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Essays on Merchant of Venice

The importance of writing an essay on merchant of venice.

Writing an essay on Merchant of Venice is important as it allows students to critically analyze the themes, characters, and messages portrayed in the play. It also helps in developing critical thinking and analytical skills, as well as improving writing abilities.

When writing an essay on Merchant of Venice, it is important to carefully analyze the characters and their motivations. For example, Shylock’s character can be explored in depth to understand the themes of prejudice, justice, and revenge. Additionally, the themes of love, friendship, and loyalty can be examined through the relationships between the characters.

Furthermore, it is crucial to consider the historical and social context of the play, as it provides a deeper understanding of the themes and messages conveyed by Shakespeare. For instance, the portrayal of anti-Semitism in the play reflects the societal attitudes of the time, and this can be analyzed in the essay.

When writing the essay, it is important to provide evidence from the text to support the arguments and analysis. This can include direct quotes, references to specific scenes, and interpretations of the characters’ actions and dialogue. Additionally, it is essential to structure the essay in a coherent and logical manner, with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a strong conclusion.

In conclusion, writing an essay on Merchant of Venice is important for students to develop critical thinking, analytical, and writing skills. By carefully analyzing the characters, themes, and historical context of the play, students can gain a deeper understanding of the text and its significance.

Best Merchant of Venice Essay Topics

• The portrayal of Shylock as a villain or victim
• The role of women in The Merchant of Venice
• The theme of mercy and justice in the play
• The symbolism of the bond and the caskets
• The use of language and imagery in The Merchant of Venice
• The significance of the title in relation to the themes of the play
• The role of friendship and loyalty in The Merchant of Venice
• The portrayal of prejudice and discrimination in the play
• The relationship between Antonio and Bassanio
• The concept of appearance vs reality in The Merchant of Venice
• The motif of money and wealth in the play
• The portrayal of love and romance in The Merchant of Venice
• The role of religion in the play
• The use of comedy and tragedy in The Merchant of Venice
• The significance of the courtroom scene
• The portrayal of power and authority in the play
• The role of fate and destiny in The Merchant of Venice
• The theme of deception and manipulation
• The portrayal of outsiders and insiders in the play
• The relevance of The Merchant of Venice in today's society

Merchant of Venice Essay Topics Prompts

• Imagine you are Shylock's defense attorney. Write a closing argument that challenges the court's decision.
• Write a letter from Portia to Bassanio, expressing her feelings about the outcome of the bond and the caskets.
• Create a modern-day adaptation of The Merchant of Venice, set in a different cultural or social context.
• Write a dialogue between Antonio and Shylock, exploring their conflicting views on money and morality.
• Imagine you are a journalist interviewing Jessica after she elopes with Lorenzo. Write a series of questions and answers that reveal her motivations and feelings.

How Shakespeare Presents The Character of Shylock in The Merchant of Venice

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Juxtaposition of Love and Wealth in The Merchant of Venice

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The Theme of Inequality in Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice

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Shylock's Personality in Shakespeare's "The Merchant of Venice"

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1596-1599, William Shakespeare

Shakespearean comedy

Antonio, an antisemitic merchant, takes a loan from the Jew Shylock to help his friend to court Portia. Antonio can't repay the loan, and without mercy, Shylock demands a pound of his flesh. The heiress Portia, now the wife of Antonio's friend, dresses as a lawyer and saves Antonio.

The Merchant of Venice is structured partly on the contrast between idealistic and realistic opinions about society and relationships. On the one hand, the play tells us that love is more important than money, mercy is preferable to revenge, and love lasts forever

Antonio, Bassanio, Gratiano, Lorenzo, Portia, Nerissa, Balthazar, Stephano, Shylock, Jessica, Tubal, Launcelot Gobbo, Old Gobbo, Leonardo, Duke of Venice, Prince of Morocco, Prince of Arragon, Salarino and Salanio

The forfeit of a merchant's deadly bond after standing surety for a friend's loan was a common tale in England in the late 16th century. In addition, the test of the suitors at Belmont, the merchant's rescue from the "pound of flesh" penalty by his friend's new wife disguised as a lawyer, and her demand for the betrothal ring in payment are all elements present in the 14th-century tale Il Pecorone by Giovanni Fiorentino, which was published in Milan in 1558.

The Merchant of Venice is one of the most famous plays of Shakespeare. The play is frequently staged today, but is potentially troubling to modern audiences because of its central themes, which can easily appear antisemitic. Critics today still continue to argue over the play's stance on the Jews and Judaism.

“You speak an infinite deal of nothing.” “With mirth and laughter let old wrinkles come.” “The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose.” “All that glisters is not gold.”

1. Shakespeare, W., Shakespeare, W., & Kaplan, M. L. (2002). The merchant of Venice (pp. 25-120). Palgrave Macmillan US. (https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-1-137-07784-4_2) 2. Lewalski, B. K. (1962). Biblical Allusion and Allegory in" The Merchant of Venice". Shakespeare Quarterly, 13(3), 327-343. (https://www.jstor.org/stable/2866826) 3. Halio, J. L. (2006). The Merchant of Venice. Shakespeare Bulletin, 24(2), 63-68. (https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/1/article/199046/summary) 4. Ferber, M. (1990). The Ideology of The Merchant of Venice. English Literary Renaissance, 20(3), 431-464. (https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1475-6757.1990.tb01442.x?journalCode=elr) 5. Willson, M. J. (1994). View of Justice in Shakespeare's the Merchant of Venice and Measure for Measure. Notre Dame L. Rev., 70, 695. (https://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/tndl70&div=24&id=&page=) 6. Metzger, M. J. (1998). “Now by my hood, a gentle and no Jew”: Jessica, The Merchant of Venice, and the discourse of early modern English identity. PMLA, 113(1), 52-63. (https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/pmla/article/abs/now-by-my-hood-a-gentle-and-no-jew-jessica-the-merchant-of-venice-and-the-discourse-of-early-modern-english-identity/51E9B840D2AB9DB0ABAB356C6FBC0B20) 7. Moisan, T. (2013). " Which is the merchant here? and which the Jew?": subversion and recuperation in The Merchant of Venice. In Shakespeare Reproduced (pp. 196-214). Routledge. (https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781315018584-15/merchant-jew-subversion-recuperation-merchant-venice-thomas-moisan-188) 8. Sokol, B. J., & Sokol, M. (1999). Shakespeare and the English Equity Jurisdiction The Merchant of Venice and the Two Texts of King Lear. The Review of English Studies, 50(200), 417-439. (https://academic.oup.com/res/article-abstract/50/200/417/1531451)

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The Merchant of Venice

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• Shakespeare Birthplace Trust - The Merchant of Venice - Synopsis and Plot Overview
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The Merchant of Venice , comedy in five acts by William Shakespeare , written about 1596–97 and printed in a quarto edition in 1600 from an authorial manuscript or copy of one.

