Scene and Summary from the Mechant of Venice by Shakespeare

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Recommended: Revenge as a theme in Literature

Shakespeare 12

Merchant of Venice

You’ll ask me why I rather choose to have

A weight of carrion flesh than to receive

Three thousand ducats. I’ll not answer that

But say it is my humour. Is it answered?

What if my house be troubled with a rat

And I be pleased to give ten thousand ducats

To have it baned? What, are you answered yet?

Some men there are love not a gaping pig,

Some that are mad if they behold a cat,

And others, when the bagpipe sings i' th' nose,

Cannot contain their urine. For affection,

Mistress of passion, sways it to the mood

Of what it likes or loathes. Now, for your answer:

As there is no firm reason to be rendered

Why he cannot abide a gaping pig;

Why he, a harmless necessary cat;

Why he, a woollen bagpipe, but of force

Must yield to such inevitable shame

As to offend, himself being offended—

So can I give no reason, nor I will not

(More than a lodged hate and a certain loathing

I bear Antonio), that I follow thus

A losing suit against him. Are you answered?

(IV.i.40-63)

During this scene, when Antonio and Shylock appear before the court and Shylock is asked to bestow mercy upon Antonio, it is apparent that he cannot do so. He is so overwhelmed with negative emotion around Antonio, that his quote is a actually an elongated explanation of why he cannot put his visceral reaction to him aside and calmly explain or justify his hatred. The closest he comes to doing so is by personifying his rage into a "mistress of passion" who can toy with an individual's likes and dislikes. He is unable to analyze his emotional state any more that others are able to analyze their negative emotional reactions to certain animals or musical tones. His quote does express a range...

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...m a chance to legally get revenge on Antonio. The court expects Shylock to show mercy, a trait common of the Christian faith, and seem surprised when Shylock refuses to. When Shylock says, “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.” (III.i.49–61) In saying this, he is making it clear that he believes Christians are vindictive. Shylock attempts to convince the audience that Jews and Christians are equal, even in the respect of wanting revenge on those who wrong them. By stating that Christians aren’t as righteous as they make themselves out to be, Shylock could be suggesting that if the situation between he and Antonio were reversed, Antonio would not show Shylock mercy and instead, turn justice on his enemy in order to fulfill his longstanding hatred.

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