The Merchant of Venice and the Gospel of John
I have never been a Christian, and before this assignment was given to me, never touched a Bible before. However, reading the gospel John has helped in my understanding of The Merchant of Venice very much. Through the Bible, I have been able to compare the themes and characters present in both texts, thus enhancing my appreciation of The Merchant of Venice.
One of the similarities that struck me was the `resemblance' of Jesus and Shylock. At first sight, these two characters seem to be worlds apart, one being a saintly and merciful Son of God, while the latter being a miserly moneylender and a Jew. However, as I prodded deeper into both texts, I astonished myself at the great similitude of the two.
Firstly, at the start of the gospel, Jesus was not accepted by His own people, as Shylock was not accepted by his fellow Venetians. Jesus was not accepted because the Jews did not believe in what He is said to have done, though they were created from His Father. Shylock is rejected because they do not believe in his religion, which actually is the their own too, for both Christianity and Judaism came from Jerusalem. Their own people rejected both of them. This is further shown in the fact that the Jews persecuted Jesus (who in actual fact was one of their people) because he `broke a law' to rid somebody of sin, as seen in "So, because Jesus was doing these things on the Sabbath, the Jews persecuted him." (John 5:16). Ironically, Shylock's fellow human beings similarly persecuted him, because he did not conform to their societal norm by being a Christian.
In another irony, "Moreover, the Father judges no one..." (John 5:22), and...
... middle of paper ...
...f Jews and hypocrisy in literature. It has helped me to see things in different perspectives, and opened windows of imagination in viewing The Merchant of Venice, and I believe that I will carry this with me through other texts that I might come across in future.
Works Consulted:
Chesterton, G. K.. The Bible In Literary Criticism. Ed. and Comp. Alex Preminger and Edward L. Greenstein. New York: Ungar, 1986. 449-50.
Fox, Robin Lane. The Unauthorized Version: Truth and Fiction in the Bible. New York: Vintage, 1991.
Frick, Frank S.. A Journey Through The Scriptures. New York: Harcourt Brace College Publishers, 1995.
Ingersoll, Robert G. About the Holy Bible. Penguin Publishers 1994.
Shakespeare, William. The Merchant of Venice. 1967. Ed. W. Moelwyn Merchant. The New Penguin Shakespeare. London: Penguin Books, 1996.
Carson, D. A. New Bible Commentary: 21st Century Edition. 4th ed. Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press, 1994.
The Bible: The Old Testament. The Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces. Ed. Sarah Lawall et al. Vol 1. 7th ed. New York: Norton, 1999. 47-97.
Of course the most prominent part of the Gospel are the miracles. A number of the miracles that are described in John are not mentioned at all in the other three Gospels. For example, the aforementioned raising of Lazarus. In this miracle, Jesus goes to the tomb of one of his followers who was stoned to death. Once he sees that Lazarus has been entombed for four days, he has the stone removed from the entrance to the cave and commands "Lazarus, come out!" (John 11:43). This is one of the most famous miracles, but it only appears in the one Gospel. Another example of a very well known miracle that is only present in John is his ability to turn water into wine at the wedding at Cana. This is a story that tells how Jesus was able to take not only water, but also inferior wine and turn them into quality wine. This is also a very interesting passage because in it, Jesus is promoting alcohol use and bein...
René de Chateaubriand, François. The Beauties of Christianity. The Hebrew Bible In Literary Criticism. Ed. and Comp. Alex Preminger and Edward L. Greenstein. New York: Ungar, 1986. 445.
...yne A. The HarperCollins Study Bible New Revised Standard Edition . New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1993. 1645-1722. Print.
Fox, Robin Lane. The Unauthorized Version: Truth and Fiction in the Bible. New York: Vintage, 1991.
Gomes, Peter J. The Good Book: Reading the Bible with Mind and Heart. New York: Morrow, 1996.
Pink, Arthur W. Studies in the Scriptures, 1947. Edinburgh: Banner of Truth Trust, 1982. Print.
Carson, D, & Moo, D. (2005) An introduction to the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
" Christianity & Literature 58.1 (2008): 81-92. Academic Search Complete. Web. 29 Mar. 2014. Fienberg, Lorne. "
Venice, where this drama takes place, is a largely religious Italian City. Although filled with spiritual people, the city is divided into two different religious groups. Venice was primarily and dominantly a Christian society with Jews as it’s unfairly treated minority. Stereotypes classified Jews as immoral, evil, and foolish people while the Christians were graceful, merciful, and loving. Representing the Christian belief is Antonio who is summoned to court by a Jew who goes by the name Shylock. The cross between Christianity and Judaism begins as Antonio and Shylock create a legally binding bond. The bond’s fine print expresses that if Antonio cannot fulfill his debt to Shylock, Shylock will receive a pound of Antonio’s flesh. As learned in the play, Antonio cannot repay his debt and Shylock publically exclaims his need to receive fulfillment of that bond. Hastily, Shylock is determined to obtain his pound of Christian flesh. Shakespeare provides his audience dist...
Being a Jew in Christian dominated Venice, Shylock is persecuted by society. He is the victim of popular Christian prejudice, which scorns his religion and restricts his means of employment. He is left with no choice but to be a moneylender and earn his money from collecting interest. To the Christians, collecting interest was against their teaching. This is one of the reasons for the Christians hatred.
This essay will show contrasts in views on the Gospel of John regarding authorship,dates, and the relationship between John's Gospel and the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. Some comparison of thought, concerning composition and life setting, will also be presented.
Shakespeare, William. The Merchant of Venice. 1967. Ed. W. Moelwyn Merchant. The New Penguin Shakespeare. London: Penguin Books, 1996.
The first theme is that religious intolerance and prejudice play destructive roles in the book. Even to this day, there is racism and prejudice in schools about race and religion. Antonio, as a true Christian, has often condemned moneylenders. He knows that since the early twelfth century, Christians are forbidden by the Church to lend money for profit. Shylock, as a Jew, does not consider his money-lending and overwhelming interest to be a sin in any manner. In fact, he considers his earnings through money lending as the gift of God. He appeals to and quotes the Scriptures in defense of his profession. Shylock and the other Jewish moneylenders are essential to the prosperity of the merchant community, but they are also outcasts as human beings and as Jews. Shylock often shows his dislike to the Christians; “I hate him for he is a Christian”, (Act I, Sc. III, L. 38). The Christians ridicule and hate the Jewish moneylende...