Shylock in William Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice

Shylock in William Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice

'The Merchant of Venice' was written by William Shakespeare in the

Elizabethan period .The play is a tragic-comedy written in his second

period. It is set in Venice in the late 15th century. In this period,

religion is a very big part in people's lives, with Christianity the

most dominant in this area, and people were looked very poor upon for

not attending, sometimes even arrested. As a result, Shylock is

condemned before the plot has even begun because he is a Jew. At this

time in England the Christians hated the Jews, because of their

profession of lending money, which the Christians by religion are

unable to do. Jews were often forbidden to own land or engage in trade

in England so the only occupation open to them was money lending,

which they exploited to the full extent.

At this time, there was a great deal of tension between Jews and

Christians. For example, the centre of Venice was a Christian

community, whereas Jews where excluded to the outskirts. They were

portrayed as inferior to Christians. Shakespeare himself took a great

risk in writing this play, as he almost shows pity for Shylock, which

could have been interpreted wrongly and caused public uproar. Luckily,

he was able to create this sense of pity in the public.

Shakespeare uses Venice for two reasons. First of all, in the period

that it was written, Venice was a wealthy city, full of commerce,

which was a result of trade routes crossing straight through it. This

creates an image of trading for the play, which is an apt name for the

title, The Merchant Of Venice. Secondly, it could not be set in

England as the Jews were a very controversial subject at the time and

it would be very dangerous to write a play set in England about this

subject. By setting it in Venice, it creates a distance between the

audience and the play, while still relating to their lives.

Shylock is a Jewish moneylender trying to make a living and survive in