To the reader, The Merchant of Venice, may seem horrible and it be impossible to find the “comedy” at all. Perhaps, Shakespeare may have been simply trying to make people laugh at the appalling injustice we cause one another because of the small differences among us. Or, perhaps, he may have at first wanted the viewers of The Merchant of Venice to feel that they, the Christians, had nothing in common with the Jew, Shylock. What on earth could the Christians have in common with a Jew? Shakespeare demonstrates that the Christians were just as hungry for money and fortune as the Jew. Perhaps this is a comedy after all.
That Shakespeare sees people, Jew or Christian, as simply people, and if he could not make people see that they were all people with common ground, then he would have to start with something he knew everyone could relate with. The best item to come to mind was money. No matter if the amount is in ducats, dollars or pesos, everyone understands this concept. Although it does not seem perfectly clear in what way Shakespeare was trying to deliver the comedy in this play, one thing is evident, Shakespeare was a man before his time.
So, besides trying to find where the comedy is, maybe one should try to find where the most superficial person lies. Who is more superficial in this play? The Jew whose only business is money, or the Christians? It seems apparent that both are superficial, and one no more than the other. In the play Bassanio does not try to hide the fact that he needs to marry a woman of wealth to restore his fortune. Shylock's daughter Jessica, promises to steal jewels and fortune from her father, proving that she too is money hungry. Even Salerio and Solanio seem to talk of nothing more than riches and wealth throughout the play. So yes, they all are superficial, and one can not peg one any more than another.So again, we are back to the comedy of the whole thing!
Now that I think about it, it seems strange that the majority of our class found no humor in this play. When one thinks of why this may be, it is simple. We do not laugh when we read this play because we have not changed. Since the time of this play, we have inched very little away from prejudice and belittling people because they are what we feel is different, therefore making them strange.
“The Merchant of Venice” is one of William Shakespeare’s most complex and controversial stage plays. “The Merchant of Venice” is a comedic, tragedy that enveloped everything that an audience wants to experience. From love to hate, justice to revenge “The Merchant of Venice” has it all. William Shakespeare focused many themes that were controversial in society during his time and some that are still controversial in society. This essay will focus on analyzing and connecting the major theme of 16th century anti-Semitism to underplayed racism and anti-Islamic ideas of today’s society.
...n the play is shown through Parris’ frequent biblical allusions. He is aligning himself with the central values of the community, hoping that this will result in his acceptance and restore his belonging, which is constantly on shaky grounds. However in his desire to relate himself with Godliness and belong to this Christian society, he goes too far and starts to compare himself with God, saying he has “fought here three long years to bend these stiff-necked people to me”. This pride and self importance leads to his exclusion by most of the townspeople.
Hammurabi was the King of Babylonia from about 1790 BC to 1750 BC Hammurabi is believed to be the sixth ruler of the Amorite Dynasty. Although he was a successful governmental and military leader, his name will always be known for his Codes of Law. Hammurabi was the first King ever to record all the Laws of his Empire. He had a black stone carved with the 282 laws of Babylonia. On top of the stone sits a statue of a God handing the laws to Hammurabi. Because of his codes, Hammurabi was an immensely influential leader.
In “Violent Media Is Good for Kids,” Gerard Jones states that violence is good for children. Even with all the bad things people have said about the media and the effect of violence on kids, it has helped many kids reveal their feelings and their fears. In Jones article, he uses his own experience as an example of himself when he was a kid. Also, he uses his son and other kids experience as an example. Most kids use their imagination to pretend to be a protagonist they like. From reading this article it has helped me understand more that not all media violence are harmful for children. Violent media have helped kids express their feelings in a good way. With my own experience as a kid, I can relate to Jones experience. In his essay he uses diction, tone, organization and examples.
