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Analysis of merchants of venice
The "Merchant of Venice" character analysis
Merchant of Venice characters essay
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Drama and Tension in William Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice
Introduction
The merchant of Venice is about a merchant who borrows a loan to help a friend who wants to go to Belmont to Marie a woman called Portia. The person who borrows a loan is a merchant name (Antonio), and Antonio goes and gets the loan off a Jew name (Shylock). After Antonio borrows the loan, Antonio sign a bond saying that if in three month Antonio ships don’t return, shylock would have his pond of flesh. But Antonio feel and he is taker to court. Final the court has end and he redeems himself.
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The trail would be held at the Supreme Court in Venice. If I were to design the set in order to show it
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The table would court would be centre in the middle of the court to show the procession be held. The duke is a world famous figure; I would direct his entrance by making the people in the court stand up as the duke enters the court room. And I’ll make the people also be silence as the duke enters in. and as the duke; the court he with be escorted with his armed officer one on his left and other on his right. As shylock enters he is the odd one out, because everyone in the court is Christian and shylock is the only Jew in the court. As the director, I would show shylock emotion through the use of body language by walking up and down smiling in the court. A court full of Christian as shylock enters the court room. The Christian would react to him by throwing paper balls; boo win him calling him name and all sort of bad stuff. And why, because the room is full of Christians and shylock is the only Jew there. In Venice Jews are hated because there’s Anti-Semitism show in Venice. Shylock is the subject to abuse is it state that in Act 3 Sense 1, ‘’ laughed at my loses mocked …show more content…
I would he direct the actor playing as Portia to talk hardly as if she is reciting a poem as she says he speech in lines 180-193. I would expect to use a soft tone that is how and also should walk gently around the court to both the persecutors and dependant. The actor should also pound on emphasize her point about many and the central theme which is that for justice.
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Apart from Portia, many other characters in the play disguise them as what they don of seen to be. Nerissa who dresses as a lawyer clerk disguises herself as a male yet she is a female. Jessica dresses as a boy so she could have high dances of running away from her fathers houses. Like Lancelot Gobbo mislead their father old Gobbo who ask for directions. I would direct the person playing Portia to walk like a man in this tragedy and she should walk away from Bassanio to present close recognised of her body structure, she may also talk in a deepened voice that is manlike.
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According to what Bassanio say in lines 206-214, his speech show that he requests Portia to flits the law that governs Venice.
...ligent, and sometimes vicious character, in her society it is not acceptable for her to be a strong, intelligent, vicious woman. Sadly, Portia's public image must remain that of her speech in Act III. Though she will have ultimate control over herself and her husband, she still must call herself "an unlessoned girl," hiding her true authority under a thin mask of submission. Ironically, it is only when Portia dons a disguise that we see her as she truly is - a shrewd, calculating judge, willing to convict and sentence not only the inadequate suitor or the much-abused Jew, but also her own unsuspecting husband.
Dramatic Tension in Act 4 Scene 3 of William Shakespeare's Othello. Shakespeare employs the use of dramatic devices to signify the approaching the climax of the play throughout “Othello”. With Act 4 Scene 3 is the final scene to involve Desdemona before her murder. The use of such dramatic devices is prevalent in order to create tension.
The Merchant of Venice is a play set in a very male and Christian dominated society where other religions and women rights weren’t very well accepted by the community. However Portia, a rich woman who had previously been controlled by men, triumphs as she manipulates tricks and saves the lives of the men.
But whatever he did to Lancelot has made him very angry and disgruntled. And it develops the plot by starting off the main reason for this scene which is for Bassiano to get into the picture and for Gratiano to ask him if he can go to Belmont with him. It gets to this stage by Old Gobbo asking Bassiano if he will employ Lancelot, which he agrees to. It also tells of what to expect from Shylock in the later scenes, which is unheartedness and ruthlessness. My second soliloquy is taken from act 3 scene 2. In this scene Portia asks Bassiano to wait a few days to before he makes his choice on which casket to open in order to see if he will be able to marry Portia, but Bassiano refuses and wants to make his choice immediately.
Everyone who reads The Merchant of Venice must bear in mind that it is, like any other literary work, a creation of a skillful writer, rising a case that can be a subject for many interpretations and not necessarily revealing a specific view of its writer, however it aims to convey a certain moral to the readers. Therefore, the character of shylock, being stereotyped or not, with its controversy is a tool manipulated to convey a moral message: when people live in a society that is open to cultural diversity and that values the contributions of all society members – regardless of cultural and ethnic backgrounds, race, life styles, and beliefs – they will be one step closer to living in a civil society. Works Cited 1) Encyclopaedia Britannica, the definition of "Anti-Semitism". 2) E. E. Stoll, Shylock (an essay in Shakespeare Studies, 1927). 3) John Palmer, Comic Characters of Shakespeare, Shylock. 4) John Palmer, Comic Characters of Shakespeare, Shylock.
