William Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice
William Shakespeare, having spent most of his youth in England, was
influenced by England’s beliefs. England was going through a Christian
reformation that had caused friction between Christians and Jews. Jews
and Christians did not see eye to eye on almost everything and
especially on usury, the practice of lending money with interest.
Boyce, a Shakespearean critique, sums up the negative attitude that
Christians had on Jews in the 16th Century:
“Sixteenth-Century Englishmen tended to attribute to Jews only two
important characteristics, both negative: first, that Jews detested
Christians and gave much energy to devising evils for gentiles to
undergo, and second, that Jews practiced usury. The latter assumption
was grounded in an old reluctance on the part of Christians to lend
money [with interest]” (Boyce 417).
William Shakespeare shows his anti-Jewish attitude by condemning the
practice of usury in ‘The Merchant of Venice’. He accomplishes this by
using a Jewish character named Shylock. According to Pietscher
“[Shakespeare chose Shylock] in accordance with the views of his day -
he took him very naturally from the race of Jews” (Pietscher
214)(sic). Due to Shakespeare using a Jewish man, Shylock, and
portraying him negatively shows that ‘The Merchant of Venice’ is an
anti-Jewish play.
William Shakespeare uses Shylock to represent the negative mind felt
in England, about Jews. Shylock, a very wealthy merchant, is hated in
Venice because of his cruelty. Shylock’s daughter Jessica, his own
flesh and blood, hates him so much that she robs him and runs away to
marry a Chri...
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...ying, "The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose.
An evil soul producing holy witness." The second reason was that
Christians lent money without interest. This clearly affected
Shylock’s business. Shylock said, "He lends out money gratis, and
brings down the rate of usance here with us in Venice." Christians
did not make profits whereas people like Shylock made their profits
from interest, this clearly did not please the Christian community,
this may have created negative attitudes towards all Jews. Antonio is
aware that "Shylock seeks my life; his reasons I well know: I oft
delivered from his forfeitures Many that have at times made moan to
me; Therefore he hates me." (III, ii, 21-24) Antonio ‘hates our
sacred nation, and he rails.’
The above clearly depicts ‘The Merchant of Venice’ as being
anti-Jewish.
taxi, and when they stop for her to eat food, she gets "stranded" by the taxi driver. She sees two
with Sarny and takes her to an underground school for slaves, called Pit School where he
still a common view of Jews is for them to be penny pinching, both in
... At this point, he begins to wish he didn't even know. her name, as all he wants is "flesh against flesh" for a while. think that he is going to force himself on her but he stops at her request and walks her back to her lodgings.
... sins, but she can’t take back what she did so she will forever have blood on her hands. This guilt and all of the lies she has told is giving her true trepidation and in the end she decided to end her terror by taking her life.
She sends him away and tells him he is "too late" as she is with
Duke of Venice: The official authority in Venice, the duke has great respect for Othello as a public and military servant. His primary role within the play is to reconcile Othello and Brabanzio in Act I, scene iii, and then to send Othello to Cyprus.
William Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice "The Merchant of Venice" by William Shakespeare features, Shylock a very controversial character due to his religion, profession and personal traits. Professionally Shylock lends money to people in debt, in order to gain interest and profit. Although, this is very much central to our modern way of life, in the Elizabethan period, money lending was not accepted as an acceptable profession. Throughout "The Merchant of Venice" Shylock is portrayed as menacing, inhumane and slightly eccentric, yet at times misunderstood and induces sympathy from the reader.
Racial barriers are often used as a means to manipulate a member of a minority group. in The tragedy, Othello, was written by William Shakespeare(1564-1616) an English poet and playwright, who is often contemplated as the greatest writer in the English Language. The story begins with Othello, a black general in the Venetian army who secretly marries Desdemona, a white woman. Early on, Othello promotes Michael Cassio as his lieutenant over Iago, fostering mass jealousy. Desperate to get even with Othello, Iago creates elaborate plans to ruin his marriage with Desdemona. Iago’s effective manipulation skills lead Othello to take his wife's life and then his own. Iago is successfully able to deceive Othello because of their many differences, mainly racial, and Iago's understanding of how manipulation works.
he catches the clerk with her he will cut his ‘pen’ off. This type of
It is clear that the race of Othello is a factor in his downfall. A
say, “If I can catch once upon the hip I will feed fat the ancient
The tables turn and everything changes when she comes to a surprising conclusion. She finds out that she is the parent
The Merchant of Venice is a play set in a very male and Christian dominated society where other religions and women rights weren’t very well accepted by the community. However Portia, a rich woman who had previously been controlled by men, triumphs as she manipulates tricks and saves the lives of the men.
William Shakespeare attained literary immortality through his exposition of the many qualities of human nature in his works. One such work, The Merchant of Venice, revolves around the very human trait of deception. Fakes and frauds have been persistent throughout history, even to this day. Evidence of deception is all around us, whether it is in the products we purchase or the sales clerks' false smile as one debates the purchase of the illusory merchandise. We are engulfed by phonies, pretenders, and cheaters. Although most often associated with a heart of malice, imposture varies in its motives as much as it's practitioners, demonstrated in The Merchant of Venice by the obdurate characters of Shylock and Portia.