Bassanio, a noble but penniless Venetian, asks his wealthy merchant friend Antonio for a loan so that Bassanio can undertake a journey to woo the heiress Portia . Antonio, whose money is invested in foreign ventures, borrows the sum from Shylock , a Jewish moneylender, on the condition that, if the loan cannot be repaid in time, Antonio will forfeit a pound of flesh. Antonio is reluctant to do business with Shylock, whom he despises for lending money at interest (unlike Antonio himself, who provides the money for Bassanio without any such financial obligation); Antonio considers that lending at interest violates the very spirit of Christianity. Nevertheless, he needs help in order to be able to assist Bassanio. Meanwhile, Bassanio has met the terms of Portia’s father’s will by selecting from three caskets the one that contains her portrait, and he and Portia marry. (Two previous wooers, the princes of Morocco and Aragon, have failed the casket test by choosing what many men desire or what the chooser thinks he deserves; Bassanio knows that he must paradoxically “give and hazard all he hath” to win the lady.) News arrives that Antonio’s ships have been lost at sea. Unable to collect on his loan, Shylock attempts to use justice to enforce a terrible, murderous revenge on Antonio: he demands his pound of flesh. Part of Shylock’s desire for vengeance is motivated by the way in which the Christians of the play have banded together to enable his daughter Jessica to elope from his house, taking with her a substantial portion of his wealth, in order to become the bride of the Christian Lorenzo. Shylock’s revengeful plan is foiled by Portia, disguised as a lawyer, who turns the tables on Shylock by a legal quibble: he must take flesh only, and Shylock must die if any blood is spilled. Thus, the contract is canceled, and Shylock is ordered to give half of his estate to Antonio, who agrees not to take the money if Shylock converts to Christianity and restores his disinherited daughter to his will. Shylock has little choice but to agree. The play ends with the news that, in fact, some of Antonio’s ships have arrived safely.

The character of Shylock has been the subject of modern scholarly debate over whether the playwright displays anti-Semitism or religious tolerance in his characterization, for, despite his stereotypical usurious nature, Shylock is depicted as understandably full of hate, having been both verbally and physically abused by Christians, and he is given one of Shakespeare’s most eloquent speeches (“Hath not a Jew eyes?…”).

For a discussion of this play within the context of Shakespeare’s entire corpus, see William Shakespeare: Shakespeare’s plays and poems .

A Summary and Analysis of William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

The Merchant of Venice is one of Shakespeare’s most popular comedies, and is widely studied and has been subject to considerable analysis. Contrary to what many people think, the ‘merchant’ of the title isn’t Shylock (of whom more below) but the far less famous character, Antonio. So how well do we know The Merchant of Venice ? Below, we offer some words of analysis, but first, it might be worth recapping the plot of the play.

Plot summary

There are two main plot strands to The Merchant of Venice , both closely intertwined. The first involves Portia, the wealthy heiress of Belmont, who decides that she will marry whichever suitor picks the right casket when faced with a choice of three (made of gold, silver, and lead).

The second involves a loan the Jewish moneylender, Shylock, makes to Antonio, the merchant of the play’s title. These two plot lines are connected because Antonio borrows money from Shylock in order to help out his friend, Bassanio, who wishes to finance a trip to Belmont to try his hand at Portia’s ‘three caskets’ trial. (The princes of Morocco and Aragon both choose the wrong caskets, but Bassanio correctly guesses that the lead casket, and the two are engaged.)

The terms of the loan are as follows: Antonio will repay the money to Shylock when his ships return from their voyage; if he fails to pay up then, Shylock will be entitled to a pound of Antonio’s flesh. When Antonio’s ships are declared lost at sea, he cannot repay the debt to Shylock, who promptly demands his pound of flesh.

These two threads run through the play, becoming united towards the end of the play, when Portia disguises herself as a male lawyer in order to defend Antonio against Shylock’s knife. She is aided by her maid, Nerissa, who is engaged to Bassanio’s friend, Gratiano; Nerissa is also disguised as a man (Portia’s clerk).

After trying, unsuccessfully, to appeal to Shylock’s ‘quality of mercy’ (a famous speech which we have analysed here ), Portia changes tack, and saves Antonio on a legal technicality: whilst his agreement with Shylock allows the Jewish moneylender a pound of Antonio’s flesh, it does not entitle him to a drop of the merchant’s blood – and if he tries to remove a pound of his flesh and makes him bleed, he will be liable. Shylock is defeated, and Antonio saved.

And Shylock is well and truly defeated: he has to pay ‘damages’ to Antonio – half of his entire wealth – and is also forced to convert from Judaism to Christianity. However, Antonio gives the money he gets from Shylock immediately to Jessica, Shylock’s daughter, who had earlier eloped with Lorenzo, against her father’s wishes.

There is one last, romantic, twist to the plot: before the trial, Portia and Nerissa had made gifts of rings to their betrotheds, Antonio and Gratiano. After the trial is over, to express their gratitude to the lawyer and clerk for saving Antonio’s skin (literally), they both give their rings to the lawyer and ‘his’ clerk as tokens of thanks.

To test (and have a bit of fun with) the two men, Portia and Nerissa, back in Belmont and out of their male disguises, ask the returning Antonio and Gratiano where the rings are which they gave them. The two men say they have lost them, and the two women produce new ones – which are really, of course, the originals. As a final piece of good luck, Antonio learns that not all of his ships were lost at sea, and the two couples celebrate their upcoming wedding.

