Rex Clayton Professor Kennedy ENGL 200 07/13/2013 Sympathy not Tragedy That old Jew got what he deserved! This is the cathartic feeling that William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice inspires as the central character Antonio is released from the perils of his impending death. In American society today‚ it is wrong to persecute someone for their religious beliefs‚ as we are all created equal. This sentiment was‚ indeed‚ not the case in the 1500’s. Although the events that surround Shylock are
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Book Thief by Marcus Zusak and The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare‚ some characters demonstrate hypocrisy in their words and actions. Though there are other traits that the characters show‚ such as cruelty and mercy‚ hypocrisy is one of the more interesting ones. The Duke demonstrates hypocrisy in The Merchant of Venice during the trial scene when he punishes Shylock for not showing Antonio mercy. Antonio shows he is a hypocrite in The Merchant of Venice when he criticizes Shylock for hating
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The Merchant of Venice‚ supposedly written between 1596 and 1598 is classified as an early Shakespearean comedy and also one of the problem plays. Though It is classified as a comedy‚ it has certain aspects of a romance. The play itself is about what could be called a rival between Christianity and Judaism with parts including women’s rights. The Jewish money lending merchant‚ Shylock seeks a pound of flesh from his fellow Christian‚ Antonio from failing to pay back three thousand ducats. Not only
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The Mother-Daughter Relationship in Amnesty In Nancy Chodorow’s Pre-oedipal gender configurations‚ she emphasizes the importance of the mother and society in a child’s development. In contrast to Freud’s emphasis on the father‚ castration anxiety‚ and other masculine concepts‚ Chodorow argues that the mother plays the most significant role in a child’s development. A child’s pre-oedipal relationship with their mother is rich‚ long-lasting‚ and preexists any significant relation to the child’s
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By tracing back the early roles of Shylock done in the Elizabethan stage‚ we are able to appreciate the complexity of Shakespear’s character‚ Shylock‚ and how he has the greatest impact than any other character. In the early Elizabethan era Shylock was portrayed as an archetypical Jew of that time. He would be played by the performer wearing a red wig and large false nose. This look created the foundations of Shylock’s personality during the Elizabethan era; a comic villain not to be taken seriously
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Shakespeare’s ‘The Merchant of Venice’‚ the main characters are Jews‚ a characteristic that makes the comparison of the books easier. However‚ the way the characters are presented has made the two stories have deep and active anti-Semitic notions and messages. Right from the beginning of the play‚ we can see some clear negative stereotypes towards Jews. Barabbas is undoubtedly portrayed as a man who loves money to an extent that he seems addicted to them. In the opening‚ we see a merchant‚ counting his
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work towards their self interests‚ however when a persons self interests don’t coincide with what is considered good‚ it can create a problem. In the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck‚ the poem "Power" by Corrine Hales‚ and the play The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare‚ the characters struggle to show empathy and instead choose to promote their own interests‚ which ends up causing problems for them. Lack of empathy will often come back around and hurt you‚ as displayed by Curley‚ the
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critics often crave categorizing each play into a specific genre. Many of Shakespeare’s plays fit into a genre‚ but some‚ such as The Merchant of Venice‚ fail to conform to one genre. One of Shakespeare’s early plays that is a festive comedy is A Midsummer Night’s Dream‚ which is a great parallel to The Merchant of Venice because both revolve around romantic relationships but each leaves the reader with different feelings at the end. The play staring Shylock the Jew carries dark undertones that eliminate
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Gay Marriage: Our Own Merchant of Venice Within America‚ the concept of same-sex marriage has recently been under heavy debate. The growing interest in such has created issues concerning politics‚ society‚ morality‚ religion and civil rights. The conflict itself arises due to an abundance of peoples’ own views on whether same-sex couples should be permitted to enter marriage. The 47% of American people opposed” (Alper‚ Gideon I.‚P.L.) fail to acknowledge that we as human beings have the inalienable
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The Merchant of Venice can be an effective tool for spreading anti-Semitism depending on the type of reader. Since Shakespeare’s play is an “ambiguous” work‚ everyone can have different interpretations depending on their knowledge‚ thoughts and background. In this essay‚ we will answer to the question by analyzing the character of Shylock. Although Shylock takes action only in five scenes of the play‚ he is the cornerstone of Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice. Shylock‚ “referred as ‘the Jew’
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