Committing deceptive deeds not only hurt others, but also the ones who deceive. The Merchant of Venice, by William Shakespeare, is a romantic-comedy play about a Christian merchant named Antonio who agrees to a bond that a Jewish moneylender named Shylock, his enemy, creates to help his best friend Bassanio see Portia, an heiress whom he is in love with. Shylock warns Antonio that if he forfeits the bond, by not repaying him three thousand ducats, he must allow him to remove a pound of his flesh. Throughout the play, deceptive behaviour causes the moral values of individuals to decline. First, this is seen through wealth as it pertains to the desire to have what is valuable. Second, moral values decline when people deceive the family members that they encounter. Finally, deceiving others through love leads to a decline of moral values. In the play, The Merchant of Venice, deception, as seen through wealth, family encounters, and love, causes the moral
There are some who absolutely love this novel, and others who absolutely hate it. I find myself somewhere in the middle. I am not a fan of zombies, nor am I anti-zombie. They are just another creature simply there in the literary world. I did love the details surrounding many of the stories in the novel, and found the author’s creativity pushing me to me more creative in my own work. It is not my favorite, and I probably would not read it again, although I did appreciate the style of writing after I got used to the format of the interviewer questioning the survivors.
“Sleep deprivation is epidemic among adolescents, with potentially serious impacts on mental and physical health, safety, and learning. Most teenagers undergo a biological shift to a later sleep-wake up cycle, which can make early school start times particularly challenging.” says Boergers.
...his pictures as illogical and non-realist. The images were not of this earth therefore different from things or geometrical figures. Also the way he uses colour is like no one else. In the conversations Chagall makes many references to poetry, but that is not surprising for to him his art is poetry. His concern was never with a movement but with the purpose of bringing to people the love and gaiety of his paintings. Chagall is known to use much more than a canvas as a showcase for his work. He is world famous for stained glass and mosaics from Jerusalem to the United Nations. For him a stained glass “is a transparent partition between my heart and the heart of the world.” In his paintings we see his childhood and homeland and for Marc Chagall his paintings are his memory.
It is so important for people to recognize how Jews were portrayed during Shakespeare’s life so that historic events such as the holocaust do not repeat themselves. Teachers who plan on presenting their students with The Merchant of Venice should also present them with articles explaining how Jews received their negative stereotype and explain to them that Jews are not as evil as Shylock. The play can still be useful as a high school reading experience only if taught correctly, in a manner that avoids Jews being insulted and non-Jews getting a completely flawed idea about Jews. Although comedic during the 16th century, The Merchant of Venice can no longer be viewed as a comedy in the 21st century due to the diversity of people and general acceptance of their cultures throughout the United States.
...ived a corrupt life and society which went against their Christian values. In a This I Believe Essay, by Kevin, he writes, “I believe that others have already defined much of who I am supposed to be, and I have spent a great deal of time running from that definition. I believe that there comes a time in everyone’s life when he or she must speak up and address stereotypes and assumptions because they are easier to believe that the work it takes to discover the uniqueness of the individual.” In the case of this subject at hand, the Christians define the Jews as evil and in a much more separated society from them despite both being human beings. The prejudice they produce, the nefarious lifestyle, all come into the factor displaying Christians as the true villain in The Merchant of Venice.
Anti-Semitism in "The Merchant of Venice" Throughout the play, "The Merchant of Venice" William Shakespeare portrays anti-Semitism through many of his characters. Audiences today may interpret the play to be offensive, where as people of Shakespeare’s time would have accepted the play as part of everyday life. The majority of London’s population at the time was anti-Semitic because there were very few Jews living there.
“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.
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.
...g the necessary skills, the knowledge and the training to produce graduates who are capable of entering the labor force as an asset to the organization and the country as a whole.
Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice contains many themes and elements that are considered timeless or universal. Samuel Taylor Coleridge defines a timeless or universal element as a “representation of men in all ages and all times.” A universal element is relevant to the life of every human being – it is universal. The first major theme that plays an important role in the play is the Christians’ prejudice against the Jews. A second important theme is the attitude toward money. Perhaps the most important theme of the play is the love between people. This love can occur between the same sex, or the opposite sex, platonic or romantic. In Merchant of Venice, the three timeless elements are prejudice, money, and love.