Venice has a long-standing association with trade, commerce, and money. The materialistic world of this city-state regards people only in terms of their financial worth, and Shylock embodies this cold materialism in the extreme. To him, Antonio is only a debtor, so much flesh, from whom he can extract his pound if Antonio is unable to repay his loan. The great clash in The Merchant of Venice is between money and love, as both Shylock’s trial and Portia’s very different ‘trial’ – the test of the three caskets – demonstrate.

Against this heartlessly materialistic worldview is set the world of mercy and compassion, expressed in the two most famous speeches from The Merchant of Venice : Portia’s ‘The quality of mercy is not strained’ and Shylock’s own ‘Hath not a Jew eyes? If you prick us, do we not bleed?’

The valorisation of wealth and gold above all else is also famously rejected and criticised in Portia’s three caskets: gold and silver seem to promise the suitor wealth (in the form of Portia’s inheritance), but it is only by rejecting these in favour of the relatively worthless lead that Bassanio proves his worth as a potential husband to her.

However, the plot of The Merchant of Venice doesn’t entirely reject the world of money: Antonio borrows money from Shylock in an act of friendship (to help his relatively poor friend Bassanio travel to Belmont to undertake Portia’s three caskets test), but it’s also a financial reality that money is needed to be in the ‘race’.

And it’s worth noting that mercy doesn’t triumph over materialism at the trial: Shylock is deaf to Portia’s appeals, and his contract with Antonio can only be defeated on a technicality which speaks the only kind of language Shylock recognises.

And Shylock is the key to the whole play, as the confusion over him being mistaken for its title character demonstrates. For Harold Bloom, in a persuasive analysis of The Merchant of Venice in his book Shakespeare: The Invention Of The Human , The Merchant of Venice presents a number of difficult problems.

First, there’s no denying it is an anti-Semitic play; second, for Bloom, Shylock should be played as a comic villain and not a sympathetic character for the play to have ‘coherence’ and make full sense; third, to play Shylock this way would no doubt exacerbate the play’s anti-Semitic properties.

Many recent productions of The Merchant of Venice have certainly depicted Shylock more sympathetically than he was probably played when the play was first staged, in the 1590s which gave London not only Christopher Marlowe’s The Jew of Malta (whose title character, Barabbas, is a cartoon villain too exaggerated to be taken with complete seriousness) but also the execution of the Portuguese Jewish immigrant Roderigo Lopez, physician to Queen Elizabeth I, who was accused of plotting to kill the Queen (he was, almost certainly, innocent).

If the casual anti-Semitism that was widely tolerated as recently as the early twentieth century is anything to go by, Shakespeare’s original audience would probably have viewed Shylock as a money-grubbing villain.

But as is so often with Shakespeare’s characterisation, the character can be interpreted more sympathetically (his famous ‘If you prick us, do we not bleed?’ speech is one example of where we can find evidence for this interpretation), and this is the line most modern productions of the play have taken. And it must be a hard-hearted reader or spectator who can watch Shylock being forced to convert to Christianity (by Antonio) and not feel a twinge of uneasiness.

What’s more, the parallels between Antonio and Shylock arguably don’t end with that popular misconception over who the title character is. Antonio is just as money-driven as Shylock, and – as his insistence that Shylock be made to convert to Christianity shows – not exactly overflowing with Christian charity. This is the mentality that Venice seems to engender: a world of financial interests, account books, and hatred and mistrust of others.

The Merchant of Venice has become Shylock’s play, eclipsing all else, and whilst there may not be much else besides him that makes the play interesting, the one exception here is Portia, who is one of Shakespeare’s finest female roles from the 1590s.

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4 thoughts on “A Summary and Analysis of William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice”

Definitely one of Shakespeare’s problematic plays. I view it more as a tragi-comedy and believe Shakespeare provided ambiguity towards Shylock in that he did not lampoon him but gave him full characterization. Perhaps Shakespeare wanted the audience to see beyond the culture and see a person.

Problematic indeed! Thank you for your most interesting exploration of the issues.

VERY CLEAR SUMMARY AND ANALYSIS. THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME TO READ IT AS ONE PART OF MY READINGS

Wouldn’t thou allow such mercy to Shylock if he show an ounce of pennant thought, or would it rather be rendered he suffer the harsh justice he demanded upon Antonio that you, in your fraudulent identity, chastised him for. You ask that Shylock grant mercy, but you refuse him such the like. Surely, you present him the harshest of consequences. Perhaps, opportune his chance of recompense and change of heart. Allow the man his beliefs and as well an example to present to his like minded. Allow him at least the the humane existence, some mere portion of fortune. There must be thoughts and consistency of mercy , although through consequential reasoning, placed upon both arguments.

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Merchant of Venice

By william shakespeare, merchant of venice essay questions.

In what ways does The Merchant of Venice defy the comedic genre?

While The Merchant of Venice is firmly placed in the genre of comedy, it is a unique comedy in that it features many tropes of early modern tragedy – namely, the gruesome predilections and rhetorical skill of its central antagonist, the long-winded soliloquies interrogating major philosophical concepts, and the bleak, anxious tone that characterizes most of the play before its "twist" of a conclusion. As such, many interpret the play as an ambiguous take on the nature of prejudice and the tragic consequences it can have (though they do materialize in this play in particular).

To what extent is Shylock a true antagonist?

A major contributing factor to the play's ambiguous tone is its antagonist, Shylock. Shylock is both a selfish, money-hungry, vengeful schemer and a victim of prejudice at the hands of the Christian characters. As such, the play encourages its audience to question wether Shylock can be considered a pure villain or pure victim throughout. While he is inarguably the play's central antagonist, his character development over the course of the play asks the audience to reflect on where that antagonism may have been generated.

What, or who, triumphs at the end of the play?

Generally speaking, it is the Christian characters who triumph at the end of the play, specifically Antonio as he is freed from his contract with Shylock. However, Portia's speech during the trial (when she is disguised as Balthazar) suggests that the real victor in the play is mercy, or qualities of the righteous Christian soul. Mercy was and continues to be associated with Jesus Christ, and in speaking about the importance of mercy between Shylock and Antonio, Portia suggests that the teachings of Christianity will triumph in the end.

Why does Shylock demand a pound of Antonio's flesh instead of money?

