Characterization Of Portia In The Merchant Of Venice

     The relationship between Brutus and Portia is of a loving one. Portia speaks to Brutus gently calling him, 'my dear lord' and `gentle' this actually shows that Portia respects and honors Brutus. Brutus also replies her gently and expresses his love for her in the lines `render me worthy of this noble wife' and `as dear to me as are the ruddy drops/that visits my sad heart'. In these lines, Brutus says that Portia is as dear to him as the blood in his heart. This shows that they have mutual respect as well as love.

The only work that they could do was moneylender or something to similar. It is shown the idea of Shakespeare; he is a democrat, which means he is democratic in a traditional liberal sense of the world. In another way, he is all main equal and many of his plays show the women as the heroine and they are smarter than men, or just smart. In fact, with her idea, she solves the problem; she creates solutions in a way that is not normal exhibited from the society. However, it is possible to notice in this play that Portia has to disguise like a man, so it is notable the role of the women in this period. Shakespeare moved forward, he made a huge impact. He promoted a very democratic idea of the polis of sexist. A woman save the day of the Merchant, she was

Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice exemplifies a principle that is as unfortunately true in our time as it was in his - he who has money also has love, sex, and above all, power. In this case, the use of 'he' is deliberate; 'she,' in the Elizabethan era, rarely had either financial independence or much control over the course of her life. Portia, the deceitful heroine of the play, is a major exception. To put it bluntly, Portia is enormously rich. This unique position allows her to meddle in the affairs of the unsuspecting and somewhat dim male characters, and eventually gives her unprecedented power of self-determination. However, the play is more than a tale of feminine

The first lines of The Merchant of Venice come from Antonio, who is lamenting over his present state of melancholy: "In sooth, I know not why I am so sad" (i, i, 1). "As the play opens, [Antonio] is marked as a man of complex feeling, not only sad but worried over 'What stuff [his sadness is] made of" and how it affects his ability to 'know' himself" (Patterson 20). His acquaintances Salarino and Solanio attempt to guess at the root or his sadness, first asking if it stems from business. After Antonio gives a short diatribe to dispel that idea, Salarino believes Antonio is in love. "Fie, fie!" (45) Antonio responds. But once Bassanio enters and is alone with Antonio, "Antonio is free to proceed to what is evidently uppermost in his mind" (Engle 23). And Engle, as well as other scholars, believe Bassanio's interest in Portia is the pressing issue within Antonio, and the reason for Antonio's sadness (Sinfield 124).

The play ‘The Merchant of Venice’ Shakespeare effectively engages the modern audience through the means of comedic conventions within themes and characters. Comedy conventions such as racial and cultural slurs don’t engage the audience as successfully as they did during the 16th century. Since then, our perceptions have changed because of the impacts of historic events. However, the use of double entendre and gender roles continue to amuse modern day audiences. The Merchant of Venice is classified as a problem play/comedy because it deals with contentious social issues between the characters on stage, who typically represent conflicting points of view within a realistic social context along with comedic conventions. Written by the illustrious William Shakespeare about a merchant of Venice who must default in a large loan provided by an abused Jewish moneylender. Shakespeare uses some of the fundamental aspects of society in conjunction with subtle comedic conventions in order to appeal to a modern audience.

Gender stereotypes are not a modern notion and as such expectations and limitations have always existed for both men and women. Fortunately women, who have formerly beared great burdens of discrimination, now have very liberated roles in society as a result of slowly shifting attitudes and values. Shakespeare was integral in challenging the subservient role expected of women in the 16th century. Throughout the play, ‘The Merchant of Venice’, women are expressed as powerful characters who behave, speak and live in a way that breaks away from the conformist role of females during the 16th century. Therefore, the submissive stereotype expected of women in Shakespearean time is confronted and defied through

