Notes merchant of Venice Key characters Shylock‚ Antonio‚ Bassanio‚ Portia Need to know Personality traits How they impact on the plot of the narrative? How they change throughout the play? Key relationships The problems they must overcome Their characters importance in the plot key themes Law‚ mercy and revenge Self-interest vs love Prejudice and intolerance Wealth Greed vs generosity Love and friendship Law‚ mercy and revenge The law can be manipulated (scene 4) Law favors
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Why the Merchant of Venice is more tragic than comic * “The tragic feeling is invoked in us when we are in the presence of a character who is ready to lay down his life‚ if need be‚ to secure one thing‚ his sense of personal dignity” – Arthur Miller * Leading up to Shylock’s trial he undergoes a lot of struggle with regards to his bond with Antonio where. Antonio deceives Shylock when he doesn’t pay him and escapes the clause of the bond (pound of flesh). * Shylock At the same time
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Character Name: Portia Character Traits: Loyal “Oh‚ me‚ the word ‘choose’! I may neither choose who I would nor refuse who I dislike; so is the will of a living daughter curbed by the will of a dead father. Is it not hard‚ Nerissa‚ that I cannot choose one nor refuse none? (Act 1 Scene 2 lines 22~25) “In terms of choice I am not solely led by nice direction of a maiden’s eyes. Besides‚ the lott’ry of my destiny bars me the right of voluntary choosing. But if my father had not scanted me
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take on a more “human” form. Appearance is what others perceive wheres reality underlies appearance; it is also the truth. It is possible that it is not uncommon to see the display of this particular theme in the setting of Venice‚ a centre for business and trade‚ where merchants or businessmen may perhaps be more scheming. Linking the theme of appearance versus reality to social context‚ similar to how Portia hid her true sentiments‚ others may put on masks of deception to achieve what they want while
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How Does the Language and Stagecraft in Acts IV.i and V Reveal a sympathetic Portrayal of Shylock? Is this consistent with Elizabethan attitudes towards Jews? The anti Semitic message which plagued Europe throughout the Middle Ages has spawned many thought provoking‚ controversial plays. Its complex main character‚ the unforgettable Shylock expresses true emotions‚ develops throughout the production‚ and thus brings about a different portrayal of medieval Jews‚ previously limited to that of the
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Sentence: Being the antagonist and villain throughout the play Shylock must be the antithesis to the general characteristics of the protagonist and supporting cast. B. Shylock was a Jew‚ a not very admirable quality during the late 16th century in Venice. C. “Shylock‚ albeit I neither lend nor borrow/ by taking nor by giving of excess” (Act 1‚ Scene 3‚ Lines 61-62) D. He is a usurer‚ something that Antonia literally despises and spits upon. E. This shows the hypocrisy of Antonio’s actions
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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. We see how she is manipulated by men through her father‚ who though dead‚ still manages to control who she marries from his will. He states in his will that from three different caskets the suitors
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William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice shows many ideas and values that are still relevant today. Gender inequality‚ one of the main themes throughout the play‚ one of the most talked about topics in the country. Marriage in The Merchant of Venice left women with no freedom in choosing who they wanted to marry‚ while marriage now has given women the choice. Women did not have a say‚ their thoughts were never taken into consideration. Shylock makes a deal with Antonio who doesn’t fulfil his
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Anti-Semitism and the desecration of the Jewish population have been in existence for nearly five thousand years. In the Elizabethan era‚ a question of anti-Semitism invariably arises. In William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice‚ we find that one of the characters is the embodiment and expression of anti-Semitic attitude that is pervasive in Elizabethan society. "Anti-Semitism was an intricate part in Shakespeare’s years. Jews were considered vile and scorned upon. Shakespeare presents
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After reading The Merchant of Venice‚ one may think that Antonio or even Bassanio is the hero. While that may be true‚ there is a possibility that there is no hero. There is a heroine. Portia is not expected in the beginning to emerge as a heroine or even as a major character. She is merely a background character from the subplot. As the play begins to wind down‚ the reader will find many examples in which Portia saves major characters from their own dilemmas. The first (and most obvious)
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