Shylock in William Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice Introduction One of the most interesting and dramatic characters in ‘The Merchant of Venice’ is the rich, despised money-lending Jew Shylock. It is impossible to judge Shylock’s character by our own modern Standards, simple because Shakespeare wrote this play for play goers in Elizabethan times. This was very different to modern times for two reasons. Firstly, people watching the play would not find it strange to feel sorry for a character, then a few moments later, to be screaming for their blood! Secondly, nearly everyone in Shakespeare’s time was racist, and it was common for people to dislike Jews and think of them of villainous. I think that Shylock is both a villain and a Victim. Shakespeare purposefully meant Shylock to be as villainous and victimised as possible, to make the play as dramatic as he could and the most emotion from the crowd. In the ‘Merchant of Venice’, Shylock’s character holds the key to a great tragedy. According to Aristotle’s theory of tragedy, there must be ‘the fall of the great man’. Shylock is greatly respected within his tribe, is very rich and looses all that he has at the end of the play. Essay The audience’s knowledge of Jews would have been mostly from Marlowe’s play; Jew of Malta. Also, they would have known about the trial and execution of Ruy Lopez, a Portuguese Jew. Lopez was convicted of trying to poison the queen. The audience would have been racially motivated by to hate Jews. Shylock would have been seen as a villain, because he was a Jew. Shylock was also a money-lender who prospered from his tra... ... middle of paper ... ... victimised, because of his unstoppable thirst for Antonio’s blood, although it is true that Shylock was treated badly, racially abused and insulted all of his life. Shakespeare doesn’t create an obvious distinction between Shylocks villainy, or his victimisation. It is almost impossible to distinguish Shakespeare’s views only Jews, since he portrays them as evil, scheming, deceitful villains, as well as abused and suffering victims. Shakespeare seems to have written The Merchant of Venice with an unbiased view, which perhaps makes the play even more dramatic. Making Shylock both a villain and a victim draws hatred, as well as sympathy from the crowd, making them feel all extremes of their emotions. Shakespeare used this in all of his plays, which may partially explain his outstanding success as a playwright.
Due to the hidden charges for the house, he finds that he is dreadfully wrong. Eventually, all of the family members must seek work, just to survive. Life becomes a hand-to-mouth proposition. Even after the family loses the house, things do not get any easier.... ...
Being an orphan form a very young age, Daniel and his sister Leah, are taken in by their grandmother. His grandmother not having enough income to support all their needs sells Daniel to the town blacksmith, Amalek. Daniel works for Amalek five years, but being abused frequently, he flees to the hills of Galilee to join a group of rebels led by a zealot Rosh. Daniel having been trained as a blacksmith is adopted as the rebel’s blacksmith on the mountain. There he puts his dream to work of drawing the Romans out of Galilee.
As he grows older, he makes a friend with Vasudeva, the river's man. Their life is near to the end of the harmonization of the universe.
The young Baron is found eating from golden bowls while the native people live in poverty with very little food. The young Baron is one of the most absurd characters in the story.
is the understanding of this "rich" character. In this study I will try to analyze some of his traits (invisibility-lack of indentity , blindness) and his journey from idealism to a grim realism about the racism that confronts him in the story.
to his friend Tuble for the rest of the money. Later he takes a quote
who he falls in love with and then he returns to his Pride Land to
'If you prick us do we not bleed? If you tickle us do we not laugh? If
receives. So it would not be fair to say that he was totally evil as
The plot, characters, and relationships present in William Shakespeare’s play, The Merchant of Venice all revolve around the concept of money; a theme that is strongly linked to the religious dichotomies explored throughout the comedy. At the beginning of the play, Antonio and Bassanio 's money-rooted relationship is introduced. Bassanio asks Antonio to lend him three thousand ducats. Antonio agrees to take out a loan for his friend, even though Bassanio had previously borrowed money and had not yet returned it. Antonio’s willingness to help out his seemingly untrustworthy friend, demonstrates his belief that friendship is more imperative than money. As a Christian, Antonio is following the expected trend; he is valuing life over stuff. Another
Shylock as a Villian or Victim in The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare The Merchant Of Venice is the story of Antonio, a merchant, borrowing money from Shylock, a Jewish moneylender, in order to fund his best friend Bassanio’s romantic ambitions. Like the majority of the habitants of Venice, Antonio is Christian. At the time of the play, the sixteenth century, there was a huge abhorrence against those who were not Christian. As Antonio needed money quickly he had no alternative to borrowing from Shylock; Jewish moneylenders made profit from charging interests. Christians were resentful towards Jews as they were very successful with their businesses.
his religion at the end of the play, therefore it is a lot easier for
to make a Jewish man the villain as it would be for us to make a Nazi the
more a villain or a victim. In the course of this essay I will explore
William Shakespeare shows how two tradesmen can have completely different lives when others view them differently in the play The Merchant of Venice. In the play, Bassanio, Antonio’s friend, needs money to pursue his love. They seek a loan from Shylock, a Jewish moneylender in Antonio’s name. The contract is for three times the value of the bond in three months or else Shylock cuts off a pound of flesh from Antonio. While all this is happening, there are love plots going on. One of which is for Shylock’s daughter to elope with Lorenzo, a Christian. Later on, Antonio’s source of money, his ship, is reported sunken in the English Channel, dooming him to the loss of one pound of his flesh. There is a trial on the bond, and when it seems sure that Antonio will die, Portia, disguised as a doctor of laws legally gets Antonio out of the situation and Shylock recieves harsh penalties. Antonio and Shylock, two similar businessmen of Venice, are viewed differently and are treated oppositely to heighten the drama of the play and mold a more interesting plot.