Money In William Shakespeare's For The Love Of Money

For the Love of Money
Introduction
During the Renaissance England’s population doubled, causing a surge in prices, and the formation of new industrial and agricultural markets. Consequently, social relations became increasingly fluid, as merchants and ambitious lower class gentlemen profited at the expense of the aristocrats and laborers. This made the position of the crown, which was politically dominant, yet financially insecure, more unstable. The instability in the crown compounded with the decay of social and political control of the church due to mid-century controversies over faith, taught people to think on their own and be less dependent on a higher power. Hence the population of the time was more venerable to dealing with the rampant

Although these fairytale romances seem surreal and based on true love, many of the relationships presented in the plays are just as mercantile in nature as the business transactions that occur around them.
Marriage with Benefits and Soothing Social Tensions
In a society filled with tensions, uncertainties, and conflicting views of order, authority, religion, status, sex and the self, Dekker and Shakespeare use interclass marriage to juxtapose different views on controversial topic. Discussions of marriage on a narrative level create conflict in order for the plot to advance; however, they also reveal social and economic anxieties that were present during the Renaissance. Shoemaker’s Holiday begins with a dialogue between the Earl of Lincoln and Oatley about their children’s love affair. Oatley declares “Poor citizens must not with courtiers wed”, which is true of marriages before the Renaissance (SH I.1.12). He doesn’t want his money to be squandered away by a spendthrift aristocrat even though