The Doomed Antonio of The Merchant of Venice

2316 Words5 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Main theme of merchant of venice

The Doomed Antonio of The Merchant of Venice

The secondary characters of The Merchant of Venice (Shylock, Portia and Bassanio) are so intriguing and so vocal, that the central figure, the merchant Antonio, is often largely ignored. This neglect is perfectly appropriate to the play's theme and the protagonist's struggle, for Antonio is an outsider. The play's theme is marriage and Antonio is both a stranger to the world of marriage, for he has no desire to partake of it, and he is an enemy to marriage, for it steals his one true love, Bassanio.

The play's opening line presents a mystery: the source of Antonio's gloom: "In sooth, I know not why I am so sad /...And such a want-wit of sadness makes of me, / That I have much ado to know myself" (I.i.1-7). Antonio claims to be ignorant of the source of his woe, and he may so be, but to the audience, this source will eventually come to light. His comrades Salarino and Solanio question if he might be worried about his ships, but they are assured that he is confident in these financial ventures. Their second guess is, "Why, then you are in love," to which Antonio only responds, "Fie, fie!" (I.i.46) This curt reaction is very revealing. Either the idea of being love is offensive to Antonio, or his love is such that he dares not speak of it, perhaps even to himself (Midgley 126).

The friends accept that Antonio is just gloomy, without particular cause. He himself suggests that he is simply doomed to melancholy: "I hold the world but as the world, Gratiano / A stage, where every man must play a part, / And mine a sad one" (I.i.78-79). However, it does not seem very likely that Antonio is just sad by disposit...

... middle of paper ...

...ve, and if he could, it seems doubtful that he would find any fulfilment in the society of women. Antonio is sad because his love is to be wed to a woman. His lament echoes the narrator of the sonnets, with a vital exception: the sonneteer sees that marriage would be good for his lover and encourages it. Antonio, a selfish and possessive merchant will not let go, and is doomed to his gloom.

Works Cited

Midgley, Graham. "The Merchant of Venice: A Reconsideration." Essays In Criticism vol. X no. 2 (1960): 119-133.

Pequigney, Joseph. Such Is My Love: A Study of Shakespeare's Sonnets. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1985.

Rosenheim, Judith. "Allegorical Commentary in The Merchant of Venice" Shakespeare Studies vol. XXIV (1996): 156-210

Shakespeare, William. The Complete Works of William Shakespeare. Hertfordshire: Wordsworth, 1996.

Show More
Related

  • Comparing Justice in The Faerie Queen and Merchant of Venice

    2390 Words  | 5 Pages

    ...rs in the play) to function as the spokesperson for the law suggests that rather than an attack on the female sex, The Merchant of Venice subtly questions patriarchal assumptions about women.

    Read More

  • Theme of Tradition in The Lottery by Shirley Jackson

    1319 Words  | 3 Pages

    For many, change is a cause for ignorance. Most of us fear the idea of change. When one is faced to deal with c...

    Read More

  • Response to Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice by a Modern Audience

    1112 Words  | 3 Pages

    Portia play’s a major role in trying to persuade Shylock to be merciful to Antonio, as the story continues. Basannio, the loyal friend of Antonio also tries to persuade Shylock to show some sympathy towards Antonio, but is not shown.

    Read More

  • The Transtheoretical Stages Of Change

    1790 Words  | 4 Pages

    The first stage of change is precontemplation. During precontemplation an individual is not ready to and resistant to change. Another important

