Act 4 Scene 1 - Merchant of Venice - Mercy and Justice

A sense of injustice is potrayed even at the very start of the scene where Antonio is seated and Shylock is standing before the Duke. Usually in the courtroom the accused is standing and the accuser is seated, but this is the other way about. This gives the impression that Shylock is the one on trial when in fact it is Antonio, who is left to his inevitable fate-

"To suffer with a quietness of spirit."

At this point of the text a lot of emphasis is put on Antonio already suffering-

"Poor merchants flesh"

But in the video version I almost got the feeling Antonio didn't really care about what was going to happen to him. He is seated away from Shylock and doesn't say anything, while Shylock stands before the duke and pleads his case of justice.

Earlier in the play Antonio loses a lot of money because his ships sank. In the text a lot of emphasis is made for sympathy towards Antonio but this does not take place as much in the video. In the video I felt more sympathy for Shylock especially in Act 3 Scene 1 when Shylock makes a powerful and emotive speech-

"Hath a Jew not eyes... if you prick us do we not bleed."

This stresses the humanity that lies beneath the exterior of Shylock's evil and malice character. But this sympathy did not last long as not long after Shylock wishes his daughter were dead at his feet because of the theft of his money. The video expressed this double-sided character of Shylock more than in the text.

This hunger for money by Shylock is often repeated throughout both the text and the video. He kept repeating how much Antonio owed him- three thousand ducats and his wish of his daughter's death over money, potrayed him as a mean, old miser. This character shines through in Shylock and leaves the audience wishing for him to lose his trial at the court of justice.

I felt in the video more emphasis was put on Shylock's character than Antonio's but in the text a more wide spread emphasis was placed on both of the characters.

The other characters present in the scene at this point included Bassanio, Gratiano and the Duke. These men seemed to be all against "the Jew" and more caring towards Antonio. Bassanio asks Shylock-

"Why dost thou whet they knife so earnestly"

And he answers-

"To cut the forfeiture from that bankrupt there"

Shylocks strong language shows in the text that he is not intimidated by the hate against him. I found that the video potrayed this aspect more than the text and Antonio seemed to be the underdog throughout the scene. Shylock is also potrayed to be a more strong, forward character but there is also a sense of humanity about him throughout the play.

A dramatic tension is induced when Portia (Bassanio's wife), disguised as a young doctor, cross-examines Shylock in the court. She allows Shylock to believe she is on his side. At this point of watching the film I wondered how convincing would Portia be as a young man, would the other characters not notice her for Bassanio's lover. The film was successful in showing her as a young doctor even though the viewer will always know that it is Portia. The text also allows the reader to believe Portia is a young doctor especially as Shylock praises her-

"O wise young judge, how I do honour thee!"

Of course Shylock would not have been saying this if he knew it was actually Portia.

When Shylock shows he is not going to show any mercy what so ever-

"On what compulsion must I?"

And Portia says-

"You must prepare your bosom for his knife"

The film shows Antonio getting very tense. He even blesses himself which is not included in the text. Bassanio also gets very scared and tense and looks at Antonio as if to say goodbye, which is also not included in the text. This indicates a visual advantage and better understanding that the video has over the text.

Then Portia makes an important discovery; which dramatically turns the scene around. In the bond, not one drop of Christian blood may be spilt in the cutting of Antonio's flesh. This would be impossible to do and so the justice theme is turned against Shylock. Portia then frees Antonio of his earlier inevitable fate but also convicts Shylock of attempted murder. Shylock could then not go through with the bond and loses his fortune and even has to convert to a Christian. For Shylock converting religion would be the worst possible fate, as he was a proud Jew. In the video you can almost see Shylock crying because of this. But the duke says-

"I pardon thee life before you ask it"

This shows the theme of justice and mercy again in the play.

The relationship between Antonio and Bassanio creates a bit of conflict between Antonio and Portia, a conflict she is willing to test by demanding that Bassanio gives her his ring. The fact that Bassanio eventually gives away his ring, as does Gratiano, implies that Bassanio chooses Antonio over Portia. Portia gets mad with Bassanio in the next scene for loving a man more than her.

The video shows the characters feelings and expressions more than the text. It shows how sad Shylock was at this point and also how happy Antonio, Bassanio and Gratiano are. I felt satisfied when watching the video to see that Shylock was brought to justice because he would not show mercy. It was a happy ending to the scene, which I enjoyed.

The video and text have many differences throughout Act 4 Scene 1 and also in many other points of the play. I myself preferred the video version of the play because you can visually see the expressions and feelings of the characters more than just reading the text. I would also like to go and see a live Theatre production of the play to see what other differences and perspectives there are.

I enjoyed doing my coursework on "The Merchant of Venice" and looking over the themes including justice, mercy, love, anti-Semitism and hate. The text is worth reading as well as watching a video of it and also it would be worth while watching a theatre production of it.

Liam Brogan. S1F.