Shylock‚ Villain or victim? The Merchant of Venice June 8th‚ 2011 In the play The Merchant of Venice Shylock is supposed to be the protagonist‚ the definition of protagonist is; the leading character or a major character in a drama‚ movie‚ novel‚ or other fictional text. But the way Shylock is portrayed is more along the lines of being both victim and villain. Shylock is out for one pound of Antonio’s flesh which will in the end kill Antonio and the flesh will do him no good anyway. But he
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Jessica’s Silence Within Shakespeare’s tragic comedy‚ The Merchant of Venice‚ one is exposed to yet another one of his works that has an intensely packed storyline full of different characters with their own complex subplots that contribute to the main plot. One of the main characters‚ Jessica‚ is daughter of Shylock‚ who is a wealthy Jewish moneylender in Venice. Shylock is characterized as a villainous type of character within the play‚ partly because of being a Jew and partly because of his
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Merchant of Venice: Stereotypes‚ Shakespeare‚ and You In the play The Merchant of Venice‚ Shakespeare uses a variety of examples to show stereotypes. These examples are both shown for and against the specific stereotype‚ whatever it may be. This can range from how women were treated‚ how jews were treated‚ and how christians were treated. These were humorous at the time‚ but now our society has grown out of that and “matured” itself. Shakespeare reinforces and also critiques the stereotypes of
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they are in reality. The issue of appearance versus reality is demonstrated in varied ways‚ mainly by the use of real-life situations. The choosing of the three caskets is used as the main explanation of appearance versus reality in “The Merchant of Venice”. The suitor of Portia must choose either a gold‚ silver or lead casket‚ where the right choice will allow the suitor to marry her. The Prince of Morocco‚ on choosing the beautiful gold casket with the inscription‚ "Who chooseth me shall gain what
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contribute back to the community‚ the society will fall apart and be unable to maintain balance and stability. In William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice and Arthur Miller’s The Crucible the reader sees examples of injustice inflicted on the victims within the plays through the people with power within the community. The Christians in The Merchant of Venice mock Shylock the Jew countless times while the high court in The Crucible believe citizens are practicing witchcraft without a proper testimony
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Shakespeare Merchant of Venice Essay I have been studying the play The Merchant of Venice written by William Shakespeare. The play genre is drama and it is set in the late 1590s. It is set in two cities Venice and Belmont. The play is about usury between a Christian and a Jew. The Christian is a man named Antonio‚ who is The Merchant of Venice. The Jew is a wealthy man called Shylock who is facing a lot of religious rivalry at the time. Antonio’s friend Bassanio comes to him to ask for money
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Themes in The Merchant of Venice This resource is designed as a reference guide for teachers. We have listed the major themes and motifs within The Merchant of Venice and provided examples of scenes where you can study them. Themes Prejudice and social injustice Revenge‚ justice and forgiveness Money and love Motifs (Recurring elements and patterns of imagery in The Merchant of Venice which support the play’s themes) Gold/ducats‚ jewels and caskets The law Rings Music Registered charity no. 212481
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Nicholas Bouwer Mr. Koughan Anti-Semitism in The Merchant of Venice Anti-Semitism‚ which has often been called the longest hatred (a comment on the unbelievably long time jews have been prosecuted as the bane of the earth)‚ has recurred in society for centuries. Since before medieval times‚ Jews have been accused of treacherous acts which include the murder of Jesus‚ the Bubonic plague‚ poisoning wells and controlling all monetary aspects in people’s lives with the act of usury. Accusations
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One of the most central issues in ’The Merchant of Venice’ is that of the antagonism between the Jews and the Christians. The unconscious‚ inborn dislike of cultures which jeopardise our way of life. Ever since people have left their homelands to settle in other places there has been conflict between different cultures. So‚ in the play‚ Antonio‚ Bassanio‚ Gratiano and many more of the Christians feel resentment towards Shylock the ’alien’. This is partly because of the trap that he has led Antonio
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ACT III RECAP SCENE 1- Act 3 begins on a street in Venice with Salanio and Salarino. Salanio and Salarino are concerned by news that Antonio has lost a ship. Shylock comes on the scene and Salanio and Salarino ask of news among the merchants. Shylock can only talk of his daughter’s betrayal. They express the opinion that she is very different from her father and it was time for Jessica to leave. They then question Shylock directly about the news of Antonio’s ship. Shylock states that he will need
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