The merchant of venice is the story of a jewish moneylender who demands that an antisemitic christian offer a pound of flesh as collateral against a loan. In shakespeares play the merchant of venice, shylock and antonio make a. First performed in 1598, shakespeares study of religious difference remains controversial. The merchant of venice opens with antonio, a christian merchant, in a depressed state. The merchant of venice shakespeare birthplace trust.
For some, the stations register entry raises a question about who the plays hero isantonio the merchant or shylock the jewish moneylender. In this lively comedy of love and money in sixteenthcentury venice, bassanio wants to impress the wealthy heiress portia but lacks the necessary funds. When one private individual decides to revenge himself. The merchant of venice depends heavily upon laws and rulesthe. We should also point out that, although 16thcentury venice was more tolerant of foreigners than elizabethan england, jews in venice were confined to ghettos at the time shakespeare wrote the merchant of venice. Both the central action of the merchant of venice shylocks attempt to revenge himself on the christian antonio and the romantic subplotbetween bassanio and portia explore the relationship between law, mercy, and revenge shakespeares contemporary, the philosopher francis bacon, defined revenge as a kind of wild justice. A christian stole his daughter and she took his money, and nothing will satisfy shylock except the legal fulfillment of the bond. Summary of the merchant of venice shakespeare birthplace. Shylock ignores these slurs and states resolutely, i stand here for law iv.
Prejudice and law in the merchant of venice shakespeare survey. Despite powerful man, he is unable to save antonias life and is helpless in front of the law. Conceptions of law in the merchant of venice, bleak house, les miserables, and. Conflicts of law and equity in the merchant of venice. He turns to his merchant friend, antonio, who is forced to borrow from shylock, a jewish moneylender. The legal issues in shakespeares the merchant of venice and. One can easily find a discussion of every legal concept raised in the course of the play white 11146, a detailed legal dissection of the trial scene in act iv keeton 250, and even an imaginary appellate strategy on behalf of. It appears from holdsworths lengthy analysis that the law merchant. The merchant of venice quizzes about important details and events in every section of the book. The merchant of venice, act iv, scene 1 bowen law repository. The play, the merchant of venice, is categorized as the comedy, also refers to problem comedy. In the court of justice, presided over by the duke of venice, shylock faces his enemy, antonio. Law, mercy, and revenge theme in the merchant of venice. Read a character analysis of shylock, plot summary and important quotes.
Summary of william shakespeares merchant of venice. The merchant of venice has spawned more commentary by lawyers than any other shakespeare play kornstein 66. In the following paper, the author will analyse the merchant of venice as fitting into the. Finally his friend bassanio, an aristocrat who has lost all of his money, comes and asks antonio to loan him some money antonio, who has tied up all of his money is seafaring ventures, is unable to give bassanio a direct loan. The legally institutionalized prejudice seen in the merchant of venice is repulsive from a modern perspective. It is recognised in the year books, and it is enacted in 4 hen.
Shylock nurses a longstanding grudge against antonio, who has made a habit of berating shylock and other jews for their usury, the practice of loaning money at exorbitant rates of interest, and who undermines their business by offering interestfree loans. The merchant of venice by william shakespeare summary. A kind and merciful ruler of venice who presides over the trial. When antonios business falters, repayment becomes impossibleand by the terms of the loan. Love, necessity and law in the merchant of venice the journal of. In venice, shylock is no longer interested in the mere payment of the money due him. The trial scene is the longest in the play and stands as one of the most dramatic scenes in all of shakespeare. Shylock asks for a pound of flesh as part of a loan contract weird, bassanio agrees to it weirder, and portia saves the day by crossdressing and pretending to practice the law perfectly normal. He uses a type of justice found in the book of exodus, where taking an. Much of this paper will thus be devoted to a study of the merchant of venice as a text that betrays a unique understanding of the issues of law and love and. The merchant of venice by william shakespeare free ebook. This short essay does not permit a full analysis of.
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