The Character of Shylock as a Victim or Villain in The Merchant of Venice

The Character of Shylock as a Victim or Villain in The Merchant of Venice

Do you consider the character of shylock to be a victim or villain in

the play The Merchant of Venice?

Shylock is one of the most interesting, memorable and debated

characters in the play “The Merchant of Venice”. In many ways this is

because he is both a victim and a villain.

Shylock was made a laughing stock of and is ridiculed by the

Christians because he was Jewish. The Jewish community in Venice was

treated very poorly at the time that the play was written. The Jews in

Venice were not classified as citizens. They were ridiculed in public,

not allowed to do any Christian jobs and had to live in the ghetto (a

place just for the Jewish community) with walls around it. The ghetto

was locked at night so the Jewish people could not get out. Shylock

was also ridiculed about his job as a money lender, or “usurer” which

was one of the few jobs Jews could do. Since lending money was their

only way to make a living, they had to charge interest. The church

prohibited Christians from lending money, and called it the sin of

usury, but they often needed loans despite this.

The play is set in the trading capital of Venice, Italy because it was

one of the trading capitals of the world at the time. It is in a prime

location for trading, located at the head of the Adriatic Sea, next to

the Balkans and below the mountain paths to Germany. In Venice the

main form of trade and transportation is by sea. Venice has a

spectacular harbour where huge trading ships could exchange gifts and

goods. Trade needs capital, and only the Jews could provide it. The

Jews made the l...

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...him. He contrasts

his “sober” house, with their outlandish clothes and foolish

behaviour. He orders Jessica around as if she were a slave, treating

her as the Christians treated him. Shylock was taking out his

frustration and pain on his daughter, so she had a good reason to

leave.

As you can see, there is a lot of evidence to support each of the two

sides of the argument, ‘Do you consider the character of Shylock to be

a victim or villain in the play The Merchant of Venice?’ I believe

that Shylock was victimised by the Christians, and therefore a victim

of racial abuse and ridicule. The case that Shylock is a victim is a

stronger one than him being a villain. In the end, in my opinion it

was the prejudice and oppression of Venetian society that caused his

villainy. It even denied him the satisfaction of revenge.