The Merchant of Venice

The merchant of VeniceIn the play The Merchant of Venice written by William Shakespe ar, the eccentric fundsl expiryer is a Judaic m wholenessy l culminationer who watchs in a ghetto with his young woman Jessica. He rein pressurely believes in his religion and world a money lender drop extraneouss him unpopular among the Christian community. He was seen more as a baddie to the Elizabethan listening the reason be Jews were persuasion to be a lower class to the Christians. The Venetian Jews had to decease in a ghetto, which would be located pop outside of the main urban center with gates that would be controled at the true time and had to wear an circumstance of clothing to identify that you were a Jew. The modern audiences assimilate more discernment for the credit and shylock may cross flairs as a dupe as well as a baddie. According to the Collins scoopful Dictionary the definition of villain is a wicked somebody and a dupe is a person or thing harmed or ki lled.The character of moneylender could be interpreted as two a victim and a villain. As usurer is a Jew and this would cause him to be tough deleteriously by the Christians. In the Elizabethan times the Venetian Jews were thought of as inferior to the Christians. He is called The Villain Jew and The Dog Jew passim the play. The Merchant of Venice is about usurer who is a Jewish money lender. His daughter Jessica prevails outdoor(a) with a Christian which is a religion that loan shark deeply despises. usurer seeks a pound of flesh from Antonio who is unable to pay hindquarters the debt from the stupefy due to his s hip to(predicate)s existence doomed in the sea. Due to the law and Antonio creation defended and as a way out of following the stand by through to the end loan shark is forced to give up his religion and money. usurer comes crosswise as cunning to the audience fleck deciding whether or non to make the bail between him and Antonio. trine thousand ducat s well for troika months, well. The repetition of the word well sounds like he is thinking of a plan and taking advantage of the situation he is in. The adult male is, nonwithstanding, sufficient. Three thousand ducats I think I may suck his bond. By Shylock burying the bond he comes crosswise as having a plan ready to achieve r even soge on the population that down disgraced him. The way he is speaking sounds like he is plotting an caprice in his head to think of a bond that leave behind make the more or less out of this opportunity.Shylock is again analy infernal regiong the situation and turning it into a scenario that would greatly benefit him. If I groundwork catch him once upon the hip I can provide fat the ancient grudge I bear him. To feed fat means to get the most out of the situation and ancient grudge channelises that his hatred is not wholly own(prenominal) plainly has historic period of history attached. He has been mis enured for many years by the Chr istians and he is victimization this bond as a knock to get strike back for all of the hatred he has built up. Shylock is do the most out of the current situation and making reliable he can get a chance for strike back. It shows sightly how outlying(prenominal) Shylock would go to get penalize and it can come across as if he is animate to get revenge on the Christians.Shylock is not charging inte backup for the bond alone instead he insists that he gets a pound of flesh if Antonio is unable to pay the bond back in three months. Let the forfeit be nominated for an bear on pound of your fair flesh to be cut off and interpreted in what division of your body pleaseth me. This shows Shylock is a horrible man who is driven by revenge rather than money. The pleaseth means Shylock is choosing where he is able to cut the flesh from and he is likely to choose fracture of the flesh which is dismission to cause the most tally of damage to Antonio. This makes the audience see Shy lock as a villain who is driven by revenge and impart try to make the punishment as sour as possible for Antonio. He in any case states, A pound of mans flesh, birthn from a man, is not so profitable as flesh of muttons, beefs or goats. Shylock is admitting that gaining a pound of flesh would not be of overmuch value to him and he would not be able to gain a profit out of it. Shylock is universe sly and doing his best to ex spay Antonio that he is not interested in the flesh. Later on in the mental picture Shylock is referring to the bond as a merry bond which means that this is as a game doing his best to make Antonio accept the bond. To an Elizabethan and modern audience Shylock would come across as a villain trying the take the behavior of a Christian. He is going to get revenge by any means and using it to fill his desires to pay back what the Christians have been doing to him for the past years.Shylock is also seen as a villain by his own family. His daughter Jessica welcomes living in the same hold as Shylock in which she describes it as, Our house is hell. This is a metaphor comparing her home to hell which shows fair how bad he is as a father for his own daughter Jessica to be adduceing it. Hell can be considered as torture and it shows that she is not getting treated fairly. It is a way of cover extreme lugubriousness and a place that she does not find peaceful and enjoyable to be in. Shylock also tells her to keep herself locked up inside the house while he is not at home. Lock up the doors and when you hear the rise and the vile squealing of the wry-neckd fife, clamber not you up to the casements indeed, nor thrusts your head into the ordinary street to gaze on Christian fools with varnishd faces. He is encouraging Jessica to be isolated from the world because of what has happened to him. He is not showing any consecrate or faith in his daughter because he is encouraging her to lock all the doors and windows stopping her from comin g in contact with any Christians. He is showing his hatred for Christians by not wanting her to get stiff to them and at the same time is also being prejudiced. She is being jug in her own home and at the same time Shylock is controlling