During the trial, Shylock refuses to accept 6,000 ducats from Antonio (double the amount of the original loan). While Shylock is portrayed as a money-hungry miser throughout the play, he rejects this offer and continues to demand the pound of flesh from the original contract. This moment suggests that Shylock is not motivated entirely by money or financial gain. On the contrary, it seems his dedication to receiving the pound of flesh stems from his deep desire for revenge on a member of the Christian community, after he has suffered years of abuse at their hands for being Jewish.

How does the play comment on gender?

In one of the play's more lighthearted plots, Portia and Nerissa disguise themselves as male officials of the Venetian court in order to intervene on Antonio's behalf. While cross-dressing was always entertaining on the early modern stage, Portia's confidence that she can sway the court serves as commentary on the relationship between gender and power. Portia suggests that masculinity – and the power associated with it – is itself performative, and that it only takes a male disguise for a woman to be taken seriously among men.

Merchant of Venice Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for Merchant of Venice is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

Explain Portias tactics. Why does she appear to support Shylock at first?

When Portia arrives in court, she asks, "Which is the merchant here, and which the Jew?" (4.1.169). Indeed, given the confusion so many people have with the title, it is often this very question which is asked. Scholars have tried to attribute her...

Describe merchant of venice as romantic comedy

While the story hits upon the tragic element of despair, The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare, is a comedy because lovers are separated, characters are in disguise, and the story has a happy ending.

ACT III SCENE 3: What do you think Shylock means when he says, “it is my humour”?

This could be defined as "this is what I feel like doing".

Study Guide for Merchant of Venice

Merchant of Venice study guide contains a biography of William Shakespeare, literature essays, a complete e-text, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

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Essays for Merchant of Venice

Merchant of Venice literature essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of Merchant of Venice.

• The Victorious Woman in Measure for Measure and The Merchant of Venice
• Father-Daughter Relationships in The Merchant of Venice
• Mercy and the Masquerade: Trial and Performance in The Merchant of Venice
• Christianity and Judaism in The Merchant of Venice: Imperfect Faith
• The Anti-Semitic Question in Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice

Lesson Plan for Merchant of Venice

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The Merchant of Venice

William shakespeare.

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The Merchant of Venice: Introduction

The merchant of venice: plot summary, the merchant of venice: detailed summary & analysis, the merchant of venice: themes, the merchant of venice: quotes, the merchant of venice: characters, the merchant of venice: symbols, the merchant of venice: literary devices, the merchant of venice: quizzes, the merchant of venice: theme wheel, brief biography of william shakespeare.

Historical Context of The Merchant of Venice

Other books related to the merchant of venice.

• Full Title: The Merchant of Venice
• When Written: 1596–8
• Where Written: England
• When Published: 1623
• Literary Period: The Renaissance
• Genre: Comedy/tragicomedy; Revenge tragedy
• Setting: Venice, and the nearby country estate of Belmont
• Climax: The trial of Antonio, the merchant, and Shylock, the Jewish moneylender
• Antagonist: Shylock

Extra Credit for The Merchant of Venice

"Which is the merchant here? And which the Jew?" Modern audiences of Merchant of Venice often mistake Shylock for the "merchant" of the title—which actually refers to Antonio.

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1. Shakespeare ( AQA GCSE English Literature )

Revision note.

The Merchant of Venice question is part of Paper 1, Section A of your GCSE. For this, you are required to write one essay-length answer to one set question. This can seem daunting at first, but this page contains some helpful information, and links to more detailed revision note pages, that will enable you to aim for the highest grade. This page includes:

• A summary of The Merchant of Venice
• A brief overview of what is required in the exam

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The Merchant of Venice summary

The Merchant of Venice was written by William Shakespeare during the late 16th century. It depicts the story of Antonio, a merchant from Venice, who fails to repay a substantial loan borrowed from a Jewish moneylender named Shylock.

It is classified as a comedy and is similar to other romantic comedies by Shakespeare. The play is largely known for its dramatic scenes and for the character of Shylock. Shylock is renowned for demanding a "pound of flesh" as retribution. The play also includes two famous speeches: one from Shylock about the nature of humanity and Portia's speech on mercy. It contains many of the typical conventions of comedy such as marriage, misconception, and disguise and gender. For more on the conventions of tragedy, see The Merchant of Venice: Writer’s Methods and Techniques page. 

The play is about Antonio, a merchant, who owes money to Shylock, a vindictive moneylender. Antonio borrows the sum on behalf of his friend, Bassanio, to woo and marry a woman named Portia. After Antonio's trading ships sink, he cannot repay the debt, prompting Shylock to demand a pound of flesh as per their agreement. However, Portia, disguised as a man, intervenes during the trial and saves Antonio. As a result, Shylock is instructed to convert to Christianity and Antonio recovers his wealth from his sunken ships. For a more detailed summary, please see The Merchant of Venice: Plot Summary page . 

How is The Merchant of Venice assessed in the exam?

• Your GCSE Paper 1 requires you to answer two questions in 1hr 45min. That means you have approximately 52 minutes to plan, write and check your Merchant of Venice essay
• Paper 1 is worth 64 marks and accounts for 40% of your overall GCSE grade
• The Merchant of Venice essay is worth 34 marks in total, because it also includes 4 marks for spelling, punctuation and grammar
• Section A of Paper 1 contains The Merchant of Venice question and you are required to answer the one available question on the play
• Your question will also include a printed extract of about 25 lines from the play
• It is a closed-book exam, which means you will not have access to a copy of the text (other than the printed extract) in your exam
• The question will require you to analyse and write in detail about an aspect of The Merchant of Venice
• Your answer will need to address both the extract from the play that you will be given, and the play as a whole

For a much more detailed guide on answering The Merchant of Venice question, please see our revision notes on How to Answer the Shakespeare Essay Question .

The characters you should focus on when revising The Merchant of Venice are:

When considering a Shakespeare play or any other text, it is crucial to remember that characters are intentionally crafted by the writer to serve a specific purpose. In many cases, these characters embody certain concepts or beliefs, and the writer, such as Shakespeare, uses them to reflect on and examine these ideas. For more details on how Shakespeare uses his characters in The Merchant of Venice, please see The Merchant of Venice: Characters revision notes page. 