One of the strengths of good theater is its ability to mirror the problems and conditions shaping its time. In The Merchant of Venice, William Shakespeare reflects two important aspects of Elizabethan society: the corrupting influence of prosperity and the increasingly vengeful nature of Venetian justice. To address the former issue, Shakespeare downplays the importance of wealth by associating its involvement in romance with superficial and insubstantial advantages. He characterizes prosperity as a deceiving agent, citing its ability to introduce shallowness into a relationship. Shakespeare reasons that genuine romance depends on sacrifice and emotion, not wealth. The problem with justice is equally striking. In the play, justice is

The feminist critical perspective examines the roles that women play in literary works and their true significance to the text. Their roles are usually decided on by the society or time period in which the story is set. In "The Merchant of Venice," females were suppressed by the societal ideals of Shakespeare's Elizabethan era, which is portrayed through the characters of Portia and Jessica, who could not establish their own powerful identities because they were women. Portia and Jessica are the main female characters in the play. If they had been given a chance to show their skills, they undoubtedly would've been extremely strong women. However, they had to mask their abilities in order to appeal to their male counterparts. Their

Looking into Shakespeare’s work, the class and I got to view “The Merchant of Venice”. I

Venice was a powerful and wealthy city-state in the early 17th century. The habitants of it were seen as elegant but decadent. Shakespeare uses the setting of Venice as a tool to enhance the characterisation of Othello. Othello is not Venetian and this makes him feel and appear as an outsider. He feels conscious of the fact that he may not be able to understand the subtleties of Venetian culture, this leads to him feeling uncomfortable and defensive. Although Othello is not at ease he is still viewed favourably by the Duke of Venice

Interestedly, instead of Shakespeare using the word bond as a way to tie Portia and Bassanio and their undying love and promises. We find Bassanio discovering out about Antonio’s situation in a letter telling Bassanio about his lost ships and Shylocks intentions of taking his pound of flesh. The news incites a since of guilt from Bassanio which prods Portia to offer and pay twenty times the original sum. After reading the letter aloud to Portia she suggests Bassanio go to his friends aid and go back to Venice by his side. (3.2.314)

Portia is describing to Brutus that by excluding her from his secret, that she has been reduced to his concubine. Brutus responds to Portia's statement by stating, "You are my true and honorable wife, /As dear to me as are the ruddy drops/That visit my sad heart,"(II, I, 311-313). Brutus shows that despite, his depressed state, he still loves and cares for his wife showing the mutual relationship Brutus and Portia share that is based on love.

The Elizabethan era, an era filled with renaissance and was a flourishing time period in the arts of poetry, music, and literature. Shakespeare, arguably the most important writer of this time period captivated his audiences with innovative and provocative plays. A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Merchant of Venice are two of Shakespeares’ most famous romantic comedies, the characters of these plays enchant audiences with their passion and love for one another and the conflict that creates in this time period. The conflict in both these plays arise from the character’s personal desires, and the pressure to conform to social norms. The plot in A Midsummer Night’s Dream that this conflict is most relevant in is between the love circle of Hermia, Lysander, Demetrius, and Helena. In The Merchant of Venice Bassanio and Portia have their own agendas whether they are hidden or not the pressure of society and their own lust and desires lead to a conflict.

The play ‘The Merchant of Venice’, by William Shakespeare, shows two different father-daughter relationships. The relationships are between Portia and her recently diseased father, the other involving Jessica and Shylock, a Jewish money lender. The first relationship emphasizes love, respect and trust whereas the other are obviously different. Portia’s relationship with her recently deceased father was full of respect and love, whereas Jessica didn't like her father and thought he was rude.

Portia: Portia, being one of the main characters and the romantic heroine of the play, must be presented to the audience as a graceful, beautiful and intelligent person. We all know she’s beautiful, that needs no convincing. Portia is usually a fairly self-controlled person who likes to keep problems between her and her trustworthy lady-in-waiting, Nerissa. However there are certain times when she lets slip that she is an anxious person for example when Bassanio arrives at her mansion and is about to choose a casket. She has fallen in love with him and is having great difficulty in trying to conceal that fact. Her anxiety and confusion is what makes her lose her composure. Portia’s other appealing characteristic- probably one of the most apparent- is her graciousness, her amazing way of handling a situation with tact and