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The "Merchant of Venice" character analysis
Love in victorian literature
The "Merchant of Venice" character analysis
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True Love in The Merchant of Venice
Among the various themes presented in the Merchant of Venice the
most important is the nature of true love. The casket plot helps
illustrate the theme. Through a variety of suitors the descriptions of the
caskets, Shakespeare shows the reader how different people view true love.
He also shows what is most important to the suitors and in some cases it is
not true love, but material things and outward appearance.
The first suitor who tries to win Portia's hand is the Prince of
Morocco. When he first arrives in Belmont, the reader can see how arrogant
the prince is, He says, "The best regarded virgins of our clilme/ hath
loved it too..." (2.1, 10-11). He is referring to the color of his ski n
that is black. He is telling Portia that his complexion has won him many
women and he is dressed in all white. The fact that he is, suggests that
he is only concerned with outward appearance, and not with more important
things such as true love. The Prince of Morocco's superficial nature
shines through even more clearly when it comes time to choose the casket.
He does not want to risk anything, and therefore; he does not choose the
lead casket whose inscription tells the suitor he must give up everything.
The Prince, after looking at the inscription of the gold casket, which read
"'who chooseth me shall gain what many men desire'" (2.7, 37), decides that
what he desires most is the Portia's hand so the gold must be the correct
casket. He insists that the gold casket is the one holding Portia's
picture because she is so much worthier than the lead casket. The Prince
believes t...
... middle of paper ...
...ove,
however, is for Bassanio and she wants to marry him. Bassanio, by choosing
to risk everything he has, shows the effects that true love can have on
someone. True love can conquer any fears or apprehensions you may have.
He was willing to risk everything he had in order to show his love for
Portia. In the play, Bassanio shows what true love really means and how
one can not mistake outward appearances for true love. Put succinctly, one
can do nothing but agree with the adage love conquers all.
Works Cited and Consulted
Barnet Sylvan. "Introduction." The Merchant of Venice Ed. Sylvan Barnet. New
Jersey : Prentice-Hall Inc., 1970. 1-10.
Granville-Barker, Harley. "The Merchant of Venice. " Shakespeare Ed.
Leonard F. Dean. Princeton : Princeton University Press, 1947. 37-71.
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