the play reveals her as a racist and a snob.
D

 · Friend of Antonio who loves Portia.

 ,  " · Suitors of Portia.
 ,  ,  , · Friends of Antonio and Bassanio.


· Shylock's daughter.

ÿ · Jessica's suitor.
c, × 
· Lorenzo's Jewish friends. Chus has no speaking part.
ÿ · clown and Shylock's servant.
· Launcelot's father.
ÿ · Bassanio's servant.
D 
, 
 · Portia's servants.
*

· Portia's maid.
 × 
· Magnificoes of Venice, officers of the Court of Justice, gaoler (jailer), servants of
Portia, attendants.

c  

..
Friendship requires sacrifice. Antonio risks his fortune±and later his life±to help Bassanio win Portia.
Tubal lends Shylock the 3,000 ducats requested by Antonio.
Appearances are deceiving. Neither the gold nor the silver casket contains the key to winning Portia.
Instead, it is the plain lead casket. Shakespeare expresses this theme±appearances are deceiving±in a
message inside the golden casket. It says, ³All that glisters [glitters] is not gold´ (2. 7. 67). The latter
quotation can also apply to characters who tie their happiness, destiny, or status to money, including
Antonio, Bassanio, and Shylock.
Revenge ultimately destroys its perpetrator. Shylock seeks revenge against his enemies, but it is he who
suffers the downfall after Christians unite to trick him. Perhaps he would have had more success if he had
pursued justice instead of revenge.
Jews suffer bigotry and other forms of mistreatment because of their religion and race. Christians alienate
Shylock simply because he is a Jew. In ancient, medieval, and Renaissance times, Jews almost always
encountered prejudice from non-Jews around them. Scholars are divided on whether Shakespeare, in
c

 


, was attempting condemn anti-Semitism by sympathizing with Shylock or
approve of anti-Semitism by ridiculing Shylock. It may well be that Shakespeare was simply holding a
mirror to civilization to allow audiences to draw their own conclusions. An essay on this page contends
that Shakespeare wrote c

 


partly to condemn the moral and ethical values of errant
Christians, not the Jewish moneylender Shylock.
Women can be just as competent as men, maybe even more so. Portia, disguised as a man, speaks
eloquently in defense of Antonio and persuades the Duke of Venice to rule in Antonio's favor. 
Women can be just as ruthless as men, maybe even more so. Portia, who lectures Shylock and the court
on the importance of mercy, exhibits racism after she rejects the Prince of Morocco because he is black.
Moreover, she cleverly tricks and ruins Shylock without showing a hint of remorse.
Don't count your ships until they're in port. Antonio confidently pledges the merchandise on his ships at
sea to repay Shylock's loan to Bassanio. But all the ships are wrecked before they reach Venice. 
Great wealth and privilege breed apathy and disquietude. In the opening line of the play, Antonio says, "In
sooth, I know not why I am so sad." Then, in the first line of Act I, Scene II, Portia expresses a similar
sentiment· "By my troth, Nerissa, my little body is aweary of this great world." Nerissa, Portia's servant,
understands what the privileged classes cannot understand· "They are as sick that surfeit with too much
as they that starve with nothing."

½ 
.......c

 


abounds in imagery that centers on deception, vice, and human weakness±
and fittingly so. After all, the central characters in the drama are deeply flawed or disturbed, exhibiting
prejudice, hatred, greed, desire for revenge, depression, ignorance, and other negative qualities.
Supposedly, the play has a happy ending, but the happiness of Bassanio, Portia, and their friends derives
from their ruination of the Jewish moneylender, Shylock. Although traditionally classed as a comedy, the
play is in reality a tragicomedy, perhaps more tragedy than comedy. Following are examples of imagery
supporting the interpretation of c

 


as a tragedy, as well as other examples of
imagery demonstrating Shakespeare¶s command of language.


 
 TOPIC

1. Discuss the relationship between
ntonio and Bassanio. What does their friendship
reveal about their characters?
2.  amine hylock¶s rhetoric. Pay special attention to the quality of his language²his use
of metaphor and repetition, for instance. How do his speeches reflect his character as a
whole?
3. To what etent is hylock defined by his Jewishness? To what etent is he defined by his
profession?
4. Discuss Portia¶s character. How does she compare to the men around her? Is Bassanio a
worthy husband for her?
5. Discuss how the trial scene reveals a conflict between justice and mercy. Is the conflict
resolved? If so, how?