Tragedy or Comedy

Tragedy or Comedy
The play writer William Shakespeare is widely considered one the greatest playwrights in history. His work transformed English literature forever. Most of his plays were either comedies or tragedies and some seemed to have the line blurred between the two as they contain elements of both. The play Merchant of Venice is one of these plays that contains flavours of both a comedy and a tragedy. Many scholars have frequently debated whether the play is either classified as a comedy or a tragedy. There is no clear cut line to show which it is as it could easily fit into either category. However there are many elements that this play shares with the typical Shakespearian comedies. This includes that most of the characters in the play receive happy endings, there is numerous comical scenes and characters and it contains a fool who the audience loves. Therefore it appears that Merchant of Venice is ‘a tragedy gone wrong’ which results in it being a comedy.

One of the characteristics of Shakespeare’s comedies is that all the protagonists’ hardships are dissolved and they obtain happy endings, while the antagonist who everyone loves to hate only receives losses. The protagonists such as Antonio thought that he had lost everything – his money, reputation and “a pound of his fair flesh” which would eminently result in his death. However through the clever storyline, Antonio gets some of his money back with extra from the man who wanted to kill him, his reputation is saved by his friend and he kept his life. Likewise Bassanio wanted to pay off his debt as he had been living more than his “means would grant continuance”. However in the process of doing that he married the woman of his dreams, Portia. Through this Portia who was “curbed by the will of [her] dead father” to marry the man who chooses the right casket, gets to marry the man of her dreams Bassanio. Through this ordeal, Portia who was previously a shallow self-absorbed lady transformed to being the heroine who through cunning trickery saved life of Antonio. Therefore every character that the audience roots for wins. However in contrast the antagonist, who everyone relishes in despising, loses everything. The antagonist Shylock wears the brunt of Christian hating and loathing. He loses his daughter, his wealth and his dignity. Even though he suffers an unthinkable demise, to the original audience (the Elizabethans) there is comic relief in his sufferance. Like many other Shakespearian comedies ‘the Merchant of Venice’ shares many of the same flavours including the protagonists surviving their trials to gain happiness while the antagonist receives only shame and loss. Therefore Shakespeare cleverly woven plot is indeed ‘a tragedy gone wrong’ which consequently becomes a comedy.

Another key element of Shakespearian comedies is the several comical scenes. Many say that ‘the Merchant of Venice’ cannot be a comedy as it is not comical. However it is important to bear in mind that the play may not be a comedy to the modern audiences; however it was written for the Elizabethans, and therefore was designed to highlight key issues of that era which would have been comical during the time period. An example of this is the regular mocking of Shylock. To the modern audience this may seem to be a tragedy, however during the time period, Jews where hated. This would result in such scenes becoming a humorous event. Shylock was insistent on “standing for judgement” and having “the pound of flesh” that he so desperately wanted, that he was court out with a loophole in the law. So the court case was turned on its head when originally Shylock was the bully and Antonio was the victim. Through Portia’s help Shylock soon became the victim of shame and infamy. During this scene another comical thread is woven into the storyline as Bassanio and Gratiano do not recognize their wives as the doctor and the clerk. Due to their lack of recognition they gave away “the dearest rings in Venice” which created a breach in their relationships with their loved ones. Like many other Shakespearian comedies through the tragic scenes the author provides comic relief to soften the blow. To the original audience this play was intended to be a ‘tragedy gone wrong’ which inevitably results in it being a comedy.

Another clue of the plays true identity is given by the use of a fool. Commonly throughout Shakespeare’s comedies he inserts a fool to create a humorous look on a serious situation. This is in contrast to tragedies, as it is too serious for any humour whatsoever. In ‘the merchant of Venice’ Launcelot Gibbo is the fool. Launcelot has been inserted into the story line to create hilarity even out of the most serious circumstances. For example even a serious scene such as Jessica running away from her father and eloping with Lorenzo, Launcelot is in a comical way questioning his next move. He debates with himself using pun to decided if “[he should] run away from the Jew, [which would] be following the advice of the devil” or to stay with Shylock. Through Launcelot’s lack of “silence which is the best sign of intelligence” and the frequent “making of puns” the fool was revealed .The use of fool gives the dull scenes a spark and the serious scenes a smile on the audiences face. Therefore like many other Shakespearian comedies ‘the Merchant of Venice’ was never intended to be a tragedy but rather a ‘tragedy gone wrong’ which is basically a comedy.

Unlike most of Shakespeare’s masterpieces of literacy in ‘the Merchant of Venice’ there is no clear cut difference between it being a tragedy or a comedy. It could easily fit into either division. However when the elements of the play are compared to typical characteristics of other Shakespearian works the true identity of the play becomes apparent. The characteristics seem to fit with that of the comedies. This is a result of the protagonist’s troubles being resolved and receiving a happy ending while the antagonist only gets misery. Also there are many comical scenes that are brought out to lighten the blow. Likewise a fool is used to give a spark to the dreary scenes as well as insert humour into the serious moments. Therefore it appears that ‘the Merchant of Venice’ carries underlying flavours of ‘a tragedy gone wrong’ which is a comedy in disguise.