Understanding what context actually is can be tricky at GCSE. Examiners understand context not as historical information, or biographical facts about a writer, but as the ideas and perspectives explored by a writer through their text. Therefore, The Merchant of Venice context you should explore in your essay response is not information about medieval Italy, or facts about William Shakespeare, but ideas about:

• Prejudice and intolerance
• Love and friendship in the Elizabethan era
• Wealth and power

Lots of these ideas and perspectives are universal, so your own opinions of them are valid and will be rewarded in an exam. For a detailed breakdown of the contextual topics listed above, see The Merchant of Venice: Context page. 

Understanding the themes that Shakespeare explores in The Merchant of Venice is one of the best approaches any student can take when revising the play. This is because to get the highest mark on your exam, you need to take what examiners call a “conceptualised approach”: a detailed and perceptive exploration of Shakespeare’s ideas and intentions. The main themes explored by Shakespeare in The Merchant of Venice are:

• Justice and mercy
• Love and friendship

Shakespeare explores numerous other themes in The Merchant of Venice beyond those mentioned above and you are encouraged to examine these themes too. However, the above list makes a great place to start and detailed breakdowns of each of these themes can be found on The Merchant of Venice: Themes page.  

Although you are given credit for including quotations from The Merchant of Venice in your answer, it is not a requirement of the exam. In fact, examiners say that “references” to the rest of the play are just as valid as direct quotations: this is when students pinpoint individual moments in the play, rather than quoting what the characters say. In order to select references really successfully, it is extremely important that you know the play itself very well, including the order of the events that take place in the play. This detailed act-by-act breakdown of the plot will help you to revise the chronology of The Merchant of Venice.

However, it can also be useful to revise a few – very well selected –  quotations from the play that can be used in a variety of essays on different themes and characters. Luckily, we have made that selection for you! For a ‘translation’ and detailed analysis of each of these quotations, see The Merchant of Venice: Key Quotations page.

Please see our revision pages on the Shakespeare exam for guides on:

• Structuring The Merchant of Venice essay
• The Merchant of Venice methods and techniques
• How to include context in The Merchant of Venice essay
• Understanding The Merchant of Venice mark scheme
• A Shakespeare model answer

Everything You Need to Know About ‘The Merchant of Venice’ for English: Summary, Context, Themes & Analysis

Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice explores a Christian merchant’s bond with a Jewish moneylender, their high-stakes loan, and a controversial trial. Check out the plot summary, key characters, themes, quotes and a step-by-step guide on how to analyse an excerpt from the text.

Studying this text for the HSC English Common Module  right now?

We’ve also got a sample analysis table (also called a TEE table ) and a sample Band 6 paragraph!

So, what are you waiting for? It’s time to ace your analysis of The Merchant of Venice — let’s go!

Summary of The Merchant of Venice  Historical Context  Key Characters in The Merchant of Venice Themes and Quotes from The Merchant of Venice   Connection to Texts and Human Experiences How to Analyse The Merchant of Venice in 4 Steps Sample Band 6 Paragraph and TEE Tables

Plot Summary of The Merchant of Venice

The Merchant of Venice follows  Bassanio , who is too poor to attempt to win the hand of his true love, Portia . In order to travel to Portia’s estate, he asks his best friend, Antonio , for a loan.

Because Antonio’s money is invested in a number of trade ships, the two friends ask to borrow money from Shylock, the Jew.  

Shylock tells the men that if they cannot repay the money, he will claim a pound of Antonio’s flesh. They borrow the money regardless, and Bassanio and Portia fall happily in love.

Meantime, Antonio’s ships have been lost so he is unable to repay Shylock the money that had been loaned. Shylock takes Antonio to court in order to claim his pound of flesh.

Portia dresses up as a legal doctor and disguises herself as the judge of the court. During the court scene, Bassanio offers Shylock twice the money lent, but Shylock refuses.

At the last minute, as Shylock is about to cut a pound of flesh from Antonio , the judge (Portia) claims that the law does not state he can have any of Antonio’s blood .

Shylock finally agrees to take the money, but Portia argues that because he is guilty of conspiring against a Venetian citizen, he must give away all of his property to the state and Antonio.

Antonio does not ask Shylock to pay the money, but requires him to convert to Christianity and give his inheritance to Lorenzo, and his daughter, Jessica, who abandoned him.

Portia eventually reveals her disguise to Antonio and Bassanio, and it is revealed that Antonio’s ships have returned safely.

The Merchant of Venice: Characters, Themes, Quotes, Analysis + Sample Paragraph

Key characters in the merchant of venice.

Antonio Antonio is arguably the protagonist of The Merchant of Venice, and the merchant the play is named after. As an audience we are drawn to Antonio due to his melancholy demeanour and devotion to his best friend, Bassanio. However, Antonio shows his dark side through the cruel and racist comments he makes towards Shylock throughout the play. 

Bassanio Bassanio is Antonio’s best friend. He’s obsessed with two things: money and Portia. And since Portia is super rich, we could argue it’s just money. Bassanio is also manipulative and cunning throughout the play, using convoluted rhetoric to convince Antonio to lend him money and using figurative language to make it pretty clear he likes Portia for her money. 

Portia Portia is the wealthy heiress of Belmont. Before his death, her father created three caskets and only the man to choose the correct casket could marry his daughter. Not being able to choose her own husband and being forced into limited feminine roles, Portia lacks autonomy within her society. However, she finds ways to circumvent the systems which oppress her, and demonstrates a surprising amount of agency by the end of the play. 

Shylock Shylock is the Jew that lends Antonio 3000 Ducats on the condition that if he does not return the loan in three months, Shylock can take a pound of flesh from Antonio. Shylock hates the Christians and curses them throughout the play, yet we might feel sorry for Shylock when we see the abuse he endures from his society. Shylock stands out as a “what you see is what you get” kind of character, which contrasts against the deceitfulness of many of the Christian characters in the Merchant of Venice.

Jessica Jessica is Shylock’s daughter. She steals her father’s money and treasures and runs away to marry Lorenzo, converting to christianity. You may want to consider whether Jessica was justified in leaving her cruel father, or whether she abandoned her family and religion. 

Lorenzo Lorenzo is close friends with Antonio and Bassanio. He marries Jessica, who, much like Portia, is loaded with cash after stealing it from her father. However, unlike Bassanio who just wants Portia for her money, Lorenzo seems much more likely to love Jessica for who she is. He also marries a jew, something his society would have condemned. So, you may like to consider whether Lorenzo is less confined to his society’s prejudices than other characters in the Merchant of Venice. 