    Read More

  • School Lunches Are Unhealthy

    997 Words  | 2 Pages

    Unhealthy foods are what make the money for schools and that is why they serve them for students. (Schlafy) Schools feel like they need the extra money in the budget, even though it is at the student’s expense. Data shows that nearly 60% of all middle schools in the US serve soda from vending machines. (Schlafy) Soda is very high in sugar and is not at all good for children, but it is still sold in school vending machines. The ways food in schools is now are way too high in fats and sugars. This is not good for the children and very bad in the long run. Elementary schoolchildren have an estimated $15 billion of their own money that they can use to buy whatever they want in schools, and parents have almost another $160 billion to give students for food money. (Schlafy) Big businesses see this as a big source of profit and therefore encourage children to buy their products, and want them to be offered in school because of th4e likelihood of children buying the business’s product. All in all, obesity in the US is greatly influenced by the foods offered in schools

    Read More

  • The 7 Levels Of Change

    1082 Words  | 3 Pages

    The 7 Levels of Change provides a different way of thinking to enhance behaviors and processes. The author demonstrates throughout the book a seven process of change that builds upon the next. He believes that by thinking differently, being creative and stepping out of the norm is the catalyst to solutions and results beyond one’s expectations. Although the author uses the analogy of a new work environment to expound on the level of changes, the fundamentals can be used in both your personal and professional life.

    Read More

  • Character Analysis Of Celie In The Color Purple By Alice Walker

    143 Words  | 1 Pages

    The Color Purple by Alice Walker is a story about a poor, uneducated black women named Celie who has a sad personal history. She survives an abusive stepfather who rapes her and steals her babies, then marries her off to a man who is equally debasing. As an adult, Celie befriends and finds intimacy with a blues singer known as Shug Avery, who gradually helps Celie find her voice, by teaching her how to stand up for what she wants and believes in. Celie believes that the world around her is a mans world, where she is suppose to please and obey their every wants and desires until she learns the power of her voice and that by using it she is her own person and nobodies servant. By the end of the novel, Celie is a happy, independent, and a self-confident

    Read More

  • Summary Of The Color Purple By Alice Walker

    1109 Words  | 3 Pages

    Writing saved me from the sin and inconvenience of violence” -Alice Walker (Lewis n.pag) Walker is considered to an African American novelist, short story writers poet, essayist, and activist. Most of her literature are mostly from her personal experiences and are morale to numbers of African American all over the world. Walker defines herself as a “womanist” which means “The prophetic voice concerned about the well-being of the entire African American community, male and female, adults and children. Womanist theology attempts to help black women see, affirm, and have confidence in the importance of their experience and faith for determining the character of the Christian religion in the African American community. Womanist theology challenges

    Read More

  • Comparing The Bond Of Pretense In Shakespeare's The Merchant Of Venice

    4095 Words  | 9 Pages

    ...ivisive agent, actually been voided, or only cast aside? Is Shylock and Antonio’s code of honor truly obsolete? A sense of false sincerity permeates the final scene. The temporal ambiguity between night and day with which the play ends suggests that a complete resolution has not been achieved. In being neither night nor day, it ends in a kind of dramatic unreality. Metatheatrical in its elevation of words and language, The Merchant of Venice is consciously distinct from the realism of the off-stage world. And yet in the course of its five acts, the play fails to define a solid dramatic “otherworld,” in which new values and authorities are introduced and made permanent. Rather, it seems to end ambiguously, and fragmented. It falls short of true resolution, and concludes with a statement of shortcoming, informing us that there are still “two hours to day” (V.i.325).

    Read More

  • The Rings of Power: Symbolic Exchange in the Merchant of Venice

    1602 Words  | 4 Pages

    Blanchard, Jane. "Contesting Constancy in The Merchant of Venice", Renascence 61, vol 4 (2009), pp 209-220

    Read More

  • More than Friends William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night

    978 Words  | 2 Pages

    Antonio is so mesmerized by Sebastian’s beauty that he states, “If you will not murder me for my love, let me be your servant” (2.1.35).Antonio is becoming obsessed with Sebastian and cannot stand the idea of not spending time with him, that he begs him to let him be his servant so he can accompany Sebastian and serve him in any way possible. His desire to serve Sebastian comes from his obsession with him. Antonio extreme obsession for Sebastian stems from the Elizabethan connection between good looks and a good soul. Sebastian tries to prevent this firm devotion but pleads with Antonio: “Crave[s] of [his] leave, that [he] may bear [his] evils alone”(2.1.5-6).(Insert Analysis for the previous quote). Sebastian advises Antonio to “Fare ye well at once”(2.1.39) in an effort to prevent him any injury that Sebastian’s venture might bring. After hearing this Antonio is still adamant about attending Orsino’s court as well; “B...

