Book Review

SOHAM ROYXI - F

SYNOPSYSIS

Moneylander Shylock

Failure to pay

Forum

Portia’s speechShilock’s loss and forced

religious conversion

Loan to Bassanio

Payment: amount of money or a pound of Antonio's flesh closest to his heart

The tragic comedy was composed in 1596 - 98 at Venice, the rhen richest city of Europe

In a nutshell…• Portia, a beautiful, wealthy heiress living in Belmont decides to marry the

suitor who picks the right casket out of three that contains her picture.

• Bassanio, a Venetian aristocrat who has lost all his money asks his friend Antonio, a Christian merchant who hates Jews, to loan him money to woo Portia. Since all has his money is tied up in seafaring ventures, Antonio approaches Shylock, a Jewish moneylender who hates Antonio for his anti-Semitic feelings. Shylock suggests an unusual condition for loan of three thousand ducats only if Antonio would give a pound of his flesh in case the money is not returned in three months. Antonio, thinking this is a "merry sport," accepts the condition of the bond (contract) and signs it.

• Bassanio selects the correct casket containing Portia’s portrait. Portia makes Bassanio promise never to part with their engagement ring.

• Bassanio receives a letter from Antonio informing that he has lost all his money and must forfeit a pound of flesh to Shylock. Portia sends Bassanio to Venice with six thousand ducats to pay Shylock and cancel the contract. After Bassanio has left, Portia departs for Venice disguised as a man.

• Shylock has Antonio arrested and brought before the Duke of Venice, who pleads with Shylock to forgive and let Antonio go free. But Shylock won't hear reason and wants justice , delivered through a pound of Antonio's flesh.

• A young, effeminate-looking, learned lawyer called Balthazar (a.k.a. Portia) confirms that the contract is in order but tells Shylock should have mercy on Antonio, as mercy is a higher order quality than justice. Shylock insists on justice and refuses to accept Bassanio’s offer for six thousand ducats, Bassanio says he wishes he could trade his wife and his life for Antonio's.

In a nutshell…contd.• Balthazar decides that Shylock may have Antonio’s pound of flesh. When

overjoyed Shylock is ready to cut into Antonio's breast, Balthazar says the bond entitles Shylock to a pound of flesh - nothing more and nothing less. If he spills even a drop of Antonio’s blood, then he'll be guilty of plotting to murder a Venetian Christian, the penalty for which is losing everything he has.

• When Shylock declares that he'll leave, Balthazar says since he conspired to kill a Venetian he actually has to forfeit everything he owns and beg for his life.

• Finally holding the upper hand, Antonio decides that as punishment, Shylock has to sign an agreement saying that when he dies, all his money will go to Shylock’s daughter Jessica and her new Christian husband. Also, Shylock must convert to Christianity. Shylock leaves a broken man.

• After the trial Balthazar asks Bassanio for the ring Portia had given him as a token of their love. When Antonio points out that he nearly lost his life for Bassanio, Bassanio pulls off the ring and hands it to Balthazar.

• Portia manages to return to Belmont before Bassanio. She asks Bassanio about the ring (which he had given to Bathazar). Portia complains about the man breaking faith for this lawyer, and she pledges to sleep with this learned man too, breaking her marriage vows like Bassanio did by giving up her ring.

• Later, Portia gives Antonio a ring to give to Bassanio. Bassanio is shocked to see it is the same ring he gave Balthazar.

• Portia reveals that she had got a letter that says some of Antonio's ships have come home with cash after all. The play ends with happiness for most of the characters in the play – all except Shylock.

………HAPPY ENDING……..

Shylock

Antonio

• stereotype of the Jew in Elizabethan times• comically caricatured as a greedy miser • believes that his profiteering is not a sin• eloquently expresses his hatred of Christian Venetians• alienation causes his bitterness and humiliation makes him seek revenge• well versed in the Bible• has a cold and calculating mind - attempts to revenge the wrongs done to

him by murdering his persecutor• has quick and agile thought processes• a powerful personality beneath a cruel, and prosaic figure

• titular protagonist of the play : The Merchant of Venice• a mercurial figure, often inexplicably melancholy • Anti Semite with incorrigible dislike of Jews.• ideal of nobility in friendship , kind and generous to friends and the poor

even merciful to sworn enemy (albeit with conditions) • Christian of Elizabethan times – feels money should be lent for charity.• As the symbol of Christian warmth, kindness, generosity, and love, truly

receives his just reward during the play when all turns out well for him.• a rather lackluster character

Principal characters

Bassanio

Portia

• ineffectual businessman - squandered his wealth on pleasures of good living and extravagant expenditure

• graceful with words, a worthy suitor - the model of a romantic hero. • impulsive by nature - typical of young men • uncalculated generosity and concern – rushes to save Antonio • strength of character in not implicating Antonio while pleading to

Portia for giving away the ring • more fully drawn than Antonio's, but does not possess the powerful

individuality of Portia and Shylock.

• most multi-dimensional character in the play, shifting from a wealthy heiress to a learned lawyer orchestrating victory of good over evil

• her extraordinary beauty is matched only by her intelligence - clever with words and quick-wit

• perfect example of Elizabethan nobility : ideal of mercy is unselfish generosity and money to be used for helping loved ones.

• unlike Antonio, she is not passive, but displays boundless energy and strong determination

• authority and control over life are exemplary - ability to make the law work for her both in choosing her husband and saving husband’s friend from certain death.