Nerissa Portia’s lady in waiting and bestie. Nerissa and Portia enjoy mocking her suitors together.

Minor Characters in the Merchant of Venice Gratiano: Bassanio’s friend. The Duke of Venice: The Duke of Venice’s job is to hold up the law. He has little power to help Antonio after he owes Shylock a pound of flesh. Prince of Morocco: O ne of Portia’s suitors. Portia and Nerissa mock him for the dark colour of his skin. The Prince of Arragon: One of Portia’s suitors. Salarino and Solerio: These two are difficult to differentiate from one another. These characters are merchants in Venice and friends with Antonio and Bassanio.  Launcelot Gobbo: Initially Shylock’s servant, he leaves to work for Bassanio. Launcelot Gobbo is the clown of the play, and often misuses big words.  Old Gobbo: Launcelot Gobbo’s dad. Tubal: A friend of Shylock. Balthasar: Portia’s servant, who she sends to Doctor Bellario to provide the documents she needs to appear as The Duke in court.

Context of The Merchant of Venice

The Merchant of Venice was written when antisemitism (hostility against Jews) was prevalent in Europe.

A fresh wave of this antisemitism erupted after the trial and execution of Roderigo Lopez, a doctor of Jewish ancestry who served and was accused of poisoning Queen Elizabeth I.

Jewish people were stereotyped as ‘greedy’ and ‘cruel money lenders’.

The Merchant of Venice has been criticised by some for appealing to this antisemitism, yet others have acknowledged the ways in which Shakespeare challenged the antisemitism of his time by humanising Shylock.

Shylock contrasts against other depictions of Jews at the time, such as Barabas from Christopher Marlowe’s play, The Jew of Malta , which gave a more one-dimensional and stereotypical depiction of a Jew.

This was also a time in which women were seen as property by males, and it was very difficult for women to have any property or real power of their own .

It is important to consider this in order to understand the actions of Portia throughout the play, who circumvents and exploits patriarchal structures in order to gain power for herself.

If The Merchant of Venice isn’t your prescribed text for the Common Module and you’re studying Kenneth Slessor’s poetry instead, we’ve got you covered! Check out our analysis and summary of ‘Wild Grapes’.

Themes & Quotes from The Merchant of Venice

1. value of money over human life.

Throughout the play, Shakespeare  contrasts the value of human life and monetary value — we’re prompted to consider whether characters favour commodities or human life.

This quote conveys this idea in particular:

“I would my daughter were dead at my foot and the jewels in her ear! Would she were hearsed at my foot and the ducats in her coffin!” – Shylock, Act 3 Scene 1

In this speech, Shylock is so enraged that his daughter ran away and stole all his money and jewels that he wishes his daughter was dead. Though, there’s more than one way this quote can be interpreted:

Does it suggest that he desires all the jewels and ducats back, and his daughter dead, upset with what she’s done? Or is he saying that he doesn’t really care for the money, but is hurt by what Jessica has done, that he wants her dead?

2. Commodification of love

From the start of the play, Bassanio evidently shows that he cares a lot about Portia’s money, even just in the way he talks about her, stating:

 “many Jasons come in quest of her” – Bassanio to Antonio, Act 1 Scene 1.

In this quote, Bassanio alludes to the Greek myth of Jason and the argonauts, where a team of heroes go on a quest in search of a golden fleece. By suggesting that Portia is a prize, like the golden fleece, what can be said about the way Bassanio views Portia?

Need more key lines from the play? Here are all the important quotes you need from The Merchant of Venice to write your analysis!

3. Marginalisation of oppressed groups

Another The Merchant of Venice theme is the marginalisation of not only Jewish people in 16th Century Venetian society, but women too.

In Act 4 Scene 1, Gratiano insults Shylock: “thy currish spirit Govern’d a wolf, who, hang’d for human slaughter, Even from the gallows did his fell soul fleet, And, whilst thou lay’st in thy unhallow’d dam, Infused itself in thee; for thy desires Are wolvish, bloody, starved and ravenous.” – Gratiano, Act 4 Scene 1

This quote illustrates Gratiano insulting Shylock by suggesting he was reincarnated from a wolf. He also calls Shylock’s mother an “unhallow’d dam”, playing on the word “dam”, referring both to a female parent of an animal but also suggesting she is “damned”.  

Interestingly, his language is Christian, but this idea of reincarnation is starkly non-Christian.  

Is Shakespeare complicit in Gratiano’s racism, or is Shakespeare self consciously pointing out the hypocrisy of a Christian using non-Christian logic to insult Shylock?

4. The individual desire for power and agency

Portia expresses her yearning for power to circumvent her marginalisation. As she tells Bassanio:

“This house, these servants, and this same myself Are yours, my lord’s. I give them with this ring, Which when you part from, lose, or give away, Let it presage the ruin of your love And be my vantage to exclaim on you.”

In this speech, Portia warns Bassanio that if he loses her ring, their love is ruined and that she will have power over him.  

We could then say that Portia’s ring is a way for her to manipulate Bassanio and gain power over him, especially since she’s the one who plans for him to lose the ring.

The paragraph for download below argues that Portia’s character spends the play manipulating others to gain her own power. Do you agree?

Connection to Texts and Human Experiences

Before analysing The Merchant of Venice, it’s important to get familiar with the Common Module: Texts and Human Experiences so you know how to relate to the module in your assessment.

Let’s take a look at the syllabus!

In short, this module is about deepening your understanding of how texts represent the individual and collective human experience. This can include examining how texts represent human qualities and emotions associated with, or arising from human experiences.

Shakespeare was a playwright who was very interested in the idea of the human being , meaning “human experiences” are central to his thematic concerns. Here are some key ways that the play relates to the HSC Common Module syllabus:

• The Merchant of Venice represents the collective human experiences of oppression, racism and marginalisation, as well the individual human experiences of overcoming these limitations.
• Shakespeare represents the human qualities of ambition, and motivations of greed and power, by showing how all of his characters will do anything to get what they want. For example, Bassanio will do anything to get money (oops, I mean Portia), Portia will do anything for power, and Shylock will do anything for revenge.
• Shakespeare represents characters in the Merchant of Venice paradoxically , as simultaneously marginalised (whether by money, gender or religion) as well as in positions of power. Shylock is particularly paradoxical as he is simultaneously depicted as cruel and vengeful, and a victim of an antisemitic society.
• Bassanio and Portia are presented as inconsistent , ostensibly motivated by their love for one another, but on a deeper level, motivated by money and power respectively. Shakespeare challenges the responder to see the world differently by suggesting people are not what they seem: loving protagonists perhaps have ulterior motives, and cruel antagonists can be marginalised victims of their society.