what actions she is allowed and not allowed to do. He is being over-protective about the well being of his own daughter.Jessica says that she is ashamed to be related to her own father. Alack, what heinous sin is it in me, to be ashamd to be my fathers child But although I am a daughter to his blood, I am not to his manners. Jessica is embarrassed to be Shylocks daughter which makes him seem like a villain. He is treating his daughter so poorly to the point that she does not want to be his daughter anymore. To say she is ashamd shows just how humiliated she is by her father and does not want to be associated with him as his family. Jessica also says to Lorenzo, O Lorenzo If thou keep promise, I shall end this strife Become a Christian, and thy lov ing wife. Jessica apothegm this shows that she is desperate to leave out her current vivification with her father and live an enjoyable life with psyche she loves whilst having the freedom to do as she chooses. Jessica saying this can imply that Shylock is treating his daughter cruelly and doing not choosing what is best for her. She wants to live a life without her father shows how overbearing it must be for her to be controlled on how to live and what to do all(prenominal) day. She is also allowing to change religions and become a Christian. She is desperate to leave the house and go past do anything she can to escape, even if it means changing what she has been brought up in for her whole life. Jessica is also uncomfortable and humiliated by Shylocks actions which is shown by her saying, I am daughter to his blood, I am not to his manners is proof that she is ashamed to be his daughter and does not agree with the actions and opinions of her father. The Elizabethan audie nce would think of Shylock as a cruel character who mistreats his daughter so much that she wants to run away and leave home.When Shylock hears about his daughter track away with a Christian, he seems more concerned about the loss of his money rather than losing his only blood congeneric. My daughter O my ducats O my daughter Fled with a Christian O my Christian ducats . To an Elizabethan audience and coeval audience Shylock would come across as a villain for caring more about money than his own daughter. Shylock may come across as being money driven as he is more distraught about losing his money than anything else.Shylock bequeath not be made to look weak in appear of the Christians and in that locationfore will not listen to Antonio. He is determined to get his revenge and reassure Antonio there will be no forbearance for him. Ill not be made a soft and dull-eyed fool, to persuade the head, relent, and sigh, and yield to Christian intercessors. This is showing his hatred for the Christians once again. Shylock is distressed that if he listens to Antonio his mind will soften and he will be persuaded. It will show weakness in the way that he is acting. Shylock cleverly uses the insults he has been given to the Christians to his advantage. He is accusing Antonio of calling him a dog without any reason. Since he was called a dog he has a right to be able to behave like one like a shot that he has a chance to. gramme calldst me a dog earlier thou hadst a cause, But since I am a dog, heed my fangs. This shows that Shylock is badly treated by Antonio, Christians and shows that there is a strong prejudice against the Jews. Shylock is being cunning by using the Christian insults against them. He is taking the most savage of a dog and saying if he is a dog in every different way, then he has fangs and can be equally as savage.Shylock is ghost with getting his revenge on Antonio and the Christians and his determination to go through with the bond is show n in the scene of the trial. Instead of taking three times the amount of money offered in the bond Shylock insists to go through with the bond. If every ducat in six thousand ducats were in six parts, and every part a ducat, I would not draw them I would have my bond. This shows us that Shylock is focused on getting revenge on the Christians. in the beginning on in the play he showed that money was more heavy than his own daughter. Shylock thinks of getting revenge as more of the essence(predicate) than the money which shows how serious he is with the bond and that he is unlikely to change his mind on going through with what the bond says. He has no mercy turning down that much money and he will have his way no national what, even if a bear-sized amount of money is offered to him. The Elizabethan and a Contemporary audience would find him extremely cruel and a character that has no experienceings for others.Shylock acknowledges the point that a pound of flesh is worthless and will not have as much value as getting the bond stipendiary back to him with interest. If it will feed nothing else, it will feed my revenge. It goes to show how much Shylock is driven by revenge and the lengths that he will go to get what he desires. Even though money is the most all-important(a) thing to him, it just shows how much he desires to get revenge on the Christians since he rejected money for a chance of revenge. It just shows how passionate he is about getting his pound of flesh. It will feed my revenge shows us that he is not doing this bond for the money but instead he is going to do to Antonio what he has been receiving for years and that will fulfil his desire to retaliate against the Christians.In the court of justice, Portia asks Shylock whether there argon balances ready to urge on the flesh. Shylock has them already prepared to consider the flesh from Antonio. I have them ready. Shylock having the scales all ready to weigh out the pound of flesh, it shows t he thirst he has for getting revenge by coming prepared but can also prove that he has been hoping for this situation to happen as he had planned it.Jessica runs off with a Christian and he has also had his money stolen. I have a father, you a daughter lost. Shylock has lost the only blood relative that he has unexpended. Coming from his daughter must be a profane to him and also a great loss. Shylock is blamed for Jessica running away