Merchant Of Venice Plot Synopsis

    Antonio feels closer to Bassanio than any other character in The Merchant of Venice. Our first clue to this is in the first scene when, in conversation with Antonio, Solanio says, "Here comes Bassanio, your most noble kinsman, / Gratiano, and Lorenzo. Fare ye well: / We leave you now with better company" (i. i. 57-59). Once Antonio is alone with Bassanio, the conversation becomes more intimate, and Antonio offers an indebted Bassanio "My purse, my person, my extremest means" (137). We find out later that Bassanio needs money to woo Portia, a noble heiress who Bassanio intends to marry. And though Antonio is not in a position to loan money at the time, he does not disappoint

Othello by William Shakespeare raises the issue of how rampant beliefs and attitudes in a society can cause a person to question their sense of self. In a society where racial equality is near non-existent, Othello, a black skinned foreigner in the Venetian society, is constantly reminded of his status as an outsider. Othello, however, is not depicted in a stereotypical manner and despite occupying a highly respected position he is often confronted with blatant racism throughout the play. The prevailing attitudes and beliefs of Venetian society towards Othello are exploited by Iago in order to manipulate Othello’s self confidence and emotional state.

‘Without setting, characters are simply there, in a vacuum, with no reason to act and most importantly, no reason to care.’ The setting gives place for a narrative to begin and evolve from, without a strong setting some texts may be difficult to interpret without extra contextual and historical knowledge of the time period of which it was written. Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Othello the Moor of Venice written 1603 was set in Italy, in the Venetian Republic . This setting was gaining popularity with Elizabethan writers, maybe as a form of escapism, to have a crypto - catholic approach, as this country was the largest and still is the largest Catholic country. Or a more general form of escapism from the society at that time. Writing for a predominantly working class audience, Shakespeare’s work is an escapism from the audiences hardship of life.

Antonio’s response was astonishing. It revealed him to be an arrogant, cruel and heartless creature, who has no regard for other peoples’ feelings. When Antonio says; “I am as like to call thee so again, to spit on thee again, to spurn thee too.” This evidently shows the reader that Christians thought of themselves as superior to Jews. They thought that they were above Jews and could treat them however they wanted. The reader’s opinion of Antonio changes so suddenly, from the protagonist everyone loves, to a mean, arrogant and racist Christian.

Petruccio sees dollar signs and rushes forth in grand dress and eloquent mannerisms to court the gracious "Kate." When he first begins his ritual of winning the family and Katherine to his love, he is seeking his fortune in her dowry. The mention of her being at all undesirable does not put rocks in his path. He speaks of "One rich enough to be Petruccio's wife, as wealth is burden of my wooing dance be she as foul as was Florentius' love, as old as Sibyl, and as curst and shrewd as Socrates' Xanthippe or a worse, she moves me not or not removes at least affection's edge in me, were she as rough as are the swelling Adriatic Seas." (1.2.65-71) Petruccio comes calling for the older sister, and Bianca in turn sneaks about with Lucentio who is dressed in scholars clothing. They pretend to be working on Latin and fool her father with disguises and books while romancing the entire time. Katherine is honest in her words and deeds. She does not wish to be teased or tormented and flees from Petruccio's twisted words. Kate and Bianca trade roles at this time and the dainty, controlled sister is Kate. The bolder, out-spoken

The story is about two sisters Katherine and Bianca. Bianca has a suitor who would like to marry her, Lucentio, but the only way that he will be able to marry her is if her older sister is married first. When Petruccio arrives to Padua he agrees to court and marry Katherine because she will provide a lovely dowry. Rumor has it that Katherine is a cynical, unruly, and

Shylock is punished by the Venetian court for seeking to end Antonio’s life. He is charged under a Venetian law (of Shakespeare’s creation) and he is forced to give up his wealth and to beg the Duke to spare him his life. Viewed like this it seems simple enough; Shylock broke a Venetian law and, as a consequence, is punished. However, Shylock’s case is far from simple. Antonio’s demand that Shylock should renounce his Judaism and become a Christian and his insistence that Shylock should will his money to the Christian

In giving Bassanio her ring, Portia assumes the traditionally masculine role, both in giving the ring and in giving herself, a role usually belonging to the father of the bride:

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 will have to chose, in each of which will contain either a letter to the suitor or a picture of Portia. In one of the three caskets, either the lead, silver or gold casket, there will be a picture of Portia the suitor picking the casket

Literary devices are frequently used throughout acts four and five of Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice. Some of the most prominent devices used on TMOF are dramatic irony, allusion and symbolism. These devices help further develop theme ingrained in the story such as marriage, deceive, wealth, and religion. The use of literary devices helps ensure the story transitions smoothly and is pleasant to the reader, it might also help in the comprehension of the story´s characters.

This shows how Shylock is shrewd, by playfully suggesting the forfeiture of the bond which is actually a cunning plan to murder Antonio with the law on his side.

He declares, "I'm very glad of it. I'll plague him, I'll torture him, I am glad of it." (3, 1, 115-116) At the end of Act 3, scene 1, Shylock's true motive is revealed. Shylock says, "I will have the heart of him if he forfeit, for were he out of Venice I can make what merchandise I will." (3, 1, 125-127) All these comments clearly attempt to paint Shylock as a money-worshipping murderer and not as a person.

Portia is a bachelorette in Belmont, the heiress to her dead father’s fortune, which attracts men from all over the world. ‘In Belmont is a lady richly left; And she is fair, and fairer than that word...For the four winds blow in from every coast renowned suitors’ ( I, i, 161 – 169). Portia loves her recently deceased father and this is shown when she decides to carry on with the casket challenge for her suitors that her father started. The men that arrive, wanting Portia’s hand in marriage are all drunk and boisterous and she isn’t particularly attracted to them but she is obliged to, because of her father’s wishes. The way Portia acts towards her father shows how much she loved him, unlike Jessica’s attitude towards her father.

Not only can women pretend to be men, therefore exhibit the commonly associated prestige; they can also exceed men’s capabilities. In the contraband letter, Bellario describes Balthasar (Portia in disguise) as a young man, but urges everyone in the court to "let his lack of years be no impediment" (IV i161) even though wisdom and keen sense are often associated with established adults. At first, Portia seems to support Shylock when she contemplates the case, so he remarks, "How much more elder art though than thy looks!" (IV i250). Portia’s looks are deceptive, but she is actually hiding her sex, not her age. Shylock is unknowingly amazed by a female’s intellect and continues to praise Portia repeatedly when he refers to her as a "noble", "wise and upright", "most rightful", and "most learned" judge (IV i245-303). After Portia shifts her argument to favor Antonio, Gratiano praises her in similar ways. Her intelligence astounds the court. In the final scene, Antonio, Bassanio, and Gratiano "are all amazed" (V i266) when Portia reveals the secret identities she and Nerissa took on. She proves that women can demonstrate more keen intellect than

His hatred for Antonio is also obvious and it is so strong that he refuses all offers of money so that he can cut off a pound of his flesh. In Act 3 Scene 1 Shylock makes his famous “Hath not a Jew eyes?” speech, and it is probably at this point that the audience