Check out our list of recommended related texts for the HSC Common Module that you can use for The Merchant of Venice!

Analyse The Merchant of Venice in 4 Steps

Students will often try to start writing their essay with a thesis when trying to answer an essay question.

But you should without a doubt start with your analysis!

You need to equip yourself with the knowledge of your text before you can answer anything about it.

We’re going to walk you through  how to prove a topic sentence using literary analysis of The Merchant of Venice in 4 Steps.

The Topic Sentence

It’s important that whenever we are writing analysis we do it with a theme or a topic sentence in mind.

For the following analysis, this is the topic sentence we are trying to prove:

Portia moves from an object of male consumption to a subject with individual agency throughout the Merchant of Venice, yet she uses her power to marginalise others

Step 1: Choose your example

When we choose examples, we want to use quotes that have a strong technique which we are able to analyse.

That’s why we have chosen Bassanio’s descriptions of Portia:

He calls her a “lady richly left,”  a “golden fleece,” and speaks of her “worth.”

Note: It’s okay to have multiple quotes in an example, so long as they prove the same point!

Step 2: Identify techniques

When trying to find a technique within your example, it’s not about finding the fanciest technique or just any old technique for that matter!

It’s about identifying a technique which will enable you to say something about your idea that’s interesting and can contribute to your argument and analysis.

We have identified a few techniques from these quotes. For the first two quote, “a lady richly left” and “worth” , the technique is consumerist imagery.

For the second quote “golden fleece” the technique is allusion to Greek mythology.

Notice that we haven’t pointed out the alliteration in “lady richly left” because we have nothing to say about this alliteration.

We should only use a technique if it has an effect which we can link back to our topic sentence.

If you need to brush up on your literary techniques, check out this cheat sheet of literary techniques to improve your vocabulary

Step 3: Carry out your analysis 

Now that you’ve identified your techniques, you need to conduct some analysis!

There are three steps to good analysis:

• Focus on your chosen techniques and identify what it reveals about an idea.
• Show how the effect of the quote links to the idea of your topic sentence
• Say something new about your topic sentence (don’t just repeat the previous point!)

We are going to analyse the first two quotes and the third quote separately, however our analysis is going to suggest the same idea about both of them.

Technique #1: Consumerist imagery 

The consumerist imagery of “a lady richly left” and “worth”  position Portia as an object for male consumption and a commodity .

Technique #2: Mythological allusion

This reference to Jason and the Argonauts positions portia as a prize to be won, rather than as an individual with her own subjective experience.

Have a think about how we have fulfilled the two steps for analysis above. 

Step 4: Put it all together!

So we have found an example, identified a technique and written some analysis. Now let’s put it all together into the beginning of a paragraph:

Portia moves from an object of male consumption to a subject with individual agency throughout the Merchant of Venice, yet she uses her power to marginalise others. Bassanio describes Portia as an object through consumerist imagery. He calls her a “lady richly left” and speaks of her “worth.” He couples this with an allusion to Greek mythology, calling her a “golden fleece.” This reference to Jason and the Argonauts positions Portia as a prize to be won, rather than as an individual with her own subjective experience.

Sample Band 6 Paragraph and TEE Tables

We’ve analysed another two examples using TEE tables for The Merchant of Venice that you can access for FREE below! Plus, we’ve also written a sample Band 6 paragraph for you to read over. Download it below!

And that wraps up our guide to analysing The Merchant of Venice for HSC English Texts and Human Experiences. You’ve now got everything you need to know about The Merchant of Venice with the summary, key characters, themes and quotes — good luck!

Looking for some extra help with The Merchant of Venice for the HSC Common Module?

We have an incredible team of HSC English tutors and mentors who are new HSC syllabus experts!

We can help you master your analysis for The Merchant of Venice by taking you through the summary, key characters, quotes and themes. We’ll also help you ace your upcoming HSC assessments with personalised lessons conducted one-on-one in your home or at one of our state of the art campuses in Hornsby or the Hills!

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The Merchant of Venice

Introduction.

William Shakespeare, the world’s pre-eminent dramatist or playwright and the renowned poet, was born in 1564, in Stratford. During the Elizabethan ages of theatre, he was one of the creative writers. His plays, no doubt, are his everlasting heritage, however, plays are not the only thing he wrote; his poetry is also renowned to this day.

The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare Summary

However, he agrees to lend the loan without interest with a condition that is if Antonia doesn’t repay or is not able to repay his loan with a fixed duration, Shylock will exact a pound of Antonia’s flesh. Antonio, being confident that his ships will return at the time, accepts the offer.

In the court of Duke of Venice, Shylock declines Bassanio’s offer of double payment of loan i.e. 6000 ducats and demanded the pound of Antonio’s flesh. The Duke wishes to save Antonio’s life but was unable to do so, he handover the case to the visitors- the visitors are Portia, the lawyer in disguised and maid Nerrisa, the clerk in disguised. As the wise lawyer, Portia recurrently asks Shylock to have mercy on Antonio but shylock declines her requests and insists on the demand of pound of flesh.

Themes in the Merchant of Venice

Love versus self-interest, hatred and prejudice, the merchant of venice characters analysis.

Antonia is a rich Christian merchant in Venice. His love for his friend Bassanio prompts him to sign a contract of one pound of his flesh. He is a character who possess both the characteristics of the protagonist and antagonists. He shows great love and affection towards his Christian friends but is harsher towards Jews and abuse them with his outspoken Anti-Semitism. However, at the end of the story, being representative of Christian’s New Testament, he shows great mercy towards Shylock, A Jewish Character, too.

He is a kind friend of Bassanio who accompanies him to Belmont. He is overly talkative and flippant representing the flat character of the play. He marries Portia’s maid Nerrisa.

He is a friend of Bassanio and Antonia and loves Shylock’s daughter Jessica. He schemed to escape with Jessica and marry her in Belmont.

