The Tragedy of Shylock, a Critical essay on Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice

In ‘The Merchant of Venice’ Shylock is very strong minded and is singled out of the play because he is a mean Jew that charges interest. Shylock is very stubborn and determined to keep to his bond; a pound of flesh of Antonio.

Shylock is a character famously known as being the antagonist of Shakespeare’s play merchant of Venice. In this play, Shakespeare portrayal of Shylock the moneylender is one of anti-Semitic stereotype. Shylock is depicted as a typical bloodthirsty Jew who lives a life void of any depth or meaning. His sole purpose for living seems to be to amass wealth and vengeance as seen from his adamant claim for his “pound of flesh”. Despite Shakespeare’s attempts to humanize Shylock at points in the story, it appears that his primary focus is to steer the audience against Shylock, painting him as being a cruel, bitter and inaffable figure. It is clear that in both Shakespeare’s merchant of Venice and Grace Tiffany’s Turquoise Ring, Shylock exposes

“There is no doubt that Shylock is a cunning and vengeful man, but nothing can justify the treatment he receives at the hands of the Christians.”

In a book or play, it is usually very easy to distinguish who the victim is and who the villain is. The villain usually causes all the problems in the story line and the victim is the one who suffers in result of the villain’s actions. In the play The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare, we examine the life of Shylock as a victim. It is seen through three main events in the play. Shylock is ridiculed by his community and his family, he is betrayed by his daughter and the community he lives in, and he is forced to lose all his wealth.

Stereotypes for every different religion, ethnicity, culture, and gender exist among the minds of the human race. These typecasts have ruled this world for as long as there has been diversity among people. In Shakespeare’s comedic tragedy, The Merchant of Venice, one prejudice is very central to the theme. The play is dominantly set in Venice, one of the most liberal cities of the Renaissance era. In this place and time period, anti-Semitism is very much in force. The Jewish people are discriminated against and treated terribly by the Christians living in Venice. Shylock, a wealthy Jew, is mercilessly spurned many times by men like Antonio, a Venetian merchant. In contrast to this blind hatred is the longing and lust associated with

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.

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.

William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice is a perplexing story of dark humor, race, religion, identity, love, and justice. Generally, most people understand The Merchant of Venice as a comedy about a bitter and outcasted Jewish moneylender named Shylock who seeks revenge against a Christian merchant who has failed to pay his loan back. However, there are many different perspectives on whether The Merchant of Venice is a comedy or a tragedy depending on one’s views on the difference between race and religion. If one views the story as a comedy, it is a dark comedy full of many problems, especially the controversial subject matter of anti-Semitic attitudes of its Christian characters. If one views it as a tragedy, it is a tragedy that concludes with majority of its characters in a “happy ending”—that is if one agrees that Jessica’s decision of love over betraying her father and giving up her Jewish identity is indeed a happy ending.

The first dichotomy is that of biblical and mythological allusions. Throughout the play Shakespeare conjures up images of the bible as well as famous Grecian myths, all of which serve a unique purpose in the production. Act 3 Scene 1 takes place in Venice and focuses on the rumors of Antonio’s failed business ventures along with Shylocks ambiguous reaction to the news. “Shylock: A bankrupt, a prodigal, who dare scarce shows his head on the Rialto; a beggar, that was used to come so smug upon the mart.” (3.1 41-44). Shylock laments about how foolish Antonio is for lending out money to Bassanioddic. But what I find of particular interest, is Shylock’s word choice. Specifically, his use of prodigal. A prodigal is someone who is widely considered reckless with their money.

In William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice, Shylock is instantly portrayed as a villain. Shylock, while making a deal, crucially demands a pound of Antonio’s flesh as interest. It is revealed that Shylock’s villainous behavior stems from a history of constant torment from characters in the play. In The Merchant of Venice, Shylock is a villain who acts out of revenge when he wants pay back for all the pain he endured. Evidently, Shakespeare created the character Shylock with a sympathetic past in order to have the audience question Shylock’s true nature.

This duality of Shylock being portrayed with positive points as well as bad was developed further at the end of act 1. Early on in the play Antonio described Shylock as the Devil and stated, “The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose” (Act1 scene 3 line 107). The 'devil' is described in the dictionary as, the supreme spirit of evil and nowhere in the text or in Shylock's actions does it suggest this. Clear resentment and tension was shared between Shylock and Antonio. In one of Shylock's monologues he explained, “I hate him for he is a Christian” (Act 1 scene3 line 42). A contemporary audience during Shakespeare's time would have been deeply offended at this attempt to degrade a Christian and this would have easily made Shylock evil in their eyes. Due to Shylock's lower status in this scene he spoke in prose, whereas Antonio spoke in verse. This showed the difference in position between the two characters and the wide gap linking Judaism and Christianity. Respect for Shylock may be less easily attained when he doesn't offer any to Antonio. When the bond was made between Antonio and Shylock it is easy to see how Shylock’s character can be considered the devil as he binds Antonio to contract, “An equal pound/ of your fair flesh, to be cut off and taken” (Act 1 scene 3 line 161). Requesting a pound of flesh was possibly a little too extravagant; it suggested that he was capable of and willing to take a life. Making Shylock more a butcher of animals than of

In the play the ‘Merchant of Venice’ by William Shakespeare the antagonist Shylock is both the victim and the villain. Shylock is a Jewish moneylender and is initially portrayed as anger filled and bloodthirsty but as the play continues we begin to see him as more human and his emotions become more evident. As the antagonist, Shylock is a fearful adversary to Antonio, the protagonist. But as good begins to win over evil, Shylock is crushed and we see evidence of his mortality in his grief. Shylock changes significantly though out the course of the play and he is formed into a too complex character to be labeled just victim or villain.

Shakespeare presents Shylock in a complex manor and shows the duality of his character. In “The Merchant of Venice”, Shylock shows a very cold and unloving quality but also a soft and merciful trait that is not as prominent. Shylock is cold and harsh to others who are unlike him and those who go against his beliefs but when in situations where he is left vulnerable, he shows his soft and merciful side. He is violent and cold to those who belittle him and make him feel different. In Venice, there are not many Jews and Shylock feels unprotected in his own city. This results in him being cold. In contrast to his coldness, when put in difficult situations, he shows his softer side and shows the opposing side to himself. Shylock’s duality is presented throughout the play and his coldness and softness play off of eachother. The characteristic that is most apparent is dependant on the situation that he is put in.

The Merchant Of Venice is structured partly on the contrast between idealistic and realistic opinions about society and relationships. The play tells us mercy is preferable to revenge. Shylock chose revenge over mercy against Antonio and how his choices affected him. The Court of Venice begging mercy of Shylock. Finally, Portia forgiving Bassanio for giving away his wedding band.

When put in a difficult situation an individual needs to learn how to cope with these certain circumstances. By dealing with these problems in a positive manner an individual can learn certain life skills and overall grow as a person by doing so. In the play Merchants of Venice by William Shakespeare multiple characters throughout are faced with adversities that they have to work through or fix to overcome. The characters that are going to be discussed in this essay include Antonio, Portia and Shylock, since ideally they reflect overcoming adversities both negatively and positively. When an individual is confronted with a circumstance the individual can either respond positively or negatively, however,