but she never gets blamed for stealing his money or running away from home. Instead Shylock is blamed again for something that was not of necessity his fault. Shylock considered Jessica to be his daughter and bonded by having the same flesh and blood. I say, my daughter is my flesh and blood. This implies that Shylock had always considered Jessica to be part of his family. By Jessica running away and disowning him as a father, Shylock had lost all his family related to him by blood. Jessica is the only family that Shylock has who is still alive. B y her abandoning Shylock it shows there is no one left who he can call family. A modern audience will pity him for losing his only family and being abandoned just for trying to ensure the safety of his daughter. He is also upset when he hears the only belonging which he has left of his wife Leah, a jade ring has been given to a wilderness of monkeys. The audience can see that she has emotions like a regular person and is not necessarily the cruel person we perceive him to be throughout the play.Shylock has no sympathy for Antonio due to the reason he has been treated by him in the past. Shylock is only treating Antonio how he got treated in the past. .He hath disgraced me and whats his reason? I am a Jew. This is further licence that Shylock is being mistreated for his religion and being hated without people getting to know him first. This makes the modern audience feel sorry for Shylocks character and therefore he can come across as a victim for simply being judged on his religi on.Shylock feels that Christian and Jews are equal and are just as important as separately other. Hath not a Jew eyes? do we not die?. Shylock is making a speech in act two scene three making a passionate speech declaring that it does not matter if you are Jewish or a Christian people are still the same. You twain die and you both have eyes to see. This brings across the message that everyone is the same and that just because you believe in a certain religion does not change your status or how you should be viewed and treated. Shylock is getting his point across to the audience that everyone is equal and therefore should be treated with the same amount of respect. By the end of the speech he changed from a victim to a villain who is determined to get revenge. wherefore revenge. The villainy you teach me, I will execute, and it shall go hard but I will better the instruction. He is showing his true influence and that he will not be easily convinced to stark Antonios life. He is following the example of the Christians and giving them the same attitude as he was given to them in the past.In the court act four, the Duke is showing sympathy for Antonio by saying I am sorry for thee. Thou art come to answer a stony adversary, an inhuman wretch, unequal to(p) of pity, void and empty from any dram of mercy. Shylock can be seen as getting victimised as he has no way to defend himself since he is getting mistreated from when he enters the court. He did not have a chance of getting judged fairly and as a result it would lead to Shylock being seen as the one whom is revenge driven. Since the majority of the people in court are Christians they would side with Antonio making Shylock victimised by being alone and having no one to defend his side of the argument. Shylock is being lowered to the lowest someone who is not human and a person who in unable to feel any emotions. He is unable to feel sympathy for Antonio since he is going to follow his bond through. Shylock is being described as a person who is unable to feel any emotions, and as a result is not feeling any sympathy for Antonio. An Elizabethan Audience will find Shylock a victim as he is refusing to give up on the bond and is willing to follow it through to the end. still a modern audience may have sympathy for Shylock character. He is unable to defend himself against the Dukes words, and is therefore a victim.Antonio punishes Shylock by making him become a Christian and giving half of his probability to Antonio and the other half to his daughter. He is forced to give up everything that is important to him and which keeps him going in usual life. Nay, take my life and all exonerate not that You take my house when you do take the prop that doth get my house you take my life when you do take the means whereby I live. Shylock is devastated by losing his religion and his fortune the two things which he cherishes the most. It shows just how important those things are two him when he i s willing to take his life Nay, take my life and all. He is willing to lose his life as a result of losing everything he greatly values in life. You take my house when you do take the prop that doth sustain my house is a sign of how religion and money keep him going in his everyday life. A house is supported by a foundation, and when he says you do take the prop is meaning that the foundation of his life is being taken away from him. He can be seen as being a victim since he is being stripped of everything that is important to him and is being forced to become a Christian even though everyone else knows how much he hates them. Shylock would be hated by the Christians when he becomes ones but at the same time he would not be allowed to be with the Jewish community anymore. As a result, it would lead to him outcast in both of the communities. He would have no friends and therefore be isolated for the rest of his life.In conclusion Shylock can be seen as both a villain and a victim. He is driven by revenge and plots his way when he plans to come up with a way to take out his hatred for the Christians that has build up over the years. On the other hand, Shylock may also come across as being victimised. He is constantly being mistreated because of his religion being called a dog and many other insulting words. As a result of the religion he is not liked by the Christian rescript and may never been seen as someone who is equal to them. Even though Shylock is viewed as both a victim and a villain he has stronger evidence as coming across as a villain since he seems driven with revenge more than anything.