Words alone are not the only means by which imposters operate. A far more effective mode is one that fools the eye for it cannot pierce through the surface. Portia, the new wife of Antonio's friend, dresses as a lawyer in order to deceive the court. However, unlike Shylock's motive, Portia's intent is far more noble and selfless. She manipulates the law in such a way to save Antonio from certain death by the hand of Shylock. Through the eyes of the law, the imposture of a lawyer, especially by a woman at that time, was seen as extremely illicit.
The Merchant of Venice is a play that deals with an assortment of issues that range from politics to racial views of the Jewish people. An embodiment of these two issues can be best attributed to the character of Shylock. In a 2004 production of The Merchant of Venice, by Michael Radford, we see the character of Shylock is portrayed in a different light than that of Shakespeare's 1594 villainous Jew. Both productions pose a series of questions in comparison. An understanding of the era that these plays were written in and the audience’s perception of the production attribute greatly to a true analysis. Another aspect of these productions asks who Shylock was to Shakespeare and who he has developed into for Al Pacino and Michael Radford.
This can be seen in two ways: as a man making a living at one of the
... only reason why he really wanted the bond was to get an upper hand on
Everyone is deceived and believes Portia is truly a man therefore showing that she has the capabilities to exert the traits of a man. Portia is described as the “wise young judge” (IV, I, 228) and an “excellent young man” (IV, I, 252) by Shylock showing that he believes in the gender identity of Balthazar. Bassanio, Portia’s husband, is also fooled as he states that Antonio’s life is more valuable to him than Portia. Her credibility in turn gives her power over the men in the scene. She is able to use the balances of justice along with her knowledge in order to save Antonio. The turn in this scene is when she repeats, “A pound of flesh” (IV, I, 315) and states the specific words used in the document as no blood can be dropped from Antonio or else Shylock will be punished and strikes fear into Shylock. This shows that it is possible for a woman to obtain the masculine qualities of being powerful and intellectual. If Portia were to have not dressed as a man, but merely a woman, due to the social constructs of the time she would not have had any power in this situation. Portia tells Bassanio “I pray you, know me when we meet again” (IV, I, 432) which shows her feelings towards Bassanio not knowing her true identity, even through her disguise. Her actions were that of her individual, but due to her altering her appearance of gender it changed the way others viewed her
His lack of education has deprived him of good manners as well as good sense. The scene itself initially seemed inconsistent with the rest of the play. The prejudice the women tolerate is evidenced by their tendency to dress in men’s clothing in order to be heard or considered (Olson). As women, their voices are inhibited or disregarded; they are overshadowed and overlooked by society. Portia, for example, has little choice but to consent to being the prize in her “loving” late father’s lottery.
The Merchant of Venice is a romantic and funny play that has a lot of characters. In Shakespear times people found different things funny like insulting foreigners. There is always some form of drama in plays this makes the audience more excited and more into the play.One of the most dramatic plots in the play was when a wealthy heiress named Portia had to find a husband.
She demands to pay twice or even three times the amount owed, for she loves Bassanio and anyone he calls friend. Shakespeare shows here that money doesn’t have the same effect on love as it does with the caskets or with the evil in Shylock and that it can be used for good love in Portia’s donation. In Venice Bassanio brings fourth the 6000 ducats to repay Shylock, but he doesn’t accept it. Once Portia, disguised as the doctor, entered the court, she pleads with Shylock to show mercy, but he refuses. Shylock makes known that he would rather have law than his money and mercy. The doctor approves the pound of flesh to be taken from Antonio under the condition that Shylock must cut exactly one pound while shedding no blood, or he will lose all his lands and goods. Now faced with the impossible, Shylock requests that he take his 6000 ducats and let Antonio go. However, the doctor has already made the call and demands Shylock take the flesh or he will suffer death. Shylock has been so adamant that the law be upheld, but now that it has turned in loves favor, he becomes the victim. Venetian law states that any man who wrongfully attempts to take another man’s life will be subject to lose his own decided by the Duke and will lose all of his possessions. The Duke spares his life, but takes all his goods. Shylock cries out
flesh and blood, hates him so much that she robs him and runs away to
At the end of The Merchant of Venice, Shylock has been both a victim and a villain. He is a victim of his religion, and a victim of his greed and overwhelming need for revenge. Shylock is definitely the most villainous character in the play, and only a few elements can show him as a victim overall, even then, his victimisation only seems to be a consequence of his own actions. His daughter running away, because of her treatment, and apparent lack of love. The taking of his assets, because he would show no mercy towards Antonio. The final conclusion must be that Shylock is unreasonable, spiteful, heinous, greedy - and a villain.