Duke of Venice:

The merchant of venice literary analysis.

There is no narrator in the play. All the story is presented through dialogues of the characters on the stage.

More From William Shakespeare

73 The Merchant of Venice Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

🏆 best the merchant of venice topic ideas & essay examples, 📌 good essay topics on the merchant of venice, 🔎 most interesting the merchant of venice topics to write about, ❓ merchant of venice essay questions.

• “The Merchant of Venice” as a Comedy It is quite comical that one of the conditions in the case of a default of the loan taken from the Jewish Shylock by Antonio is the repayment of the loan in form of one […]
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Bibliography

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Common – The Merchant Of Venice – Essay

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Resource Description

Essay that compares and contrasts the characters of Shylock & Portia (Shakespeare’s The Merchant Of Venice.)

William Shakespeare’s masterful storytelling in his play The Merchant Of Venice (MOV) allows audiences to introspect and gain insight into the anomalies which epitomise the human experience. Accordingly, the Bard’s treatment of Shylock and Portia’s individual experiences is unique because as the plot progresses, these seemingly dichotomous become increasingly alike due their paradoxes. Ultimately, this story has impacted audiences across time by providing a perspective which authentically reflects the human condition.

Shakespeare contrasts Shylock and Portia’s individual experiences through the audience’s surface level perception of their characters, as a bloodthirsty Jew and an empowering Heroine, respectively.  The Jew’s antagonistic tendencies are established whilst creating the bond with Antonio, “In merry sport, if you repay me not … let the forfeit be nominated for an equal pound of your fair flesh.” Although Shylock maintains the comic genre of MOV by stating that the agreement is “a merry sport,” it is highly inconsistent because when he later uses the phrase “merry bond,” he incorporates an oxymoron, as a bond which legalises murder is hardly merry. Ultimately, the bond is a symbol which encompasses Shylock’s revenge and disregard for Antonio’s life, which coincides with the Elizabethan myth of Jews being barbaric enough to practice ritual murder. Shylock’s jest is virtually absent later in the play, as he demands, “I’ll have my bond. I will not hear thee speak … I’ll not be made a soft and dull-eyed fool… I will have my bond.” Through pairing anaphora with the imperative mood of the verb “I will,” the playwright utilises Shylock’s ire-filled monologue to solidify him as a bloodthirsty Machiavellian adamant to receive justice and witness Antonio suffer. Comparatively, Shakespeare contrasts Shylock against Portia, who is indirectly introduced at the start of the play through Bassanio as, “a lady richly left, and she is fair, and fairer than that word, of wondrous virtues.” In this line, Bassanio’s hyperbolic language exalts Portia as a paragon of Renaissance womanhood in whom the classical graces of beauty, chastity and passion are perfectly balanced and combined. However, the fact is she “left” implies that Portia is abandoned and vulnerable in the patriarchal society, with a fortune coveted by many suitors. By the climax, however, Portia subverts such assumptions by crossdressing as a lawyer to save Antonio, in which the dramatist juxtaposes Portia against the men she is subservient to, but less capable. Portia exercises her intelligence in the monologue, “The quality of mercy is not strained, it droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven… it is enthroned in the hearts of kings, it is an attribute of God.” Portia instills her argument with ethos and religious imagery to prove that “mercy is above” the law of common men as it is “in the hearts of kings” who have a Divine Right to rule; hence, “it is an attribute to God himself” which even a Jew must respect. Evidently, the dramatist skillfully depicts the disparities in these opposing individual experiences before revealing their similarities.

By exposing the dualities of these multifaceted characters, Shakespeare is able to establish their collective human experience. Throughout MOV, casual abuse is shown towards Shylock by constantly referring to him by the vocative “the Jew,” which completely dehumanises and alienates him from Venetian society. Furthermore, a large array of deprecatory nouns and adjectives are added before this, to augment how uncivilised and subhuman Shylock is from a Christian perspective, including, “dog,” “villain,” “faithless,” “currish,” and “harsh.” Moreover, Antonio expresses the highly discriminatory line, “The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose. An evil soul producing holy witness is like a villain with a smiling cheek, a goodly apple rotten at the heart.” By religiously alluding to “the devil,” Antonio  explicitly personifies Shylock as the figure of true evil. Moreover, the juxtaposition of light and dark imagery, shown through “holy witness” and “evil soul,” makes the rigid hierarchy between Christianity and Judaism in Renaissance Italy apparent to modern audiences. However, these acts of prejudice are paradoxical to this group’s collective human experience, as they do not agree with the quality of mercy, which is inherent to Christianity. Shylock’s situation particularly appeals to modern responders due to minimal tolerance towards racism, yet, perhaps the dramatist intends to mock his contemporary audience’s values through this irony.  Although Shylock is solely accused of conspiring to trap “good Antonio,” his villainous actions can be equated with Portia’s in the climactic trial scene, which illustrates their shared human experience. Portia carefully plots her attack against the Jew by waiting until the final moment before revealing the flaw in the bond, “Take thou thy pound of flesh, but in the cutting it, if thou dost shed one drop of Christian blood, thy lands and goods are … confiscate.” Rather than employing the imperative, Portia issues this line with conditional language and an ironic politeness to mark a poignant moment of peripeteia. Moreover, by deliberately prolonging the trial and repeatedly giving Shylock the chance to forfeit beforehand, the Bard’s nuanced storytelling highlights Portia’s cruelty as she intentionally exacerbates his humiliation. Despite appealing to audiences across time as a heroine by saving Antonio and challenging Tudor gender roles, the playwright evokes a strong sense of irony by exposing Portia’s paradoxical actions, as Shylock is shown little mercy despite it previously being so earnestly endorsed. His punishment is ruthless as it thieves him of everything he cares for; his family and his religious identity, and has worked tirelessly for; his wealth and status. Ultimately, Shakespeare deliberately creates a sense of ambiguity at the play’s conclusion, allowing audiences for four-hundred years to dispute whether the Jew is a villain or a victim of his context, and whether Portia really is an empowering heroine or a hypocritical racist.

Through challenging perceptions of Portia and Shylock’s individual experiences, Shakespeare’s efficacious storytelling in MOV allows audiences to realise that it is these inconsistencies which connects all humans to forge a universal human experience.

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