    Read More

  • The Villainous Victim In Shakespeare's The Merchant Of Venice

    577 Words  | 2 Pages

    “I am a jew?”-Shylock the merchant. The Merchant of venice is a play from William Shakespeare, in which a merchant called Antonio gets a loan from Shylock to pay for Bassanio's trip. Through a string of unfortunate events lead to a angry Shylock nearly killing Antonio, but that is narrowly averted. Shylock in the play “The Merchant of Venice” can be seen as a victim due to the hostile prejudice towards his kind, unfair treatment of him, and the random events that cause him misery.

    Read More

  • Merchant Of Venice - Antonio And Shylock

    808 Words  | 2 Pages

    William Shakespeare shows how two tradesmen can have completely different lives when others view them differently in the play The Merchant of Venice. In the play, Bassanio, Antonio’s friend, needs money to pursue his love. They seek a loan from Shylock, a Jewish moneylender in Antonio’s name. The contract is for three times the value of the bond in three months or else Shylock cuts off a pound of flesh from Antonio. While all this is happening, there are love plots going on. One of which is for Shylock’s daughter to elope with Lorenzo, a Christian. Later on, Antonio’s source of money, his ship, is reported sunken in the English Channel, dooming him to the loss of one pound of his flesh. There is a trial on the bond, and when it seems sure that Antonio will die, Portia, disguised as a doctor of laws legally gets Antonio out of the situation and Shylock recieves harsh penalties. Antonio and Shylock, two similar businessmen of Venice, are viewed differently and are treated oppositely to heighten the drama of the play and mold a more interesting plot.

    Read More

  • Essay on Gender in William Shakespeare's Sonnets

    1781 Words  | 4 Pages

    Much has been made (by those who have chosen to notice) of the fact that in Shakespeare's sonnets, the beloved is a young man. It is remarkable, from a historical point of view, and raises intriguing, though unanswerable, questions about the nature of Shakespeare's relationship to the young man who inspired these sonnets. Given 16th-Century England's censorious attitudes towards homosexuality, it might seem surprising that Will's beloved is male. However, in terms of the conventions of the poetry of idealized, courtly love, it makes surprisingly little difference whether Will's beloved is male or female; to put the matter more strongly, in some ways it makes more sense for the beloved to be male.

    Read More

  • Merchant of Venice

    841 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Merchant of Venice written by William Shakespeare takes place in Italy in the late 1500s. The play focuses on 4 main characters: Antonio, Bassanio, Shylock and Portia. Antonio is a Venetian merchant who is in love with his best friend. Bassanio is the best friend of Antonio and the husband of Portia. Shylock is a Jewish moneylender and is hated by the people of Venice due to his religion. Lastly, there is Portia, wealth woman from Belmont. She is forced, by her father’s will, to marry the suitor who chooses the correct casket. Bassanio ends up being the lucky suitor and gets to marry Portia. Soon after the marriage they receive news of Antonio's appending sentence to death. Portia being a loving wife gives Bassanio the money to pay the bound. She decided to disguise herself as a doctor names Balthasar and replaces Bellario, so he can defend Antonio. Balthasar’s (Portia) duty is to look over the cause for the Duke and see if the still stands. She wants to save Antonio from death because he is the best friend of her beloved husband. In court, Portia demonstrates her intelligence and bravery in ways the Italian society consider worthy.

    Read More

More about The Doomed Antonio of The Merchant of Venice

Open Document