Other characters

• coarse and garrulous young man • most vocal and insulting critic of Shylock • Bassanio’s friend, falls in love with Nerissa.

Gratiano

o

Nerissa • Portia’s lady-in-waiting and confidante • escorts Portia to Venice by disguising herself as

Stephano - Balthazar (aka Portia) ‘s law clerk.

Lorenzo • A friend of Bassanio and Antonio• Elopes with Jessica to Belmont

• Jessica hates life in her father’ (Shylock) s house,• Beautiful, wise, charming with a strong sense of

humour and poetical nature• we wonder if her sale of a ring given to her father

by her mother is excessively callous

Jessica

• Solanio, Salarino, Salerio – friends of Bassanio & Antonio• Tubal – Shylock’s friend, a Jew• Lancelot Gobbo – a comical, clownish servant of Shylock who

is especially adept at making puns and starts work for Bassanio• Old Gobbo – father of Lancelot• Leonardo – servant of Bassanio• Duke of Venice – presides over case of Shylock’s bond• Prince of Morocco, Prince of Arragon – failed suitors of Portia• Magnificoes of Venice, Officers of the Court of Justice, Gaolor,

servants of Portia and other attendants

Hath not a Jew eyes? Hath not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions, senses, affections, passions; fed with the same food, hurt with the same weapons, subject to the same diseases, heal'd by the same means, warm'd and cool'd by the same winter and summer as a Christian is? If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge? If we are like you in the rest, we will resemble you in that. If a Jew wrong a Christian, what is his humility? Revenge. If a Christian wrong a Jew, what should his sufferance be by Christian example? Why, revenge. The villainy you teach me, I will execute, and it shall go hard but I will better the instruction.—Act III, scene I

Sympathetic interpretation

Play as a plea for tolerance

Did Shakespeare intend to attract the sympathetic sensibilities among modern readers,...

Venice, 1600 Interpretation of the

playContrast between the mercy of Christian characters and the vengefulness of a Jew

Shylock forced conversion as a “happy ending”

Inherent Themes

Race • Judaism and Christianity aren't just religions – they're constructed as

racial (and even national) identities as well. • the play dramatizes 16th century racial stereotypes that are deeply

unsettling, especially for modern audiences. • While the play depicts anti-Semitism, literary critics are divided over

the question of whether or not the play itself endorses racism.

Wealth • Money plays is a very big role in this play. • the characters' attitudes toward wealth, mercantilism, and usury

(lending money with interest) function as a way to differentiate between Christians and Jews.

• Christians are portrayed as generous and even careless with their fortunes. The money-grubbing Shylock, on the other hand, is accused of caring more for his ducats than human relationships.

Friendship • "To you, Antonio, / I owe the most, in money and in love" (1.1.4)• Friendship is valued above all other relationships – Antonio loves

Bassanio enough to give his life for him .

Marriage • Marriage is portrayed in several different ways

• as a risky business venture,• a mythological quest• a chance for an unhappy daughter to escape her father's home• a way for a father to transmit his wealth to the man of his

choosing, • opportunity for two men to become more secure in their

friendship.

Venice, 1600 Interpretation of the

playContrast between the mercy of Christian characters and the vengefulness of a Jew

Shylock forced conversion as a “happy ending”

Inherent Themes....contd..

Justice • To protect foreign businessmen’s interest, Venice had laws to protect

their legal rights In implementation of a contract. • Judaism is associated with the Mosaic code with its strict emphasis on

justice and following the letter of the law.• Christianity, on the other hand, is associated with the New

Testament's emphasis on God's mercy and offer of salvation..

Love • Love comes in a variety of forms - between family members, between

friends, and of course, between lovers. • Still, love is more notable for its absence than its presence in the play.• Women happy to give love, but they do so with a shred of cynicism.• Love is regulated, sacrificed, betrayed, built on rocky foundations

Isolation • riddled with characters who feel a deep sense of isolation. • Shylock is isolated because he is Jewish – his religious beliefs and

cultural values different from fellow Venetians. • Antonio is isolated by his relationship with Bassanio

Choices • characters must choose between lovers, friends, and family, personal

comfort and societal norms. • Bassanio is faced with choosing correctly or permanent celibacy • Antonio must choose between preserving his personal happiness as

Bassanio's closest friend and enabling Bassanio to marry Portia• Shylock chooses to doggedly pursue his pound of Antonio's flesh

because Antonio, among others, has chosen to treat him like a dog. • Antonio chooses to deprive Shylock of his livelihood and his religion.

Venice, 1600 Interpretation of the

playContrast between the mercy of Christian characters and the vengefulness of a Jew

Shylock forced conversion as a “happy ending”

A Literary review

• The play is a touching and challenging one with several

fascinating interwoven plots

• Shakespeare’s insight into the human character is impressive

and the passion involved rivets the readers’ attention

throughout

• Two well-known speeches are often quoted –

• Shylock’s defense of Jews against the prejudices of

Venetians &

• Portia’s statements on quality of mercy

• In this play Shakespeare has been successful in being relevant

even though four hundred years have elapsed

• In today’s time when there is want of sincerity, moral values

and justice, the play assumes great significance

• We can easily find people around us like Shylock –

materialistic to the core, ready to enhance personal wealth

through any heinous means

• The religious intolerance - which is a major theme of this play

– bares its fangs off and on in all countries